Will B.

After reading someone’s social media post labeled, just a dog, about how some people think dogs are not that big a deal, it got me thinking about all the dogs my family or I have had over the years.

One of my favorite sayings is, if you don’t like dogs, we can’t be friends and I really mean it when I say it. A dog has always been so much more to me than just a dog. Dogs are loyal, non-judgmental, friendly (most of them), loving and are always there for us when we need some support.

I have two dogs or pups as I like to refer to them, Bruiser-a Staffordshire Bull Terrier, he is like a pit bull with really short legs and powerful muscle definition. Bruisers’ personality is protective, loving and very playful, he always wants to be next to me no matter what. Each time I leave the house he posts up at the front door and starts leaping into the air about 3 or 4 feet very excitedly and only does this when I have put my shoes on, he knows the difference from when I am just going outside and when I am leaving the property. When I walk back in from being gone his wagometer (a wagometer is what I call a pup’s tail) goes off at ninety miles per hour and has to have plenty of pettings and snuggles. When I go lay down for the night, he always without fail brings me his favorite toy, expecting the nightly rough housing to ensue before bedtime, I oblige for about 20 or 30 minutes then when it’s time to sleep I roll on my side and pull the blanket up, without fail he digs his way under the blanket, makes 1 or 2 circles to get just right and snuggles right up to my back and that is our nightly ritual. On the plus size his warm furry body snuggled up against my back is just as good as that good old heating pad.

For people who love pups like I do, we consider our pups just another member of the family. Bruiser has seen me through some rough patches and always knows just how to cheer me up. Some people say its just a dog, for me I am thankful because in some cases a pup is better than some people I have met.

My other pup, Daisy May, an Australian Shorthaired Pointer/Pyrenees mix, only about 2 months old and growing so big it seems daily. Her personality has slowly been showing itself, she is playful and curious as any new pup would be but I can already see she has a high intelligence and has a very precocious personality when it comes to learning new things, at 2 months old she has already learned how to fetch. She is almost potty trained to go outside already and seems to understand more than a few commands already, she is a real smarty. I look forward to seeing her personality fully blossom over the next year.

As you can see a dog is much more than just a dog to people who love these pups, they are part of our family and we are just as protective and loyal to them as they are to us. This is Will B saying, if you don’t like dogs we can’t be friends.