Many football players have dogs that reflect themselves - big, athletic, and masculine.
But Colts linebacker Matthew Adams isn't one of those guys.
"My dog is Pinky. She's a Pomeranian. She's about 7 pounds," he said.
His teammates get a kick out of it.
"Every time I think about it, I laugh. It's funny seeing a big old linebacker have that small dog," said linebacker Darius Leonard.
But Adams doesn't care - and Leonard respects that. He's even dogsat on occasion.
"He doesn't need a big pit bull," he said. "He's got a lot of confidence."
Adams wasn't looking for a small, fluffy dog. Like many of life's blessings, she came into his life unexpectedly.
"My neighbor back in high school in Missouri City (Texas), she couldn't take care of her anymore. She got real sick. She used to see me walking home from school and one day, she asked me if I could take Pinky and I took her."
And they've been together ever since.
It hasn't always been easy.
"It was a rough start," he said. "That's how she got the name Pinky, from 'Pinky and The Brain.' She just didn't understand where to use the restroom. She used to run into cabinets and stuff."
With time, they figured each other out. And now, they're the best of friends.
"When I'm at work all day, I think about her all the time. 'Oh, I've got to get home. I've got to take Pinky out. She's probably mad at me.' Everything I do, my schedule has to be based around Pinky. If I know I'm going to be out more than five hours, I've got to get someone to take her out or take her with me."
In May, Pinky made an appearance at the CHUCKSTRONG Tailgate Gala.
"I had to take her to the vet and I didn't want to make two trips to drop her back off," he said.
She was a big hit. A few female attendees spent most of the evening dog sitting for him.
"They wanted to keep her," he said.
They weren't the only women who've offered to take her off his hands.
But they all walk away empty handed.
"Nothing comes between me and Pinky," Adams said. "I actually broke up with a girl because she wanted me to put Pinky outside when she came over."
Leonard isn't surprised.
"He grew up with her," he said. "The way he loves her, it's like she's his daughter."
Over the years, Adams and Pinky have been through a lot together.
"Two years of high school, four years of college, and one year in the league," he said. "She's been in a lot of different places. She adjusts well. She's very trained and she's very friendly to others as well. She's a nice dog. Pretty much everybody likes Pinky."
A small dog who's taken up a big place in Adams' heart, Pinky lives a pretty posh life. Her hobbies include napping on the couch and grabbing pup cups at the coffee shop.
"She doesn't see herself as a dog at all," he said.
And truth be told, neither does he.
"She's not a dog to me, she's a human."
His teammates call her a chick magnet. But for now, she's the female of the house and center of his world.
And he wouldn't have it any other way.
In Adams, Pinky found a forever home.
In Pinky, Adams found a constant companion.
And together, they've formed a bond no human can break.
