Malaysian Dog Names

Malaysia’s second largest city is George Town. Awarded UNESCO World Heritage Site status, the town is full of unique architecture steeped in both Chinese and British history. George is also the name of a rather large Great Dane who was taller than Shaquille O’Neal and weighed more than Peyton Manning. From the tip of his nose to the end of his tail, George measured seven feet and three inches; the giant pup weighed about 245 pounds, which is about 100 more pounds than the average Great Dane. David, George’s owner, explained that George was his first Great Dane and that he realized that his dog was unique when visiting the state fair. During the visit, he encountered three lions in a pen that he was able to get close to. Upon viewing the lions, David thought, “my dog is bigger than these lions”.

George resided in Arizona, where he had his own queen-sized bed to sleep in. According to David, he started George in a dog crate and upon his outgrowing that, provided him with a twin-size bed. George outgrew the bed within a year and moved on to the queen. The cost to feed George (dog food and treats) averaged around $250-$300 per month. It is not surprising that George was noticed everywhere he went, particularly the local dog park, where David would receive a lot of comments about George’s size. Outside of playing with his dog friends at the dog park, George enjoyed riding in a golf cart, which according to David, was one of his favorite things to do.

Another canine George received media attention as a result of the impact he had on his person, John Dolan. John, an artist who was living in England, had been struggling with homelessness, poverty and drug addiction for the majority of his life. One day, a woman who was also homeless, gave John a Staffordshire Bull Terrier puppy that she had traded for the price of a beer. Named George, it turned out that the dog would greatly impact his new owner’s life. John formed a close bond with George quickly and it became apparent to him that he had to make some changes in order to keep him. As he had a criminal record, John knew that if he went to prison again, he would lose George, so he started selling sketches and begging for money on the street in order to make ends meet. According to John, “It was only because I had the animal and he’s a responsibility”. He continued, “He’s like my child in a sense and I feel obliged to keep a roof over his head and keep him warm”.

John supported himself for three years selling sketches of George and the surrounding buildings for a few dollars each. One day he was approached by a gallery director named Richard Howard-Griffin. With the help of Howard-Griffin, John put on his first art show and it was a big success. He is now selling his sketches for around $5,000 apiece. John has also written a book titled, “John and George: The Dog Who Changed My Life”.