I’ve always thought of dogs as a certain type of hero, put here to help us humans in our stumbling attempts to learn compassion. I think most of you will agree: dogs are not only our steady, loving friends, but heroes in many different ways. But have you ever imagined what your own dog would look like as a superhero?
I got to thinking about this because of my husband, Jeff Hebert. Jeff is something of a superhuman for loving all of our dogs the same way I do. Before we met, he never had a single animal. Now he helps me care for 13: five dogs, six donkeys, and two horses.
Jeff is also the creator of HeroMachine, a website that lets users build and illustrate their own superheros. Then one day it hit me: Why not ask Jeff to draw our dogs as superheroes? The results are awesome! You could have your own dog immortalized as a superhero in a full-color superhero illustration, suitable for framing.
Here are some of the Dogster folks’ dogs in all of their superhero glory.
1. Monster (owned by Annie Phenix)
Superhero name: Air Biscuit Monster
Weight: A lot!
Favorite Place: Anywhere there is food.
Superpower: Farts so strong they knock out all opponents.
Kryptonite: Keen sense of smell, so his farts knock him out as well.
Greatest Strength: His Muppet eyes melt everyone, even all villains.
Greatest Weakness: He stinks. A lot.
2. Mr. Moxie (owned by Editor-in-Chief Janine Kahn)
Superhero name: The Treatmaster
Weight: 21 lbs. of pure burnin’ love.
Favorite Place: One of his six dog beds. (It pays to be the editor’s dog!)
Superpower: Going from couch potato to counter surfer in a single breath.
Kryptonite: Dirty human underwear can keep him paralyzed (with joy, we suspect … what a little creep) for a good half hour.
Greatest Strength: He is faster than a speeding Corgi, able to make it from one side of the dog park to the other before you can say “sighthound.”
Greatest Weakness: Water. Mr. Moxie is lost when his natural eau-de-Moxie is taken from him by the evil bath monsters.
3. Spot (owned by Dogster columnist Pamela Mitchell)
Superhero name: The Tongue
Weight: 22 lbs. of (mostly) muscle.
Favorite Place: Sunny spot on the patio.
Superpower: The mere sight of his tongue sticking out puts humans under his spell.
Kryptonite: Peanut butter.
Greatest Strength: He gives the best kisses.
Greatest Weakness: Most bugs; they bite, and he breaks out in hives.
4. Ramona the Love Terrier (owned by Owen Thomas, EIC of ReadWrite)
Weight: 11 pounds of pure love.
Favorite Place: Near a window, keeping an eye out for miscreants.
Superpower: Can make any human love her.
Kryptonite: Cheese makes her involuntarily do the “Clapping Dance.”
Greatest Strength: Magic Nubbin tail can wag evildoers into submission.
Greatest Weakness: When confronted with a large, open area, must run around in circles until exhausted.
5. Trinket (owned by Annie Phenix)
Superhero name: The Scarlet Shepherd
Weight: Still growing
Favorite Place: Any body of water, unless it’s there to give her a bath.
Superpower: Sitting in human laps.
Kryptonite: Butterflies
Greatest Strength: Can rid the world of flying insects. (Except butterflies, which constantly elude her.)
Greatest Weakness: Muzzle swells from wasp stings.
6. Beasley, aka That There (owned by Dogster Community Manager Lori Malm)
Weight: 14 pounds in her big barrel chest, and 2 pounds in her tiny hiney.
Favorite Place: On Lori’s lap.
Superpower: Helping to spread awareness for senior and special-needs dogs adoption and rescue; spraying through the “blowholes” on her smoosh face when she gets mad.
Kryptonite: Stairs. Pekingese don’t do stairs.
Greatest Strength: Bulldozing through anything to get to what she wants.
Greatest Weakness: Her bladder — she’s elderly! SENIORS ROCK!
How to enter the contest
Want the chance to win a customized superhero image of your dog? If so, please do the following:
In the comments section below, tell us what your dog’s superhero name would be and why. (You don’t need to go through all the stats as listed for the dogs above, unless you want to.) If you can post a photo of your dog, do that, too — or send us a link to a full-body photo of your dog.
Jeff will pick his favorite and then work on a customized superhero portrait for that lucky winner. May the best dog win!
- Log into your Disqus account or sign up for a new one. It takes just a minute to register, and allows you to be a member of Dogster’s community of passionate dog-lovers. If you already have a Disqus account, check it to ensure the account includes a valid email. (If you don’t, we can’t contact you! So you can’t win!)
- Comment below using your Disqus account, following the directions above. Our favorite comment wins! You can enter no matter where you live.
- Check your email for a “You’ve Won!” message after noon PST on Thursday, October 24. We’ll give the winner two days to respond before moving on to my next favorite comment.
If you aren’t lucky enough to win, you can still commission Jeff to make a custom illustrated portrait of your superhero pup at a very reasonable price.
About Annie Phenix: Positive-reinforcement dog trainer and author Annie Phenix never met a mountain she did not love. This explains why she lives in Durango, Colorado, where she’s surrounded by mountains, and why she is always smiling. She delights in the snowy season here, as do her five dogs, two horses, and six adorably cute donkeys.
