Stella the Labradoodle came into Robbie Ralkowski's life as, "kind of a rescue," she said. "We got her in Gresham, Oregon from a breeder down there almost four years ago. "We like to say she's a rescue because she was one of the first dogs to go in the litter and the people that got her the first time couldn't keep her because they had two older dogs that were really mean to her so they took her back to the breeder, so we got her when she was 12 weeks old. She is now four years old."

The Ralkowskis (husband Jan and Robbie) feed Stella a natural dog food they get at Petco and for treats she gets liver treats.

They have two grandchildren, Ellie and Jack and they, "absolutely love her. She gets so excited when they come over and we see them a lot. They come to the door and she just goes completely ballistic. They are the light of her life. At family dinners we can often find Stella and one of the kids under the table."

The thing that Robbie says is special about Stella is the reaction she gets from people. "Every place I take her whether it's the groomer or the people who take her when we are out of town, they just love her. I just hear what a sweet dog she is with everybody who meets her. She loves people."

The kids spent the night one night, sleeping in the same room and Grandson Jack, "was on the floor all curled up in the fetal position sleeping on the dog bed with Stella."

Stella is not a squirrel chaser but does love to walk along Alki for her exercise.

The Ralkowskis used to have a Springer Spaniel who sadly died very unexpectedly. After rushing her to vet for emergency surgery they could not save her. They were heartbroken. "We just said to each other, 'Let's wait a year. Maybe we won't get a dog for awhile. Three days later we were on the road to pick up Stella. There's a spirit in the house that dogs provide."

They went down to pick her up sight unseen, judging just from the pictures so I asked the breeder, "What happens if we don't like the dog? Will I get my deposit back? He was sort of silent and then he said, 'That's not going to happen, but I will give it back to you."

Robbie summed up Stella as, "She is so sweet and so loving. Even people who don't like dogs like Stella."