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How Romeo and I Invented the WaterDogTM
Romeo was the second Great Dane I adopted. At 6 weeks old I knew he was going to be big. His feet were already bigger at 6 weeks than Cleopatra's (my current female Great Dane) at 1 year. During his first summer he grew at a 1 pound a day rate for 2 months. My dogs were like my family in that I treated them the same as I would my wife or kid. I made sure they had the best food and bedding and toys, and everything they could possibly need. I even bought a minivan specially fitted in the rear for them to travel in so that they would be comfortable. I made an eating and drinking area in my heated and finished garage that had a 6 foot shelf 22 inches off the floor so that they did not have to bend to eat or drink. While they were growing I used 4 inch plastic crates and stacked them to keep up with their rapid growth. So now you know my mindset.
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During our daily walks in our new neighborhood I would see that Romeo would get very thirsty. Feeling very anxious over his
thirst, I would look for water. I saw there were water spigots at the curb in front of houses which were under construction. Since I was desperate to quench his thirst, I would turn the water on and happily he would drink from the spigot. Cleopatra would watch Romeo and then she would drink. |
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After doing this about 2 or 3 times, Romeo would walk up to any spigot he saw and wait there for me to turn it on. If I was
not particularly fast he would look at me and then the water spigot, until I got the message. He loved to drink from the
spigot. Out of laziness I would think how nice it would be for the spigot to be able to open automatically, so that I wouldn't have to bend down and open it and then bend down again to close it. |
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As I thought more about how much Romeo loved to drink from the spigot, I decided to build one at the house, so that he could have it all the time. This was partly out of love to Romeo but also out of laziness from me, since having a device like this would free me from the chore of keeping water available.
Well I built the first unit and put it in my front yard and it was none too pretty. My wife came out complaining that it looked terrible and that if I wanted to leave it there it had to look perfect, she is a perfectionist and I love her dearly.
I went to Home Depot and bought all the best parts to build the device. Using parts from an automatic flood light, and a valve from a sprinkler system, PVC pipe connected in a clever arrangement, I fashioned the first working model of the WaterDogTM. I connected a doorbell to it too so that it would Ding when water started flowing and Dong when the water stopped. Well the dogs loved it. They would just walk up and drink anytime they desired, and believe me they desired to drink a lot.
Once some friends saw Romeo walk up and as cool as could be and take a drink. Only when they said this is a great invention did the idea to pursue it begin. The light bulb went on and I decided to patent it and commercialize it.
I am a Mechanical Engineer with over 25 years experience working for a major Fortune 500 Company as an equipment developer. I currently hold over 28 Patents. Combining my experience with this need once again proves; Necessity is the mother of invention.
I lost Romeo this summer, 2002, to heart disease. Ironically my big-hearted dog died from Cardiomyopathy, or a big heart. It is only now in Romeo's passing do I fully realize the synergy we had, and how Romeo helped me to be a better person.
I will always love you Romeo