Ever since I was a kid, I wanted a dog.

But it wasn't until I was an adult — newly laid off and missing a beloved cat that had passed more than a year earlier — that my husband and I adopted a 1-year-old mutt named Jack.

Hi bud!

Jack is a classic shade of brown, but a cartoonish mixture of a pitbull's head and muscly chest and some unknown breed's short little legs (our best guess is corgi) .

Sometimes when he sneezes, his head loudly — and hilariously — knocks against the floor.

In the six years we've had him, Jack has come with his share of challenges.

He is an incorrigible stealer of tissues and loses his mind when the doorbell rings.

But he is an expert cuddler and loves every single person he has ever met.

He is silly and playful.

Having Jack has helped us meet so many more of our neighbors, get much more regular exercise walking rain or shine, and helped us teach our toddler about respecting the space and bodies of other beings.