German Shepherd ‘Dog-Donkey’ Maya Wins Pet of the Week

This week a husky wowed us with her impressive door-closing skills and a cat creatively named Pedro Pspspscal was adopted from a shelter in Kansas.

We’ve also had lots of great reader submissions from pet parents and animal lovers. Remember if you want your pet to be part of the Newsweek Pet of the Week lineup scroll to the end of this story to find out how.

Winner

This week our winner is adopted German shepherd dog Maya who lives in upstate New York with owner Deborah Walike.

She told Newsweek: “We have always said that Maya is German shepherd dog-donkey, because her ears are crazy huge.”

Adopted from German Shepherd Rescue of Central New York in 2008, Maya’s owners recently had a doggy DNA test done on their beloved pup.

“On the other side one parent’s line was every kind of dog imaginable and the other side was three generations greyhound, which was pretty surprising,” said Walike. “She doesn’t have any real characteristics of greyhound, except that she was so fast which we learned when she worked [in] agility [training].”

Now around 16 years old, Maya has come a long way from the young rescue dog she was: “When we adopted her she was a perfect mess,” said Walike. “Aggressive, fearful, socially clueless—you name it.”

But her loving owners set to work through and took her to a training school. From obedience classes to agility training and rallies, Maya transformed: “She slowly came into her beautiful self,” said Walike. “She is our heart.”

Finalists

Our first finalist this week is another rescue dog—Honey Bunny who lives in Tampa Bay with owner Cheri Schumacher.

“Honey Bunny was picked up on a street and brought to the Critter Adoption and Rescue Effort shelter,” Schumacher told Newsweek.

It was one feature in particular that drew her new owners to Honey Bunny: “She had us at first sight—the ears,” said Schumacher. “Honey Bunny is half spunky and half lap dog. She likes all people and most all dogs if they are not too big, and she will let you know when she wants to play.”

Our second finalist this week is rescue kitten Deisel. Sent in by Mary McMahan from Illinois, Deisel belongs to her daughter Katelyn.

“My daughter rescued him when he was just days old,” McMahan told Newsweek. “I shared in keeping up with Deisel’s bottlefeeding schedule until he was weaned. Katelyn vowed throughout that she wasn’t keeping him, she already had three cats, three dogs, two kids, and her husband and that was enough.”

But when it came to finding the kitten a new home, the family was already too attached and Deisel ended up staying for good.

“Deisel loves to play with socks, paper wads, any kind of cat toy, and boxes. But when Deisel is done playing, you will find him cuddle up on a family lap,” said McMahan. “Deisel is such a fun boy, but it is his gentle, loving side that melts my heart.”

Last but certainly not least, this week is 11-month-old Italian greyhound Sarena.

“Sarena was sought out by my daughter online. She was born in Georgia and lovingly driven up the coast directly to our home,” owners Anne and Jen told Newsweek.

She loves playing with friends at the dog park, meeting new people and watching things through the window.

“She is full of spunk,” said her owner. “Super friendly, feisty at play, but really loving.”