A dog is the perfect manifestation of loyalty in flesh and bone. No matter how bad you treat it sometimes, the moment you look at it with that apologetic, loving look, it will come right back wagging it’s tail, eager to get some loving’ from it’s favourite person in the whole damn world.
If you have never raised a dog before and are wondering to become a pet parent there are a few key points that you need to keep in mind before you go out there and adopt/buy the cute furry housemate for yourself. I will write down a list of 12 points, positive and negative, to help you decide if you can actually handle a dog and if you can, then what kind of dog to get yourself.
- A dog is the best replacement for relatives and kids
- It’s very, very expensive
- A dog is true personification of loyalty
- They can be extremely messy at times
- Dogs make great fitness partners
- Taking long vacations away from home won’t be that simple
- It’s a great way to teach kids of responsibility
- It’s a long term commitment
- They are your eyes and ears at night
- A hyperactive pup can destroy your house on its own
- They are your perfect dream catchers giving the best hugs on this planet
- They are a big furry heartbreak, waiting to happen.
A dog is the best replacement for relatives and kids
If you are living alone and want a companion but don’t want kids or relatives around as one then becoming a dog parent is the way to go. A dog requires all the love, time and attention you can give it to grow up as a friendly and socially trained. So pour all that love and affection on your fur baby and buy it the prettiest of clothes and toys to flaunt around and play with. Dogs adjust to their human’s behaviours quickly so the more time you spend with them, the better they’ll adapt to humans around them and behave accordingly.
It’s very, very expensive
Raising a dog is really expensive. the basic crate, bed, various toys specifically for dogs cost a lot. These costs are just the tip of the iceberg. The recurring costs are the determining key factors. The regular vet visits for checkups and grooming, getting them spayed/neutered, the daily diet of meat and healthy snacks, the medicines and annual shots and god forbid any emergency medical procedure required to be done is going to cost a fortune. and the cost grows with the size of the breed because the daily protein requirements of a big size dog is naturally going to be more than a small size one. so keep these points in mind when deciding what size of dog suits your lifestyle and pocket.
A dog is the true personification of loyalty
Dog is probably the only creature on this planet who would love you just the way you are, with all your faults and beauty without expecting anything much in return. Their whole world literally revolves around you and they can do miraculous things to protect it. Even if you discipline them a little hard sometimes, but the moment you call out to them, they’d come to you with the same loving intensity without any drama of being treated wrongly like humans would give you. That’s why i personally prefer dogs over humans.
They can be really messy at times
If you want to raise a dog, you have to have a strong stomach and mindset to endure the mess they create sometimes. Even more than human babies because a dog won’t just pee and mess. He’ll pee, mess, chew stuff up, vomit it out, eat up your furniture, trash your carpet and then some. My dogs keep giving me frequent disgusting early morning surprises like a dead, chewed up squirrel on the porch or a whole uprooted lawn and mutilated plants which are the least repulsive of the examples i could share.
Dogs make great fitness partners
A dog is always a great partner to have while your early morning/evening jogs or long walks. He is an ideal partner to go to the park with because all he wants to do is play and run till he can’t anymore. This is the perfect attitude to seek for in a fitness partner. He will without fail wake you up early to take him for that much needed walk, weather you want to or not, thus creating healthy lifestyle habits. Some smart breeds even copy their human parents while doing yoga and other exercises without realising that their adorable acts can be so motivating for humans even if to just find out what and how much of it can their dogs do.
Taking long vacations away from home won’t be that simple
Having pets at home can hinder your freedom to readily plan long vacations easily as finding a suitable temporary shelter, kennel or home for them to stay isn’t an easy task. Professional spaces like dog hostels and kennels are not cheap and sometimes during holiday season not available either. So unless you have family or friends who can keep your pet for the duration of your vacation, it can be an expensive and painful task to take that heavenly 15 day trip of rejuvenation.
It’s a great way to teach kids of responsibility
At young age, kids are eager to do little tasks around the house to impersonate their parents as feeling included and needed makes them feel happy and grown up. This time is perfect to include them in the process of taking care of the pets depending on their age of course like taking the dog into the backyard for pee break or keeping their water bowl always clean and filled or taking them for small walks or taking care of the mess they have created or just keeping the animal busy and tired with some physical activity. Doing all of this stuff will not only strengthen their bond with the pet but also make it clear that having a pet is not just cuddles rather it comes with it’s set of responsibilities and that they cannot be ignored.
It’s a long term commitment
Once you get that animal inside that threshold and if you are a decent human being you know that it’s at least a 10-15 year commitment with that lovely life. All the good, bad and ugly will be a part of your life too and you can’t just take the easy route out of the ugly by giving them up into dog shelters or worse, euthanize . For a dog, once he bonds with you, you are his whole world, the love of his life, the centre of his gravity and the source of his happiness and he will unconditionally give you that feeling till his last breath. It’s a sweet deal for taking care of him for those 15 years I’d say.
They are your eyes and ears at night
The very reason early man started domesticating wolves which evolved into present day dog, was to have something to raise an alarm at night time to make them aware of near by presence of danger. At that time it was other predators of the jungle, these days it’s the burglars, the trespassers, even wildlife like snakes etc too in certain residential ares near wilderness. They certainly have a better sense of smell and hearing than us humans and some people go as far as trusting their dogs instincts and reaction towards another person even. I’m one of them.
A hyperactive pup can destroy your house on its own
Apart from that occasional one odd puppy that’s lazy and quite, all other puppies of the litter are always very hyperactive. this hyperactivity has to be taken care of by playing games like fetch with them, taking them to park to run freely, giving enough toys to play and chew, just keeping them tired and entertained or else this hyperactivity can be destructive for your furniture and shoes or any other item that it can access and sink it’s little teeth into. My puppies have till date chewed my phone charger, millions of cables, a phone, leather cushions and wallets, shoes, curtains, bed sheets…you get the idea.
They are your perfect dream catchers giving the best hugs on this planet
Having trouble sleeping? Feel restless and anxious? A dog’s hugs are the best thing in this world. Your furry friend is ever ready and more than happy to hug you to sleep and make you feel calm by its mere presence with a sense that your dog is guarding you and will wake you up when it senses your discomfort even if it’s due to a bad dream. I say this because i have personally experienced my dog waking me up when i was freaking out because of a nightmare. my perfect dream catchers.
They are a big furry heartbreak, waiting to happen.
From the day you bring them into your life, you know that they are family for the next 15 years so you give them all the love accept all their attention and loyalty and as the time goes by, you prepare your heart to someday see their one last mess, have that one last walk, a one last hug, give them one last kiss and then a final goodbye. Forever. This…is probably the biggest reason to consider when getting a dog. For 15 years of unconditional, pure love, they are a big furry heartbreak always waiting to happen. Some people are never able to get another pet after loosing their first one.
Loud Thoughts 