My buddy Newt (short for newton, as in the color of fig newtons!) was one of the MOST loveable, loyal, friendly and down-right SPECIAL dogs ever! He was my Golden Retriever that I lost 2 years ago to cancer. I will probably never really "get over" losing him! He was more than just MY buddy though, as he was about the best babysitter around to a stray Momma cat that found her way into our barn one day. After her initial "introduction" to the resident "guard dog" (hardly!), she quickly figured out he was NO threat AT ALL ... and soon after giving birth to her first (of many!) litter of kittens, she quickly left Newt "in charge" of her brood, whenever she "went out". Her kittens weren't the only ones who enjoyed Newt's body heat and long fur ... we found HER tucked up with him a time or two as well !!! We raise horses and he always got along with them too and despite his 100+ pounds, the mares never saw him as a "threat" to their foals either. The only "quirk" about Newt was that he was TERRIFIED of thunder and lightning! Without fail, he would let me know when a storm was headed our way. He would suddenly become GLUED to my leg and get all riled up, then eventually find a place "to hide". AMAZING how that big 'ole body could squeeze into the tiniest places! One of his favorites was crawling up in the underbelly of our vehicles. One summer he had eaten a few TOO many drumsticks (the ice cream variety, not poultry!) and he got wedged in SO tight that I couldn't get him out, no matter HOW hard I pulled. In the end, a friend came over and had to drop the driveline on the pickup to get him out!!! He never tried that again after that ... I guess he realized he couldn't "fit" under there anymore! He was TRULY a "gem" and is very, VERY much missed!!!