Several months ago, we did a Wisdom panel on Lily.

The Dachshund explains her long back, short legs and her prey drive. I am very familiar with this breed as my aunt and cousin have had several over the years. Still, we were thinking basset hound and Jack Russell…

The cattle dog explains her “freckles” and her herding instincts, her devotion to her pack and her high energy AND prey drive. I’ve known one cattle dog well and she’s nowhere near as well-mannered, but she’s still a baby.

Skipping ahead, I’ve known and loved Staffies. This breed is actually the reason I wanted the panel, because she has a “pittie butt” (read: the most athletic little peach you have ever seen), she uses her front paws like hands and she’s off the charts affectionate.

Now let’s go back to the Catahoula Leopard Dog. Of course I looked it up and read a bit. What I “heard” when we first got the results is it’s a large, mixed breed hound with lots of freckles.

What I know now is that THAT dna is what makes Lily the most intense dog I’ve ever known. Everything she does she does with vigor unlike any creature I’ve ever encountered before. Every website devoted to the breed describes them as high energy, vocal, hard to train, requires an experienced owner…

That’s our girl. Oh, she is food motivated and picks things up almost instantly, but those experienced dog whisperers know that’s not the same as “trained.” She knows what we want her to do but either can’t manage the impulse control to pull it off sometimes or loves the sport of challenging authority.

This girl has a vocal range I don’t know how to articulate. It’s not Mariah Carey multiple octaves; it’s a seasoned cover band that can do Stevie Nicks’ rasp, Bonnie Raitt’s growl, Steven Tyler’s scream and more. Just when we think we’ve heard all of her voices, she tosses out another one. Evidently, that’s her “bayou bitch” genes too.

One “Catahouligan” (yep, I’m using that as one of her hashtags) breeder said she won’t home pups with anyone unwilling or unable to devote at least two hours PER DAY to exercise for the beasts. So much for the “moderate energy” dog the rescue said we were bringing home.

You see, that’s what started my deep dive into this unknown breed. A friend of a friend mentioned that she never would have taken one of her cattle dogs (yes, plural; the woman has several and it is her breed of choice) had she known it was part CLD; those dogs are just too mouthy and require obscene amounts of exercise and stimulation.

Ahhh… now we’re getting somewhere. Lily is a back-talking, never enough exercise girl.

And no, we’re not talking about the Pomeranian part. While CLDs are large dogs and Lily’s maybe 30 lbs. with the muscle building we’ve been doing, I can see all the spots, but the poor dog is as close to hairless as I’ve ever had. She’s barely single-coated… but by all means, if someone is well-versed on fluffy little dogs and sees anything other than the entertainer in Lily, please speak up.

Here’s the full breakdown. At least she is 25% terrier and 25% hound?

I’m not sure the CLD folks would agree they are hounds. They also are serious protectors, which explains what I had been trying to manage as reactivity; Lily protects me like she’s special forces and all the world – leaves, birds, squirrels, neighbors – are serious threats.

Lily IS a lot. We say that almost daily, but she’s also over the top with affection, intelligence, her sensitivity to our moods, her athleticism, her silly antics and more. She’s teaching us about reactivity and patience, she’s showing us how to live life to its fullest, and she’s the biggest breath of fresh air we didn’t know we needed.