As the wife of an owner-operator, I always read Overdrive.

I loved the story about having a dog in the truck for companionship ["Joy ride," October], as my husband does. But DeSoto, named for the city where my husband’s company is based, is not a fluffy little dog: She is a very large Great Dane!

She has been in the truck since she was 6 weeks old and loves it. Now she is almost a year old and weighs nearly 100 pounds.

She keeps my husband company and guards the truck and him, as well as keeping him warm at night because she sleeps in his bed. She goes everywhere with him and has even made a few trips to Canada.

He gets irritated sometimes because she helps herself to snacks in the cab and takes part in keeping the log books by taking a bite out of them. But he would really be lost without her. She is his copilot and his guardian.

My husband has suggested that truck stops should reserve a space for drivers to let their dogs run and be safe away from the parking lot.
LINDA KERR
RCMJ Trucking
Schertz, Texas