LIVING LIFE

There are many compelling reasons for getting a puppy. They are adorable, cuddly and their antics are incredibly amusing. Because they act on instinct, not logic, most of the things they do make absolutely no sense to humans. My guess is that dogs think the same thing about us.

It has been 18 months since our Maltipoo joined the family. I can honestly say that the first 12 months had some rough emotional spots which caused me to question our decision to get a puppy – to say nothing of the countless carpet spots. Bella’s DNA test verified that some of her behaviors were due to her strong poodle background. Basically, our dog’s amazing agility and intelligence have provided us with a challenging canine version of a Mensa scholar (highly gifted) and Usain Bolt (the greatest sprinter of all time) in an eight pound body.

In order to catch Bella, it is often necessary to tell her that someone is at the door, or that the mail is here, so that she will allow us to pick her up. It is nice to know that after countless training lessons, our dog does not recognize the words “roll over” but will actually do this when she hears the word “more.” Just a few examples to illustrate that we are really rocking this dog parent thing.

To her credit, Bella loves kids, is an excellent watchdog, and our kitchen floor is always crumb-free. Bella enjoys going to outdoor restaurants where she patiently waits under the table in hope of snacking on food which is “accidentally” dropped from the table. She curls up in her crate every night with a fluffy pink blanket at 9:00 p.m, and doesn’t start moving around until 7:30 a.m. With all of the craziness of the past 18 months, we cannot imagine our lives without her.

As I am typing, our little fur ball just walked by with one of my socks hanging out of her mouth. Let the games begin.

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