John and Ashley and their children Miller and Porter share their home with two of our nannies’ favorites: Big sister Lucy and puppy Max, a growing Bull Mastiff.
Although Ashley is an Alabama graduate (Yes, folks – you read that correctly), she and her Rebel husband John relocated to the Oxford area for a business opportunity almost fifteen years ago. Lucy and Max were not the first pets living with this active household; their tribe included Carlos the cat and the beloved Miles also a Bull Mastiff.
At a time when the home was pet-quiet, their Veterinarian contacted them about the possibility of adopting Lucy from another family. Sadly, the first family of Lucy was unable to keep her and asked the Vet to help in finding a great new home for her. The Vet eventually persuaded the Callery’s to “just let her spend one night” … and as expected, the family fell in love with Lucy. Lucy wasn’t so sure about the move and did some roaming to check out the other possibilities in the neighborhood, developing a fond relationship with one of the Callery’s neighbors. Lucy and the neighbor had many impromptu visits before she eventually called the new place her own, eventually sleeping with the family cat at the time, Carlos. She is now canine mom to puppy Max, although she didn’t warm up to him quickly when he invaded her territory earlier this year.
Max is all feet right now, but as Miller explained when displaying a photo of Max, he looked just like a Pug as a baby! Max was a family present last Christmas but still too young to make a holiday debut so his arrival was postponed until after the holidays. He instantly bonded with John and was a perfect puppy all the way from Missouri to Mississippi during the long car ride. But when he arrived in Oxford, he wouldn’t get out of the car! Porter explains one of Max’s favorite things is trucks; particularly cement trucks, for some reason. Miller also helped demonstrate how Max might just think he’s a little tiny lapdog after she sat down and big dog Max climbed into her lap, all but making her disappear. His favorite thing to play with and chew is anything that gets close to his mouth.
Max may go for anything, but Lucy focuses on the wildlife. She’s fascinated by deer, especially the fawns. She laid by a deceased fawn for hours guarding the body until John came to help. She also once outlasted a groundhog for two hours in a nose-to-nose standoff. The nerve of that groundhog – coming out to check his shadow on her watch!
Thank you Callery family for sharing your “tribe” with Homeward Bound!