Dog Names that Start with Ap

Dogs have a long and varied history of lives spent with humans, and that history has been well-documented down through the annals of time.  Promotion of the relationship developed between man and his best friend continues today.  Through TV and internet news reports of devotion and courage in dangerous situations and natural disasters, one can find daily doses of information supporting the incredible skills, physical abilities and love embodied in “man’s best friend.”  Television also presents some interesting ways to further educate us about the canine species, with a variety of TV series and TV movies released weekly, annually and seasonally.  Our pop culture spotlight for today is one of those such canines.

Apollo is a Doberman Pinscher who is part of a dynamic duo playing supporting roles in the TV series Magnum PI.  The pair of Dobermans (Zeus and Apollo) are relatively dominant in both the series which aired 1980 to 1988 as well as in the current regeneration of the series.  Apollo plays the role of antagonist in both the older as well as the resurrected series, and as such, he and his comrade in paws continue to chase Thomas Magnum as they provide a canine layer of protection for the Robin’s Nest estate where Thomas presently rents living space.  

Apollo and Zeus are well-trained and respond to both verbal as well as nonverbal communications and cues from Higgins, the owner of the estate.  “The Lads,” as referred to by both the older (male) Higgins and the newer (female) Higgins, are trained to respond to up to 34 unvoiced commands, roam the grounds, and confront unwanted and uninvited “guests.”  They live quite the luxurious life, partaking of some superior nutrition prepared by Higgins and, sometimes though grudgingly, by Magnum, feasting on prime cuts of sauteed sirloin steaks and braised tips.  

During the first series of Magnum PI, the directors wanted to write the dogs out of the series, but then Magnum (Tom Selleck) and then Higgins (John Hillerman) convinced them to keep them,  even coming to the dog's defense when the directors wanted to cut spending and use less expensive dogs.  While it’s true that Apollo and Zeus showed their toughness in episode after episode in the series, they also showed the loving, affectionate side of their personalities, supporting the fact that, in most circumstances, the Doberman breed is not an aggressive attacker and killer.