After more than five months battling the Paradise Valley Unified School District for permission, Andrea Cohen finally brought her service-dog-in-training into Horizon High School on Thursday.

If the saying “A dog looks a lot like his master” rings true, then Scottsdale is a city of people resembling Labrador and golden retrievers.

Gilbert resident Vicky Lisa isn’t surprised Labrador retrievers are top dog in her town. Lisa describes her 6-month-old black Lab named Cargo as an “all-around great dog.”

Max was unrecognizably swollen from a snake bite when he was taken in by the Arizona Humane Society. But now he's on his way to becoming a therapy dog trained to assist veterans suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder and traumatic brain injuries.

Suzie and Mike D’Amato, owners of Mud Pie Home Boutique in Ahwatukee Foothills (4810 E. Ray Road, Suite 11, Phoenix), stock the shelves with many variations on the dog theme, including Scottie bookends and bone-shaped leather picture frames and decorative plaques depicting the loyal Labrador retriever.

Gilbert resident Thomas Hicks recently graduated with a black labrador retriever guide dog, Kay, from two weeks of intensive training at Guide Dogs for the Blind, Inc., a non-profit in Boring, Ore.

A young puppy thrown from a vehicle in the south East Valley recently will likely be going to a new home Wednesday.

Fergie, a 7-year-old female Labrador retriever mix, deserves some royal treatment after being found thin and beaten up. She has thankfully recovered and is in good condition at Gilbert’s Arizona Friends for Life animal rescue, where she waits for someone to adopt her and give her a loving home.

Sailor, a male yellow Labrador retriever about 6 or 7 years old, had been rescued and adopted in March – but got out of his home and was missing for three months. Thankfully, once he was found by another rescue group, his microchip led to him being returned to Friends for Life Animal Rescue.

Gilbert resident Sandy Thomas didn’t know what to expect when husband Robert came home with his first guide dog, a yellow Labrador retriever named Eve, more than 10 years ago.

Scottsdale police found the owner of two pit bulls that an officer shot and killed Thursday after they attacked a man and chased a woman into her house.

January 15, 2005

The 5-year-old golden retriever jumped up and used his front paws to push open the auditorium door at the Paradise Valley Police Department.

A list of America’s most popular dog breeds

The American Kennel Club has been tracking the popularity of purebred dogs for 128 years as the number of recognized breeds grew from nine to 177. A list of the country’s most popular dog breeds by the decade, according to data released by the AKC:

— 1880s: Top five breeds (English setters, Irish setters, pointers, Irish water spaniels and Gordon setters) were all working gun dogs, which helped hunters retrieve game.

— 1890s: The Saint Bernard takes the No. 1. spot, becoming the only giant breed to reach the top but never return.

— 1900s: The collie debuts at No. 1. The Boston terrier becomes the first small companion dog to reach No. 2.

— 1910s: The Boston terrier becomes the top dog and remains the only American breed to reach that spot.

— 1920s: The German shepherd takes over at No. 1 in 1925.

— 1930s: Boston terriers reclaim the top spot, and cocker spaniels begin their impressive climb. In the 1930s, the decade of the Great Depression, all top 10 breeds are small or medium-sized companion dogs.

— 1940s: Cocker spaniels (American and English, all colors) begin their reign. Influences included My Own Brucie, who won dozens of best-of-show titles and a likeness on the cover of Life Magazine.

— 1950s: The beagle becomes the nation’s top breed for most of the decade. Charles Schultz’s Snoopy makes his first appearance in national newspapers on Oct. 4, 1950.

— 1960s: Poodles take over as No. 1 in 1960 and stay there until 1982.

— 1970s: Poodles have the top spot locked up but in a harbinger of things to come, the Labrador retriever makes the top 10 for the first time.

— 1980s: Cocker spaniels return to the top.

— 1990s: Labrador retrievers take over and hold tight through at least 2012. Hollywood’s fascination with pocket pups is having an effect, as the decade marks the first appearance of the Yorkshire terrier, and the Pomeranian returns to the top 10 for the first time since the 1930s.

— 2000s: The Labrador retriever is overwhelmingly No. 1.

Two things we love in the Zajac house are baseball and our Golden Retriever. Case in point: The dog’s name is Wrigley, as in the field.