Big Max, the marvelous mastiff

Living on a farm in rural Nebraska wasn’t the most exciting childhood for my husband, Joe. In fact, it was pretty tame until Max the mastiff appeared at his door. He was big, friendly and hungry. Joe, who was six years old, and his little brother were in heaven; they had a big playmate.

Max became their unofficial pony. They didn’t have a saddle, but riding bareback was pretty amazing. Max was patient and willing to be their pony. He was energetic and enjoyed horsing around. Joe can’t remember how big Max was, but he was big enough to leave a huge memory.

Mastiffs are giant dogs. They are one of the most ancient types of dog breeds. The molossus is the ancestor of modern mastiffs. Originally they were ferocious war dogs, far different from the benevolent giants they are today. Mastiffs are protective, love children and exercise. Wow, that is a perfect match.

Zorba, a big mastiff who’s in the Guinness Book of Records, was 8 feet long and 343 pounds. In contrast, an average mastiff is 30 inches tall and 130-220 pounds. There are a least 17 popular mastiff breeds. We figure that Big Max was probably about 3 feet tall and 200 pounds.

One of Joe’s vivid memories is the vast amounts of slobber Max produced. But what’s a little slobber between friends? Oh, another charming attribute of Max was his snoring, moaning, grunting and groaning. It seems Max was quite the dreamer, and he was always on an adventure.

If you are looking for a protective, mellow big guy to chum around with, mastiffs can’t be beat. Yes, they are just plain marvelous.

IN NEED OF

Vendors for Bark in the Park on May 18; please call 775-423-7500 for details.

Folks to register for the AmazonSmile program; the details are below, and we receive funds every month from your purchases.

Walking buddies for our fabulous canine guests. Do you have two legs and need exercise? We are looking for folks who would love to walk, lose weight and do a good deed at the same time. Call 775-423-7500 for details.

SHOUT OUT TO

Rema White for the big bag of cans. A Four Paw salute to you!

All the faithful folks who bring cans out to CAPS. You don’t always let us know you are dropping them off but we see your efforts. A loud bark to you!

COME SEE US

CAPS will be at Walmart on April 6 with the Kissin’ Booth and a puckered-up pooch. Come by and smooch our pooch. We have hoodies, shirts and hats. Be sure to check out our merchandise after you’ve hugged our pup.

DON’T FORGET

March Pet Holiday: Professional Pet Sitters Week.

To register in the AmazonSmile program, a website operated by Amazon. Customers enjoy the same selection of products, low prices and shopping features as on Amazon.com. The only difference is that, when you shop on AmazonSmile (smile.amazon.com), the AmazonSmile Foundation will donate 0.5% of the price of eligible purchases to the charitable organization selected by you.

Flower Tree Nursery will again be raffling a tree on March 15, and the winner doesn’t have to be present to win. The raffle tickets are available at Flower Tree, and they are $1 for one ticket and $5 for six tickets.

CONTACT CAPS

CAPS’ mailing address is P.O. Box 5128, Fallon, NV 89407. CAPS’ phone number is 775-423-7500. CAPS’ email address is caps@cccomm.net. Please visit the CAPS website (www.capsnevada.com) and Facebook page (Churchill Animal Protection Society). Be sure to “Like” CAPS on Facebook because we are really likeable.

CAPS is open to the public on Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday and Saturday from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.

Kathleen Williams-Miller is a CAPS volunteer. Contact me, jkwmil@outlook.com.