BEST FRIENDS CALI AND LORIEN

Social media fame: Instagram - @goldengirlcalibear

Nicknames: Cali has so many nicknames and we probably call her by her nicknames more than we use Cali. Current favourites are Monkey, CareBear and my little Bear. She responds to all.

♡ How old is Cali?

Cali turned 4 in October but she still acts like a baby at times.

♡ How did you meet?

I had just got back from living in London for 11 years without any animals (you won't believe how hard that is when you've grown up in a house full of furries) and the first thing I wanted when I got back to SA was a dog. My husband and I went to see a litter of GR puppies and while Matt loved the mom and dad, I sat down to watch the puppies play. This little ball of fur walked up to me, climbed into my lap and went to sleep. After about 20 minutes, Matt asked me if I had made a decision… I pointed to the pup in my lap and said ‘I think I’ve been chosen’ and that was that. She chose me as her human and everyday we thank our lucky stars that she did :)

♡ She looks like butter wouldn't melt! But can you share with us... What is the naughtiest thing she has ever done?

Cali was never a naughty pup. She didn’t chew or dig or destroy things. We were very lucky with that. I’d say the naughtiest thing she’s done is steal food, although thankfully this has only happened 4 or 5 times. Cali eats raw and always comes with me when we go and fetch her food. She loves going into the office to say hello to everyone and especially loves going into the kitchen where the grinding and packaging of meat happens so when she wonders off, I don’t worry too much.

One day, I had been speaking to the sales lady for about 10 minutes and realized that Cali was very quiet. A minute later I saw her sneak outside with something in her mouth. I went out to see what she had and found her happily eating a chicken quarter. We asked the kitchen staff if they had given her anything and they said no but then one of them ran into the staff room and it turned out that they had taken 5 chicken quarters out to defrost but left them on a plate on a low table. There was 1 left on the plate! Cali had eaten 3 of them and was in the process to taking number 4 outside to eat in the shade when I found her.

The owner found it hilarious and gave Cali the last 2 chicken quarters to take home with us. Cali slept the whole afternoon away in her food coma and ended up having an egg for dinner as she had already eaten 2 days worth of food in 10 minutes!

♡ There is no mistaking Cali is a true golden and loves the water! Where is her favourite place to go swimming? Can you take us back to her first swimming experience?

Cali loves all water but I’d have to say that she loves the ocean the most. She didn’t always like the water though and was 6 months old before she realized how amazing water could be. We were away for the weekend and there was a river close to where we were staying. We went down for a swim thinking she might swim in with us but all she did was stand on the bank and bark at us.

So we made a game and started throwing her stick (she’s a big lover of sticks too) into the shallow water and encouraging her to fetch it. After about 5 throws, I accidentally threw her stick into the deep section thinking that I’d have to dive in and fetch it but without a second thought, she charged into the water after her stick and at that moment a water baby was born. We spent hours in that river that weekend and now we can’t keep her out of the water. Her pile of swimming towels is bigger than ours.

♡ We love Cali's sense of humour! Can you tell us a funny story about her?

She makes us laugh daily! We store Cali’s pool toys in a crate on the table outside so that they can dry off after they’ve been used. One afternoon we were sitting in the lounge and I looked up to find Cali standing on the table with her head in the crate. I called her name and asked her what she was doing and she looked up with one of her pool toys in her mouth, tail wagging and looking so proud of herself. Now when she wants to go for a swim, she’ll go and fetch a toy and bring it to you.

Describe your pooch in three words: Loving. Gentle. Impatient.

♡ What is life like when your dog is your best friend?

It’s wonderful! Every day is full of love and cuddles and laughter and fun. Life can be tough at times but having a dog who is your best friend makes everyday better.

Cali makes me smile when… I open my eyes in the morning and see her furry face and wet nose lying on the pillow next to me. Yes, she sleeps on our bed. Or when I come home and she meets me at the door with a shoe or a jersey or a toy in her mouth and then insists that I follow her back to the couch so that I can say hello to her properly and share some love. Cali makes me smile just because she exists and that makes the world a much better place.