Man loses legal battle to change his name to 'Boomer the Dog'

Pittsburgh, Pa. - 44-year-old Gary Mathews doesn't really go by his given name. Instead, he's spent his life being called Boomer.

As in "Boomer the Dog."

Mathews became fascinated with dogs as a child and his obsession took on a life of its own when he got hooked on the 1980s television show, "Here's Boomer".

He's been living life as a dog ever since.

"I have a dog tag," says Matthews. "It has my name on it." That name is Boomer.

Mathews applied to have his name legally changed to Boomer the Dog, but a judge denied his request, saying it would be too confusing.

"I bark and sometimes I just beg a little bit," Mathews says. Asked if he considers himself more of a dog or a human, he says, "I guess in spirit more of a dog."

Mathews has a homemade dog costume made to look like Boomer that he wears to the annual AnthroCon convention in Pittsburgh every year. But he also wears it as he walks through his neighborhood.

"Somebody's going to look at this and say this guy's crazy," Mathews concedes. "I think some folks have thought that before but once they get to know me, they know I'm OK."