One is 12 and naps in the sun. One is 11 weeks and hunts cicadas. Both are German Shorthaired Pointers, and both belong to the Marks family.
Brandi and Jim Marks and the rest of the family share their home with Katie and Lily, two German Shorthaired Pointers, a breed with a "Velcro dog" reputation for sticking close to its people.
Katie, 12
The Marks brought Katie home from a Wisconsin breeder at 8 weeks old, choosing her for the two big brown spots on her back, in the breed's liver-and-roan coloring. She grew up alongside the family's two children and patiently sat through countless tea parties in necklaces, crowns and scarves. She is the best friend of every dog on the block and loves neighborhood sleepovers when the family dog-sits.
At 12, her days run to a leisurely morning ramble through the bushes and a long nap in the sun, as close to her humans as she can get. She eats crunchy romaine and carrots, turns her nose up at "yucky iceberg" and guards an everlasting gobstopper toy she refuses to share with visiting buddies. A photo of her in fall leaves won the October page of the Southwest German Shorthaired Pointer Calendar.
Her inner monologue, the family suspects: "When is this new puppy finally going home?"
Lily, 11 weeks
Lily joined the family at 8 weeks old from a North Carolina breeder; the Marks picked her because she has three brown spots on her liver-and-roan coat. In three weeks she has mastered sit, come, leave it, bow, shake and "drop it." She has a keen nose and loves hunting cicadas.
Her day starts at 5 a.m. with breakfast and a potty break, then back to bed, then a cycle of eating, napping and trips outside seemingly every hour. She likes peanut butter and a squeaky Kong Wubba Hippo toy. Nicknamed "Lily Muffin," she cuddles in any lap or stays as close to Katie as possible.
Her inner monologue: "Why won't the big dog play with me? I just want to bite her floppy ears, it's so much fun!"
A coat that changes
German Shorthaired Pointer coats change a lot in the first few weeks. Lily's spots were distinct at 3 weeks old; then her white undercoat turned brown and the big spots blended into her roan pattern.
This story appears in the October 2026 issue of Stroll Providence.