Doreen and I think it’s funny it is when people become deeply bonded, and identify broadly with their dogs. Margie and Ginny, you know we love you! 
Throughout our dear Milo’s ten years on this planet (all but a couple months spent as our family dog), he was a fixture in our lives, but was a little aloof, not unlike a cat. When Milo passed away last spring, we were heartbroken. But we decided maybe we wouldn’t betray Milo’s memory by getting another dog. When Sam and Doreen saw Walter in a pen at the Peninsula Humane Society, he was maybe all of six or seven weeks old. It was love at first sight. I begrudgingly (at first) agreed to come meet him, and it took just a moment to understand.
So dear Walt is a part of our lives now, as his first birthday approaches. And it seems he has turned us into dog people. We adore our children, we’re proud of our careers and our accomplishments, but it seems Walter is the only thing we talk about sometimes. And that feels just fine.
Oh, and about Walter’s name. We are all huge devotees of The Big Lebowski. And because of our shared admiration for John Goodman’s performance as Walter Sobchak in that brilliant film, we decided to name our puppy “Walter”. Funny thing is, he really has grown into that name. If you know him, you know what I mean.