March 25, 2005

Pet of the Month

‘Bombon’

His name means “marshmallow” in Spanish and he weighs just 2 pounds 4 ounces, but this miniature Maltese won’t hesitate to bark at the pit bull who lives next door.

“He’s not afraid,” says Irma Alvarez of the five-month-old puppy she bought her daughter Irma for Christmas last December. “He doesn’t care what size the dog is—he goes up to any dog and let’s them know he’s there.”

When the Alvarez family first got Bombon, he could be easily transported in Irma’s purse. They snuck him into a restaurant once, but once he caught a whiff of those meatballs, there was no containing him in his makeshift baby carrier.

Now that he’s a bit older, Bombon loves to run and run around the house and yard. Young Irma, a sixth grader at Tom Matsumoto School, has learned that a puppy is much like a toddler—he leaves his toys all over the place and cries when she has to leave for school in the mornings. And he’s a big responsibility.

“When he finds something he knows that we don’t want him to have, he goes under the couch to his secret hideout,” she says with a laugh. “He’s so lovable. When he’s in his playpen, all he wants to do is kiss you so that you’ll let him out.”

The Alvarez family has earned a $20 gift certificate from the Evergreen Pet Center, 1640 E. Capitol Expressway, for submitting a winning photo and description of why their new puppy is so special. Send a photo and description of your favorite pet to Bea Baechle at the Evergreen Times, bea@timesmediainc.com.