Bobby Humphreys, a competitive bodybuilder from Boonsboro, Maryland, has always loved dogs, but until two years ago, he never really cared for small breeds. He always felt that his pets should fit his own image, and even made fun of his male friends who owned small dogs. But one day everything changed and today Bobby shares his home with no less than 37 adorable chihuahuas.

Humphreys used to be a “Big Dog Guy” and he and his wife of 17 years had owned three Rottweilers. He loved their tough, imposing look and never even considered the idea of ever owning a small dog. In fact, he went as far as to poke fun at his male friends if they ever allowed themselves to be seen walking their girlfriends’ small canines. It was an ego thing, but one that Bobby quickly put behind him when he fell in love with Lady, a tiny Chihuahua that he now credits for getting him through the darkest period of his life. She opened his eyes to the love and support that small dogs are capable of offering unconditionally, and the big, strong bodybuilder is now what many would call a Small Dog Guy who looks after dozens of chihuahuas.

Photo: Big Guy, Littles World/Facebook

“All guys have egos and it’s a big d**k measuring contest. Who can have the prettiest girl? Who can have the biggest house? Who can have the best car? Who can have the toughest-looking dog? We’re all insecure at heart,” Humphreys told The Dodo about his view of dogs before falling in love with Lady.

On New Year’s Eve 2016, Bobby Humphreys’ life came crashing down on him. His wife of 17 years filed for divorce and walked out on him, and just a week later he injured his shoulder in the gym and learned that he needed reconstructive surgery. He started drinking and plunged into a deep depression. Luckily, his friend Constance Rogers was there for him during those troubled times, so one day, when she asked him to look after her pet chihuahua, Lady, after being kicked out of her home, he didn’t dare say no.

“She messages me one day saying, ‘Do you mind if Lady stays with you for a little while because I’m getting kicked out of my house and I’m not sure where I’m moving yet?’” Bobby recalled. “Lady had this terrible disposition that was very well-known. I just steered clear of her when I saw her at functions with friends. I would just pay her no mind because I wasn’t into little dogs.”

Because of Lady’s temper, Constance advised Bobby to keep her in her small kennel, but one day, after coming home from work and seeing the tiny canine peering out of her enclosure, he decided that he didn’t care if she bit him or growled at him all night, he wasn’t going to keep her locked up like that. But to his surprise, Lady didn’t display the kind of attitude she was famous for. Instead, when Constance came by an hour later to check on them, she found Lady in Humphreys’ lap. She was amazed.

Over the next four months, Bobby and Lady became even closer. There were days when the bodybuilder couldn’t get out of bed because of his depression, and the only thing that kept him going was this little, adorable chihuahua. They’d lay in bed together all day or just play, and before he knew it, the former Big Dog Guy fell in love with a really small pooch.

But despite their close relationship, Bobby knew that the day would come when Lady would have to go back to Constance. Still, he couldn’t imagine going forward without his own little bundle of joy, so he started looking for a chihuahua. And that’s how he found Kira, a year-old chihuahua with food aggression issues. But he didn’t stop there. He adopted Harley and her sister Queen, two chihuahuas who had lived in terrible conditions, then Bella, whose nails were so overgrown they doubled back into her paws. The more chihuahuas he found, the more he realized there were so many that needed rescuing.

 

“I started to see a pattern,” Humphreys told The Dodo. “So many of these little beautiful babies are being abused or taken advantage of and I just couldn’t sit by and watch it happen.”

Bobby eventually founded Big Guy, Littles World Sanctuary, and even brought Constance Rogers on board to help him take care of the growing number of chihuahuas in his home. He is currently living with 37 of them, and he couldn’t be happier.

“The feeling of love that these dogs give me, after what some of them had been through, made me say, ‘Well, now I’m responsible for them,'” he said. “They trust me and they look in my eyes and tell me that they love me so much.”

I gotta say Bobby’s story really struck a chord, not least of all because I used to share his original view of small dogs. But then one day, seven years ago, my wife, who is a veterinarian, brought home a week-old Yorkshire Terrier Toy that had been rejected by its mother. We fed Sharifa milk with the tiniest syringe we could find, and she made it. She’s been with us ever since, and I truly consider her to be my eldest daughter. So yeah, I can relate.