Canine Fever

I never thought it would happen to me.

I think I’ve become a dog person.

I didn’t have a big problem with dogs but I just didn’t get why people went so…GAGA for them.

As I young child I was scared of almost everything, especially dogs. They were too fast, too barky. They moved too suddenly. We had a slow-moving cat when I was a kid—and I was even scared of him. So you can imagine my terror around a pet that growled, barked and charged. I had nightmares about dogs. Our childhood friends had a Great Dane (who looked like a horse to me)—a pet so large he slept on a twin mattress. His tail thwack thwack thwacked against me—almost sending me across the room. At the time it didn’t feel like she was befriending me. I felt like a wiffle ball and her tail was a bat. (In reality she was really a sweet dog--but as big as a dinosaur to my young eyes.) Eventually I came to be okay with dogs. I wasn’t scared anymore, but I just didn’t get why people were so nuts for these drooly, loud creatures.

In time I overcame my fear of our cat and I grew to like them. My parents had three cats over the years. I liked petting them and listening to them purr. We could sit on the couch together but I also liked that they were very low-maintenance. No obedience school needed. No walks required. No poops to scoop. No barking. Hubby had an adorable cat when I met him, and I loved her from the start. She was with us until our son was a few months old and then she went to the great kitty cat corral in the sky.

We badly missed her but I wasn’t searching for a replacement. I had a newborn and was busier than I'd ever been. Plus, Hubby and I realized that we both had been living with low-grade cat allergies for years. Fast forward a few years and I had a second baby, and then a third. For a decade I literally felt like it was too much even to keep a goldfish alive. My hands were full.

But last year our middle kiddo started campaigning for a dog. She had a really rough time at school (pre-teens can be a very mean) and I wanted to give her a boost. But I was torn. I didn’t really want more responsibility. (I’m a mom of three kids—in three different schools—and I certainly didn’t feel a lack of responsibilities.) Yet our daughter really wanted a dog and promised to be responsible for it. We began mulling over whether we could do this. Parenthood, after all, is full of moments when you put what your kid wants or needs ahead of what you want. (This is not an “I’m so noble” speech—I don’t mean it that way—but there are times in life when you really are weighing what someone else wants against what you prefer.) We agreed that a puppy would be too much work. But an adult dog? Okay.

We found a local rescue group, and started trying to find the right dog for us. We checked websites. We went to an adoption event. Hubby built a higher gate to keep the dog safe. The rescue group is good at trying to match each dog with owners who will be a good fit. They know we’re newbies, so they matched us with a sweet dog (aged seven) who knows at least some commands. I’m happy to say that when we met our new dog, I felt an instant connection. She was very friendly and so eager to know us.

I feel surprised at how fun it is to throw a ball for her and how much I laugh when she races to get it. I’m amazed at how much I enjoy patting her back and scratching her tummy. It feels like discovering a flavor you’ve never tasted, and then you think, Wow, I didn’t know what I was missing. I finally get why people are so into their dogs. Cats are wonderful but dogs are interactive on a completely different level. There is more give and take. The connection is just different. (And on a related note the shedding is different, too. In the first three hours she was here she shed hundreds of hairs. Our floor looked like a Dalmation: light with black fur spots everywhere. So do I sweep constantly? Maybe. But why bother? It’s like trying to hold back the tide: pointless. I’m debating whether to just leave it there and tell everyone we put in carpet.)

Anyway, I’ve been a sporadic blogger in the last year or so and I thought it would be fun to do my first 2019 blog post about the sweet girl who has captured our hearts.

Yep, it appears we are dog people.