Their dog is Gump Flanagan who just turned five years old. He's a St. Weiler which is a mix of Rottweiler and St. Bernard.  

"As my husband puts it, he's 120 lbs of goofy," said Joyce.

Joyce and Michael rescued Gump in May of 2023.  His owner no longer wanted him after his wife passed away last year.  A friend of theirs rescued him and posted his picture on Facebook. 

"We saw the post and just had to meet him," she said.

He immediately took to Michael first and he was sold. They had planned a Chicago trip and their first night there, they decided we wanted to take him.  He's been there since with no plans of leaving.  

"Gump was the name he already had when we rescued him.  We thought about changing it, but as more of his personality began to show, the more his name absolutely fit him.  He's definitely a Gump," Joyce said. "Gump is the most laid back dog we've ever had.  Not very vocal, he just has this low woof when he wants your attention."

Gump loves to patrol his yard and go for his morning and evening walks on the Boulevard. They don't go too far. He's a big boy and doesn't need to go that far before he's tired.  But he loves his walks.  He looks forward to seeing his friends, both canine and human and meet new people. It makes his day. 

"He doesn't like it when you get upset. He'll come over and sit down next to you and put his paw on you to tell you to settle down. He does that with other dogs too," said Joyce. 

He does love the ladies and has many canine friends, like Natasha, Aspen, Sophie, Charlie, Cocoa, Bebe, Nudge, Tony, Simon and Riley. He also looks forward to all the petting from his friends parents.  He enjoys visiting his neighbor Louise and neighbor Bill and getting special pets from Peter, Chuck, Bob and our service department workers.  He's quite the social butterfly.