Meet Radar...

Radar found his way to us about 3 months ago. I don't know where he came from, but he appeared one day hanging about in the yard of a vacant apartment across the street. My next door neighbor had a female dog that I'm sure was his reason for hanging about. He wouldn't come near anyone and the kids down the street kept chasing him. 


On the fourth day of his visit, I decided he was probably not going anywhere and he looked like he'd not eaten in quite some time, so I sat some food and water out for him and I went back inside to keep an eye on him, but give him his space.


A few hours later, I went and sat outside in my chair and keep an eye on him. He trotted over and laid his head in my lap and looked up at me with the most beautiful golden eyes. Well, that cinched it, he'd adopted me!


I brought him into the house, much to the dismay of Tinkerbell the cat. The teen son and the boy debated for hours about what to call him. Since they had been on a M*A*S*H kick that week, he was dubbed Radar! And he's been with us ever since. The vet told us he's between 3 and 5 years old. He has some gray fur around his mouth and nose, but she said his teeth look great, so between those two factors, it's hard to narrow it down. He only weighed 73lbs then, I'm sure now he's well over 80. He's a very big boy. (The vet did check for a microchip and I've watched Craigslist list for any missing notices that fit his description, there were neither.)

I'm pretty sure that he wasn't treated well in his previous situation. But he is oh so very protective of his "people". He growls and barks at the mail man, garbage man, pizza man, and anyone who comes to the door, except kids. (We've been working on it, and he is getting better, but he still stands on alert when they pass.) When I was having a serious bout of illness, he stayed by my bed for 5 days. 


Radar loves his boy and spends most of the school days pouting at the door (as seen in the first photo) or lying on the boys bed waiting for him to come home. If his boy comes home and doesn't take him out to play, he pouts and whines some more. Radar adores kids, tolerates adult women (except me, he loves me), and detests men (except for Mike, he likes him ok too). It has taken 2 months to get him to stop barking/growling at Billy, the boys Cubmaster, whose 13yo son hangs out at our house after school until his dad picks him up. 


How anyone could have ever abandoned this big sweetie is beyond me. He is such a loving companion and has done wonders for the boy.