Celebrating National Dog Day With My Big Hippo [PICS]

In celebration of National Dog Day let me introduce you to Hippo.

Hippo is my 3-year-old Great Dane who weighs roughly 150 lbs. He's not the brightest dog in the world but I love him all the same.

Having a Great Dane comes with lots of challenges including his size, allergies, the power of his wagging tail, and the amount of drool he produces daily.

Because he's so big, it feels like he's always right there in your face and in the way. We can't really take him with us when we visit family and friends because people just don't want a dog that size in their home (which I understand).

I've had to patch my walls on more than one occasion because his tail is so powerful that it's blown out chunks of drywall. If you're a dude, you have to pay close attention to his tail because it's at nut level, if he connects it'll bring to your knees.

Hippo is allergic to pretty much everything, seriously. He's allergic to chicken (that includes chicken meal) which is in everything. It's really hard finding dog food and treats that don't contain chicken. He's also allergic to plastic, rubber, nylon and a variety of other things that we've yet to figure out. Normally when he comes in contact with the stuff I just mentioned, he breaks out with a red rash all over his body. Sometimes his face swells up too which always freaks me out.

When it comes to slobber and droll, let's just say it's everywhere. We have to constantly wash our walls, windows, appliances, curtains, TVs etc. Every time he shakes his head (which is all the time because of ear issues) the slobber flies everywhere, it's pretty gross. He can literally walk up to the kitchen table and set his face on it, leaving behind a nasty slobber slime that'll make you gag.

With all that said, we love the hell out of the big goofy dog. All he wants to do is love, all day every day. I wouldn't trade him for the world, he's part of the family. Happy National Dog Day!