In October, I got a new running partner. Her name's Shuba, and she's a German shorthair pointer.

Shuba loves to run, especially when a squirrel's nearby. I think she knows it's time to run when I come downstairs with my running clothes on. How she knows I'm dressed dressed to run I do not know. She's more excited to see me when I'm wearing a pair of running shorts and a running shirt.

Maybe, as Dyan Cannon said when Michael Jordan was beating the Lakers for the NBA title, it's the shoes. I don't know how Shuba knows it's time to run, but she does.

Domino, our other dog, isn't much of runner. He's older -- 11 (Shuba's 8), and he'd rather sniff and pee, sniff and pee than run. He's the first one to the back door when the leashes come out.

I tried running with Domino a couple of winters ago and it went well for a while. But in our neighborhood, there are plenty of trees to sniff, so I'd get frustrated trying to hurry Domino along.

Domino, a pointer-terrier mix, and Shuba are great dogs. They constantly surprise me with what they do, whether it's destroying the bag of plastic bags my wife set out to take to Scott's or trying to climb into my lap when I'm watching TV. I wouldn't trade them for anything.

Mike Roeger is a copy editor at The Journal Gazette.

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