'The dog ate my homework' and other true stories

We have been dog owners for five years now, and we cannot imagine life without our doggy boy, Clyde.

Back in 2016, while in the middle of a messy marriage breakup, I decided to get us a puppy. It was counterintuitive, and many people questioned my sanity - surely I had enough on my plate? Why add the stress of a baby dog to my to-do list?

But it was one of the best decisions I ever made. I went with my gut, and we never looked back.

Animals have such a therapeutic effect on people who are struggling with overwhelm or anxiety  - there is nothing like doggy kisses and snuggles to lift a drooping spirit. Dogs are fantastic medicine for the soul.

So if one dog is good, surely two dogs are even better?

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Dog Zoo (or "what was I thinking?")

It started as most adventures do - with the kids nagging. This time it was for a second dog. They had all the reasons, all the well-thought out arguments, all the reasons why: Clyde the not-so-puppy could really do with a friend to play with during the long days when I am at work. He gets bored, And lonely. And if ONE dog is awesome and fabulous and wonderful, imagine the fun of TWO dogs?

I came right back with my best shoot-em-down disclaimers: I can only just afford ONE dog, I couldn't afford to look after TWO. Vet bills for two? Worming and flea treatments for two? Forgeddaboutit. Plus, who knew how much extra work an extra puppy would be? It would probably all end up on my plate, and my plate is already full.

But I wasn't prepared for their clincher: fostering.
We could foster a rescue puppy, the rescue people would pay for all the expenses, Clyde would have a friend for free... and when that puppy moved on to a new family, we'd get a new puppy. Endless puppies, endless cuteness. A win-win situation for all...
They caught me unawares with their clever logic and I caved.

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What Kids Learn from Having a Dog

In just four short months our rescue puppy, Clyde, has turned us into a bunch of fully converted Dog People. Of course the kids had been begging for us to become a Dog Family for donkey's years, but I had taken some convincing, because I'd heard the rumours.
Dogs are lots of work. They stink, they shed hair, they chew everything, they pee and poop everywhere, they eat you out of house and home. Having a puppy is the same amount of work as having a newborn; having a dog is like having another kid.

Being your quintessential Lazy Mother, I was extremely reluctant to sign up for extra work. I mean, I already had my hands full with three human children.
Who needs the extra job of picking up poop and bathing a dog when it's all you can do to keep your boys regularly showering and your toilet floor a urine-free zone.
Am I right?
Having a dog sounded like sooooo much work.

But then we got Clyde. In some kind of weird fit of intuition, I had a gut feeling that a puppy was just what the kids needed to help them get through a tough time.
It seemed counter-intuitive, and plenty of people thought I really had finally gone crazy taking on extra work in the middle of a crisis, but I turned out to be right on the money with this one.

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Hello, it's Me (and Clyde the Puppy)

Tap. Tap. Hello. Is this thing on? Oh good! It's working.
Um, hi. I know it's been a while.
I can't go into the details of *why* because, um, well, I just can't.
But trust me when I say that I would never neglect my beloved blog for so long without good cause.
However, with this post, I am back.

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