The Dogs of our Lives

I am a cat person. Not because Cat is my nickname, but because I like cats. I like their independence, the way they sleep on your head and purr all night, the way they sit and look like toasters.

My husband hates cats.

Meet our two dogs. Teddy is the black lab mix, pictured first. When we first thought about getting Teddy and the rescue group brought him to our house, I said NO WAY. He is big, 65 lbs of fur, head, and legs. My Middle child, then about 3, opened the front door to see the gigantic dog and Teddy licked him right on the face. Middle child squealed in delight but I was not sold. I sent them away, with Teddy in the back of the car. But darn it if I didn't keep thinking about those beautiful soulful brown eyes and how gentile he was with Middle child. Shortly there after, Teddy came to live with us. That was about 5 years ago. He is a delightfully quiet dog but is terribly afraid of thunderstorms. Regrettably, we get a lot of storms here in central Ohio. He had a rough spring and seems to be more afraid of storms than usual, but he is a gentle giant and so glad he is in our lives.

Then there is Molly. Husband and I got Molly soon after we wed in May of 1999. Molly is part beagle part Jack Russel and all kinds of crazy! We never socialized her much with other dogs because she likes to bark. She barks when you pet her, she barks when you stop. She barks at the leaves, she barks at the air. Middle child said "If Molly was a show dog, her name would be Miss Molly Barksalot". Couldn't have said it better myself. Husband and Molly have an incredibly tight bond, but the older Molly gets (she turned 12 Labor Day), the less she can see and hear. I have noticed, too, that she is starting to get confused and is moving a lot slower than usual. Though she has put us thru over a decade of endless barking, she is the first dog Husband and I have together so that makes her super special.

Pets are like having kids as they are an awful lot of work but one tail wag or lick on the face makes it all worth while. If you have four legged friends in your house, take a moment to scratch them where they like it the most and be thankful they are in your life.

Have a great day. Woof!