Qannik is our third dog to present the reasons he deserves to be the winner of the Valentines Hearts for the Herd Contest!

Remember, the rules are simple. Mail a Valentine to your favorite member of The Herd at:

Dog’s Name
c/o The Thundering Herd
PO Box 1835
Maggie Valley, NC  28751-1835

If you wish, enclose a contribution by including a check or money order in any amount to Sarge’s Animal Rescue Foundation.  Sarge’s helped over 1100 animals find new homes in 2013 – yes, that is an average of 3 every single day – so your money will be going to a terrific cause.  You can click that link to find out all about Sarge’s.

We will reveal which member of The Herd receives the most Valentines AND who raises the most money for Sarge’s!

And even better – one lucky reader who mails a Valentine will be selected to win a special prize from Smoky Mountain Dog Bakery!  The bakery is absolutely awesome (we are personal fans of the treats!) and we really value their support!

And now, let’s hear from Qannik!

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Qannik (Q-Tip) showing his serious side

Qannik here to make clear why I should be the winner of this contest. I have a secret on Sarge’s Animal Rescue Foundation – they play dirty. But it is ok because that is why I am at Chez Herd. Let me explain.

July 14, 2007 – Hu-dad was dropping off some dog supplies to the good folks at Sarge’s and they just casually mentioned that there was this all-white Siberian Husky at the animal shelter that they planned to pick up the next week as soon as a foster home opened up. Would hu-dad mind stopping by the shelter and make sure he was ok? Hu-dad took one look in my blue eyes and guess what happened?

And we were at 5. Left to right – Rusty, Kodiak, Qannik, Natasha and Kiska.

First thing the hu-dad had to do was change my name. You see, the shelter staff called me Snowflake and hu-dad decided I needed a more manly name. He looked up Snowflake and discovered it was Qannik in the Inuit language. And so I became the manly Qannik. Which, of course, promptly morphed into Q-Tip and I lost all of the manliness of the name.

But do I love the snow!

And then we had to work on some medical issues I had. My neck had a wound from where a rope had been around my neck. My ears were nearly bare of fur from the fly bites. My feet were cut and scarred where I stood in a suspended chicken wire crate much of my early life, as often happens to a breeding male in a puppy mill setting. Somehow, I got away from all of that and today the fur covers my neck scars and ears (though my paw scars are still visible). I also had kennel cough and a nasty urinary tract infection that took months to cure.

But I sing only happy songs today.

Having worked with Kiska for a year, hu-dad felt ready to deal with my challenges. But the reality was that I am just a happy go lucky guy who decided that all of that stuff was in the past. Period. I am just happy about everything. Food. Sleep. Running. My brothers and sisters. Rain. Oh, yeah, rain. I can sit in the rain for hours and just let it soak into my fur. Then I come running to the hu-dad and want to hug him.

How about now, hu-dad? Can we hug now?

So let’s list this out. I am handsome. Blue eyed. Happy. Carefree. Always smiling. So I should get all of the Valentines! (And raise some money so Sarge’s can spring some other great dogs and cats from the local shelter.)