Dmitri the day after we found him.

I mentioned to Chris that this guy needed a Russian name, seeing as he is a Siberian Husky.  Chris said "How about Dmitri?" and for some reason, it just seemed to work.

None yet.

Around May 1, 2006.

He appears to be a purebred Siberian Husky.  We'll never know for sure since we don't know his history, but I don't see any evidence of another breed in him.

He's fairly tall for a Husky, but is quite slender (55 lbs / 25 kg). His coat is a lovely red-and-cream color, but his eyes are his most amazing feature.  They're such a  pale blue that they're rather startling.

The first time we heard Dmitri bark, we both stood there with our mouths open, trying to figure out where the sound was coming from. Like most Huskies (and Malamutes), he tends to yodel rather than bark, and it's truly hilarious. His voice in unusually deep, too. The other dogs didn't know what to make of it at first but seem to be used to it now.

Often, for no apparent reason, he says "WHOA WHOA WHOA" in a tired, resigned tone. It makes us laugh every time.

Click here to hear the way Dmitri greets me when I arrive home from work.

Click here to see and hear him "singing."

I was working out on February 22 when I heard our dogs barking non-stop. They often bark at cows and skunks and such, but this time, the barking didn't stop after a reasonable period, so we went to investigate. There was Dmitri, running loose on the road near our place. He came right away when I called to him.

We put up posters and placed an ad in the paper as usual, but we figured he was probably dumped. He wasn't neutered and was rather unkempt looking - and to add to that, someone had shot him with a pellet gun. Fortunately, his injuries were minor and healed quickly.

Dmitri arrived a little over a month after we lost Geneva unexpectedly and he helped us and the other dogs adjust to her loss.

Dmitri is an exceedingly happy, cheerful dog and gets along well with everyone he meets - people and dogs. He fit into our family right away, with no problems at all. Some of the Huskies I've know in the past have been hyperactive to the point of being neurotic and they've been untrustworthy with small animals. Dmitri is none of the above. He's extremely athletic and active, but not hyperactive.

His behavior with the cats is a bit odd. He completely ignores them - not even displaying normal canine curiosity about them. We think he must have been raised around cats and taught from an early age to leave them alone.

For a younger dog, he's pretty well-behaved, too. In short, I can't imagine why someone left him in the desert to die, but then I'm always puzzled about that.

He has a recurring ear infection in the left ear only, but that's it so far.

Jumping on top of the pig houses, playing with any of the other dogs, and opening the front door to our house. He doesn't come in: he just opens it and stands there, looking inside.

He gets along with everyone, but plays with Aardvark (Creedence) and Brittany more than anyone else.