The Official Houston Zoo Blog

Just missing the cut… Taco Bell Chihuahua, Charlie B. Barkin

10. Lassie

Trouble at the Old Mill?

You’ve gotta love Lassie. Have any other dogs ever won an Emmy Award?

9. Black-tailed Prairie Dogs

Kids get an up-close look.

Ok, so they’re actually rodents and not canines, but it says dog in their name, so it counts. You can find these little guys (2-4 pounds) in our Children Zoo area.

Prairie dogs live in huge colonial burrows called towns. Each member has its own den and drives any intruders away. Towns can extend for hundreds of miles and often contain thousands of individuals. Be sure to check them out this summer, because they hibernate during the winter.

8. Santa’s Little Helper

The Simpsons Pet

Most underrated Simpsons character besides Maggie. He can fly a plane, save Homer from being trapped in a cornfield maze, and had over 25 puppies. Enough said.

7. Underdog

Have No Fear Underdog Is Here

Underdog speaks only in rhymes. Now he’s on my dog blog.

6. African Wild Dogs

Takin' a Swim

First of all, our African wild dogs have awesome names: Aries, Blaze, and Mikita. In the wild, they live mainly in Namibia, Botswana, Mozambique, Zimbabwe, and Swaziland.

Pack sizes in the wild can be anywhere from 5-30 individuals. These guys are fast, running at 35 mph for over three straight miles.

You might’ve noticed their unique coats – and like a fingerprint, no two dogs have the same coat pattern.

5. Brian Griffin

Million-Dollar Smile

Bipedal, high IQ, sarcastic, eloquent, voice of reason. Also – afraid of vacuums.

4. Snoopy

Pioneer of the Thought Bubble

No one can forget the impact that Charlie Brown’s pet beagle had on us as children. Plus, someone had to cheer up Charlie Brown after Peppermint Patty bullied him around.

3. Anatolian Shepherds

Living in Harmony

Taji and Tusker make up one of the most amazing stories at the Houston Zoo. Not only are they a beautiful breed that’s been around for over 6,000 years – they live with our cheetahs, Kiburi and Kito.

Dogs and cats living together. Hard to imagine? Not for us.

Taji and Tusker act as the cheetahs’ guardians and even share the same exhibit. The Cheetah Conservation Fund livestock guardian dog project in Namibia breeds and provides these dogs to native ranchers to protect their livestock from predators. Follow their updates at our new cheetah dog blog.

2. Scooby Doo

The many faces of Scooby Doo

He could eat 20 pizzas at once. Or a hamburger with 10 patties. All while solving mysteries and saving kids from haunted amusement parks. Scooby rode around in the Mystery Machine, which automatically makes him the coolest fictional dog of all time in my book.

1. Max the Elephant Dog

That's right. I live with elephants.

A recent addition to the Houston Zoo family and a big hit around here is Max the Elephant Dog. Recently rescued from the side of the road, Max now lives it up at the McNair Asian Elephant Barn.

His full name is Maximus. He was named after the scientific name for elephants (Elephas maximus). Max serves a very important role in training and enrichment of our elephants.