Faces of Max on a cool weekend at home

Basking in the comfortable sunshine at the garden of the house, Max still have puppy features which I can recall, despite already being 3-1/2 years old.

Dog Day Afternoon (Walk)

Occasionally, in the afternoon around 3pm, I will bring Max and Jon for a short car ride to a quiet place nearby for a short walk. It can be hot at this hour, and when they return home, they will be panting frantically. Max, being so unfit, pants easily. Jon has strong stamina. He was brought up in the wild before he was rescued.

The 2 boys upon returning home

Max is recovering, and Jon seems to be more relaxed

Smart Max...putting in his head in to get the air from the fan

Testing Max's level of sleep

I was eating some chicken and there were a a few cartilege that I wanted to let Max have. As he was sleeping, I wanted to see how deep his sleep was. I placed the food in a container and placed it on his lower leg. He only flinched after I moved the container twice toward to upper part of his body. Even after he woke up, he just looked at it before deciding whether it is worth it to get up to eat the food.

The day Max made me worry

There was once when I noticed Max slightly moving his head up and down. I thought of the worse for him. Is there something wrong with his head? Did he eat something? Seconds later, I saw a little pebble falling off from his mouth. Alright...he is nibbling on a small pebble. He picked it up again and I can see that his mouth is just slightly moving too.
Now, Max will pick up a pebble to nibble on when he is in the mood.

Unique design at the rump

While Jon and Max were having their meal - with their backs facing me - I noticed that Max's rump has two identical designs on each side. It is like two eyes. In comparison, Jon's is normal, maybe just a little spot on both sides.

Max's Encounter With Rescued Dogs

My dogs rarely have the opportunity to socialise with other dogs. They do get the chance to see stray dogs on the roads; and domesticated dogs in houses, while we go for walks, but not to the point of close proximity.
There were two occasions when I brought back stray dogs for temporary shelter. As expected, Jon had snubbed them, but Max was ever curious and eager to make friends. It was ironic that these two dogs were female, and not yet spayed. However, Max was already neutered. So, the only attraction he had of these two dogs were purely of "friendship" basis.
The puppy in the first video had just been brought in on the day I found her. Before I picked her up, she was seen to be friendly to other adult dogs, but was chased away by the alpha male. So, the nervousness she is displaying in the video is not of her fear of Max. It's more of the anxiety of being in a new environment. The entrance of the cage being blocked by Max did not help in alleviating her fear, as she was seeking to come out. Max just stood there watching her pace along the width of the cage.

Wonder what is the unspoken language between a curious dog and a fearful dog.

I always tease Max that no matter how many dogs I keep here, he will always be the at the lowest of the pecking order. He is just so naive, gentle - albeit mischievous - accommodating, curious and friendly.
In the second video, it also features a female puppy. She was a playful dog. She was already well-socialised with other dogs on the streets. See how she dominates Max? Max remained submissive until the girl gave him three consecutive play-bites on the neck. He just couldn't take it anymore and confronted her. There is always a limit to what one can tolerate, I guess.

"I am a gentlemen, so you can do whatever you want to me"

Dogs cooling themselves with different methods

This is the second time I had offered Max and Jon dry ice for them to play with. Jon still avoided it, while Max had no hesitation in cooling his tongue during this hot weather.
Jon, well, preferred a rub and pat on the head to keep himself cool.