In honor of National Adopt a Shelter Pet Month, this is our dog, Sophie!
She is a five and a half year old Border Collie mix, although we don't have any idea what other breed(s) she is mixed with. After our previous dog, a german Shepherd Chow mix named Maggie, passed away, we didn't wait too long before we decided to get another pet. My husband especially wanted a border collie, but pure bred border collies are quite pricey. After looking for a few weeks, we found a litter of border collie puppies online at a rescue program nearby. Apparently, the entire litter had been taken to the local animal shelter, but they were so brand new and would require such a high level of care, the shelter was going to have to put them down. Fortunately, the woman who was running the rescue program swooped in and, well, rescued them!
We visited the litter right away and chose "our puppy," but had to wait a few weeks to bring her home. As soon as she was 8 weeks, we drove back to the shelter, scooped her up, and brought her home. Of course, our three daughters were thrilled but really didn't have any idea the amount of work that goes into caring for a puppy.
Looking back on the experience, I am reminded that having a puppy is a lot like having a baby!
Both kids and puppies have to be housebroken at some point.Otherwise, they make stinky messes all over the house!
Puppies and kids both have to be housebroken, right? #TuesdayTen @MamaRabia
Speaking of messes, kids and pups leave them everywhere! Your house tends to be a disarray of food, toys, fur, and potty accidents.
Whether it's you kids or your dog, they ALWAYS want food. My kids hang around suggestively asking, "So, what do you think we're having for supper tonight?" and, as I clean up that supper, the dog is right there with longing eyes just waiting for me to drop something.
Sometimes it's the dog and sometimes it's a child, but it seems there is constantly someone in my personal space. They are either under my feet, following me around, or on my lap!
The whining and the begging never stop!
Kids and dogs are both expensive! Just last week, I took Sophie for her yearly checkup. She wasn't sick or injured and it still cost me nearly $300!
We crate trained Sophie which was a great thing! Any time we had people over, we left the house, or she was misbehaving, we could just put her in her crate for a while. Let's face it, once in a while the kids need to be caged as well!!! (Please note: Although the thought may have crossed my mind a few times, I do not and have not ever actually put my kids in a cage, so please don't call social services.)
Both children and pet pups require a fair amount of grooming. This is somewhat dependent on breed (and, in the case of children, gender). Sophie is a long haired dog and I have three long haired daughters. I swear, I'm drowning in hair!!!
Despite the fact that the dog frequently gets on my very last nerve, I love her dearly. I think most parents would say the same thing about their kids, right?
Even though Sophie and other four legged friends are not humans, they are still very important parts of our families and we wouldn't be the same without them!
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Next Tuesday, October 13th is Face Your Fears Day, so we want to know about your 10 biggest fears, 10 things that should scare you but don't, or 10 times in life when you had to face your fears!
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