My dog’s name was El Diablo when I bought him from his breeder. I didn’t think he was a demon and thought the breeder was being unfair. So, after a long discussion, my husband and I decided to call him Seidr instead.

Many people think he is named “cider” as in apple cider vinegar.
Other people who mishear his name think he is called “Tiger”, which is ironic cause he is not a feline.

His name is actually Old Norse. meaning something along the lines of “changing one’s fate through magic, fortune-telling; or divination.”
We thought his name was appropriate because we felt like this dog would change our lives.
However, when we got Seidr on the farm for the first time we realized why his previous owner called him “El Diablo” (The Devil).

At the time we had another dog called Aimer, a 10-year-old Golden Retriever struggling with cancer and an amputated leg.
Like many of you, dog lovers may know, Golden Retrievers are the sweetest and friendliest dogs ever and Aimer lived up to that name.
When 6-month-old Seidr met Aimer, Seidr kept annoying Aimer until Aimer growled aggressively. This was surprising because Aimer had never in his whole 10 years of life growled at anyone.
Yet, our El Diablo dog managed to anger the friendliest angel-like dog.

We got Seidr as a security guard dog and he already accomplished his task on the very first day; he was growling and barking at a carabao and chasing after goats.
As time went by Seidr’s reputation became worse and worse…
Anyone who passed by our farm gate would receive the aggressive growling and barking of Seidr. Quickly people got very scared of our dog.
Whenever we have a visitor on the farm we need to lock Seidr up in the garage or tie him to a tree or else he would surely attack a person.

Despite all of this Seidr is actually a really sweet dog (to people he knows) and we love him very much. He is a valuable part of our family, protecting us 24/7.
Seidr likes being cuddled and getting pats, and he’s easy to please; often he just likes playing with his favorite coconut.
He’s always goofing around and being silly, making our day full of laughter.

Seidr and my husband. Photo taken by Isobelle.

We adore Seidr and he is part of our family. He keeps us safe and entertained. Who knew that El Diablo can be loved after all?