(NOT FOR ADOPTION - SHE IS LOVED TILL DEATH DO US PART)
Adopted as a puppy, lives indoor. Very attached to us and is treated as family member. Highly intelligent (never underestimate a mongrel's IQ), understands basic commands, energetic and potty-trained (on big tray with newspaper on - gosh like a cat), sometimes pees accidentally when too excited but realised it immediately and will normally give a 5-cent face out of guilt. She doesn't bark, so one would think that she's a Basenji Mix - afterall, when she walk, her tail is curled almost like a Basenji.
Someone did ask me whether she is debarked. No, when she first came to us, she'd howl, cry and nervously bark for long hours - razor sharp bark I tell you. I put to practice what I watched in Dog Wishperer, then I put my own flavour basically telepathy kind of thing, talked/preached, most importantly prayed for her...walla, after 2-3 weeks she is "debarked". As a way of communication, she would make different sounds (as if she is talking) depending on the degree of importance and with her facial expression and body language, only I can understand it.
She would once in while bark i.e. one ear-piercing bark followed by her talking sound and I know she is warning us of some irregularities. The most memorable one was she saved us from being late to school - we were extreemely late to wake up on that particular day (1st time in my life as a father of school-going children), she gave us her killer bark and off we go, reached school on the dot...thank God for such a wonderful companion.
Indeed, she is very good in reading our facial expressions or our mood. So I am looking forward to have her as our theraphy doggy Dr..LOL...(seriously, I m looking forward to uncover this potential).
Frankly, on a negative side, being selfish and 'racist', I wish she is not a mongrel but pure breed, I always dream of seeing her to grow up as a Pharaoh Hound or Andalusian Podenco.....given a chance, I'd love to have a Pharaoh Hound majestically sitting in my livingroom, and proudly walked/parade her around and every heads would turn and look at her in amazement...gosh perhaps only in my dream...what I am having now is just a mongrel and I would adorn her with accessories when I bring her to the vet so that others (at the vet, with their pure breed dogs) will not look at my Mocha d'mongrel in anoyance.
I feel that these people carrying a pure breed is like a status symbol..(or perhaps I am wrong). If someone'd ask me what breed is that? I'd answer "Oh, it's supposed to be a Pharaoh Hound but somehow got retarded after she ate chocolate" LOL hopefully my Mocha wouldn't know that I m 'racist' and bias towards d'mongrel.
(anyway, perhaps you can help me to determine what breed is she close to..just for fun)...
by the way, she is an excape artist, but not to worry, she is indoor all the time. Non-destructive, knows our household items and personal belongings are not to be touched - amazingly, I didn't teach her that, she knows it intuitively... based on experience, I believe that dog can understand/see what human think/feel if both have attained the level of "consensus ad idem" especially if we treat them as members of our family.
I love dogs of any kind, back home (Sabah) I've been living with dogs as long as I can remember and all of them were mongrel of great looks and uniqueness in their own way. Finally, I love my Mocha d'mongrel and give my due respect to all d'mongrel lovers out there.
Update: July 17, 2013
Today is Mocha's birthday (will upload the pic later).
As a 1-year old mongrel, she is considered small - slightly bigger than Jack Russell Terrier. My vet suggested that she is a min.pin mix or JRT mix.
So my dream of having a Pharoah Hound is over...
Anyway, her small size is a blessing coz she like to sleep on my little daughter's lap and loved doing lots of cuddling - can't imagine if she is as big as Doberman... she's such a clown and loved so much.
Such a fearless dog, she wanted to attack and furiously confronted intact male dogs passing-by my house or around the neighbourhood, mind you, most of the male dogs are at least double of her size and that one particular stray male dog is tripple of her size - she never backed-up eventhough at times she had actually step-into other dog's territory.
Sigh, I'm having problem walking her as she thought she is a Doberman. I can't believe such a an angel, gentle, sweet dog can turn into a monster in protecting her pact?
Even (while) indoor, she'd jump the window or the sliding door to attack other dogs or cat. I have to close the door at all time.
Since she is an excape artist, I am worried that one day she'll get into trouble with these dogs.
However, she is well behaved during vet visit or at the groomer and she's fine with toy-sized dogs like toy poodle, toy terrier and shih-tzu.
Now, I am seriously learning dog's psychology (hehe) to help her - sometime successful - most of the time failed, I think the insecurity is inside me. Perhaps, when I see intact stray male dogs, I feel scared/insecured that they (stray dogs)may attack/injure my tiny female Mocha, and she sensed this insecurity from me and initiated the attack to protect me? Oh wow, as I am writing this, I've got the answer to her problem.
Anyway, she is as gentle as a dove to my children - skillfully, they all exhibit pact leader...but not with my wife, Mocha always tease/bully her and they are so cute in that state...