Tucker, our family LhasaPoo is 1 1/5 years old. A beautiful, calm, easygoing, great companion. Who knew this dog thing could be so much fun!
Two years ago my dearest friend called to tell me that she had just adopted a wonderful Yorkie. My first reaction was…”what was she thinking?”. I am a former country girl that grew up on a farm in Colorado. We had many dogs growing up, but they were always outdoor dogs. They tagged along when we rode our horses, they hopped into the pickup when Dad went to check the fields, they ran up to the lake to have a bath whenever they wanted. What a great life. But, have a dog in the house? Nope, not going to happen.
When my kids wanted a dog, they were swiftly denied. We are city folks now. It isn’t fair to a dog not to have acres and acres to roam. And besides, I am allergic to dogs! Easy out, right?
Well, not so fast! About 30 seconds after my initial reaction to my friend, the thought popped into my head, “I know exactly what she was thinking!” I have known my friend for almost 30 years. We have been through it all together, including raising kids the same age. Our oldest are out of the house, either in college or out on their own. Our second children are close behind and ready to begin their adult lives. We are both single mothers ready to embark on the next chapter of our lives as empty nesters. The idea of having a puppy in the house didn’t sound so wrong after all. (O.K. this is the part where you can accuse me of being selfish!)
The next step was to begin all the research and soul searching. Having a puppy is a big commitment: Feeding, walking, training and loving. This would be similar to having small children in the house again. After all the research, and spending some time in the home of a LhasaPoo (yeah! no sneezing, no allergies!) we made the big leap to become the proud owners of our greatest friend, Tucker!
I never realized what a big life change this would be-for the positive. We LOVE our puppy. He is so happy to see us every day, he sleeps at my feet, he curls up with us while we watch movies, and he loves us unconditionally. I now know what all the pet lovers have been talking about. The next challenge is to live up to being the person that my puppy thinks I am. A very stiff challenge, but a goal that I am reminded of every morning when I wake up to the eager, brown eyes of someone who depends on me so completely for his happiness.
Only one problem….I had to promise my son “No doggy clothes!” Now, I must ask you to excuse me so that I can roam the neighborhood with my puppy.
Two years ago my dearest friend called to tell me that she had just adopted a wonderful Yorkie. My first reaction was…”what was she thinking?”. I am a former country girl that grew up on a farm in Colorado. We had many dogs growing up, but they were always outdoor dogs. They tagged along when we rode our horses, they hopped into the pickup when Dad went to check the fields, they ran up to the lake to have a bath whenever they wanted. What a great life. But, have a dog in the house? Nope, not going to happen.
When my kids wanted a dog, they were swiftly denied. We are city folks now. It isn’t fair to a dog not to have acres and acres to roam. And besides, I am allergic to dogs! Easy out, right?
Well, not so fast! About 30 seconds after my initial reaction to my friend, the thought popped into my head, “I know exactly what she was thinking!” I have known my friend for almost 30 years. We have been through it all together, including raising kids the same age. Our oldest are out of the house, either in college or out on their own. Our second children are close behind and ready to begin their adult lives. We are both single mothers ready to embark on the next chapter of our lives as empty nesters. The idea of having a puppy in the house didn’t sound so wrong after all. (O.K. this is the part where you can accuse me of being selfish!)
The next step was to begin all the research and soul searching. Having a puppy is a big commitment: Feeding, walking, training and loving. This would be similar to having small children in the house again. After all the research, and spending some time in the home of a LhasaPoo (yeah! no sneezing, no allergies!) we made the big leap to become the proud owners of our greatest friend, Tucker!
I never realized what a big life change this would be-for the positive. We LOVE our puppy. He is so happy to see us every day, he sleeps at my feet, he curls up with us while we watch movies, and he loves us unconditionally. I now know what all the pet lovers have been talking about. The next challenge is to live up to being the person that my puppy thinks I am. A very stiff challenge, but a goal that I am reminded of every morning when I wake up to the eager, brown eyes of someone who depends on me so completely for his happiness.
Only one problem….I had to promise my son “No doggy clothes!” Now, I must ask you to excuse me so that I can roam the neighborhood with my puppy.
One reply on “I hope to become the person that my puppy thinks I am.”
I can relate. I’m was a country boy myself with two big dogs that use to roam at their free will. And I’ve lived with large dogs in my family for all my life, mostly mastiffs and golden retrievers.
One of our golden retrievers was hard to live to his standards. He lived to fetch a stick, rock, dirt clod, or anything that could be thrown farther then 10 feet. I think that I saw something in his mouth at least 70% of the time waiting for someone to throw it for him.
Our latest challenge are two giant mastiffs who are cute as can be only because they look half retarded. And I believe that the saying “their bark is bigger then their bite” originated from mastiffs because they sound mean when they get riled up, but when they are calm they are like little children. Always happy to just lean against you, stair at you, or slobber all over you.
All in all, I don’t think growing up would have been the same without some dogs to keep me company!