Finally Home-Lessons on Life from a Free-Spirited Dog (22 page)
Read Finally Home-Lessons on Life from a Free-Spirited Dog Online
Authors: Elizabeth Parker
I have wanted to write this for a long time and one of my main goals of writing it w
as
to make sure Buddy was alive when I finished it.
Upon writing my last word, I wanted to make sure Buddy
wa
s sitting on the couch next to me like he does every night.
If you personally do not know me and you are reading this, that means I chose to publish this book and succeeded.
If not, it will serve as
a
memoir to me of one of the most precious and special times of my life.
I often wonder how our lives would have been drastically different if we
had
chose
n
not to adopt
Buddy
on that cold day in December.
Though he is “only a dog” as I have heard so many unknowing people say, he has taught both Michael and me countless life lessons and has been with us through every major decision we ever had to make.
We have gone through many adventures that without Buddy I’m not so sure we would have taken the time to explore.
What would have happened to Buddy?
Would he have found another family that could deal with him and his constant clowning around? Would he have gone into a cold and lonely shelter where he would meet an untimely death at not even two years old?
Would we even think about him all these years later as that crazy dog we “almost” adopted, similar to the wild, discounted puppy in the pet store?
Sometimes the path that you choose is not always an easy one, but the rewards that you gain from it are worth all of the hard work.
Adopting Buddy and dealing with his crazy antics and oddities every day have by far outweighed the many headaches he has given us.
As he and Brandi get older, and their muzzles are now covered in a gray mask instead of the golden puppy face, I have noticed that there is certain knowledge that I think only an older dog possesses.
Now that
they
have grown
out of their puppy years and
are maturing
into their senior years, it
has
all start
ed
to make sense to them
,
as well.
Buddy tried his hardest to turn Michael and me certifiably insane.
When he realized that did not happen (though there is still t
ime), Buddy
finally learned that
we loved him unconditionally. N
othing he did was going to make us give him away like his previous three owners
had
.
There are times whe
n
we
only have to give him a look or even a nod, and he knows what
we are
expecting from him.
Similarly, there are times when he does the
same, and we know what he wants. Over the years, we have developed such a strong bond with our dogs and do not regret our decision to adopt one bit.
Though I am sorry for how Buddy’s beginning years started out, I am entirely grateful for the gift that his previous owners
bestowed upon
us.
I c
an
only hope they have found as much love, happiness, understanding, knowledge
,
and laughter as we have with Buddy.
Sometimes life does not have to be so serious
,
and Buddy has always made sure
that
we knew that wholeheartedly.
I hope when the time does come for him to leave us on this earth without him, that we will be able to remember that lesson and carry it on for him.
He is ten years old now and we are hoping he is with us for a few more years.
He is still crazy, though somewhat slower.
He still goes for at least a mile
-
walk every day, still steals every day
,
and makes us laugh and yell at him every single day.
It is a bit heartbreaking when we see him only jogging down the path, versus when he was able to outrun anyone on that schoolyard back in New York.
Though there are not many rabbits where we now live, occasionally we see one hopping along
,
and while Buddy used to love chasing them in the past, he now sort of takes a few quick steps and then happily goes back to his walk. It takes him a bit longer to walk up the stairs, though he can still make it.
If he is trying to jump on the couch, he just stops and pauses a little, but all in all, he is still
such
a happy and funny dog.
His beautiful smile brightens any day.
Sometimes, he still acts so much like a puppy that we forget he is ten
. He loves to demonstrate this to us, especially at the
playground down the block from our house.
While no one is looking (since dogs are not allowed), we take our dogs there as Brandi loves to go on the slide.
While they are there, it is like they are still youngsters.
You would never realize their true ages.
Brandi tries to go down the slide
,
and he chases her around. He gets a little protective whenever Brandi does anything daring.
Believe it or not, both he and Toffee do not possess that daredevil mental
ity. Brandi, on the other hand,
does.
She finds it fun to slide down the twisted slides while Buddy barks and carries on until she
has safely landed on the spongy ground
.
After they come home, they usually jump on the couch and take a nap.
As I look upon
Buddy
sleeping, I am thankful each and every day about our decision to keep him.
Time goes so fast
,
and it feels like a lifetime ago that we adopted him, and for him it was a lifetime.
He was always such a maniac, but the message he conveys is simple
:
stop and smell the roses
—
or in his case, the pretty cactus flowers.
Life is too short.
Though generally misunderstood, he is and always will be a special little boy.
I wish I could fully adapt to his way of thinking and apply it to my own life.
To Buddy, in his little world, there is no evil.
Everyone is good and has the best of intentions.
Enjoy life, play a lot
,
and be free.
Make people laugh and always initiate a good time. When you see someone is down and depressed, do something to take their mind off of it and leave their worries elsewhere.
Do not take no for an answer and be sure to drive people a little crazy if you get the chance.
If I could speak for Buddy (and I sometimes believe that I could)
,
I guarantee that would be part of his life’s motto.
While he is alive now, we know one day he won’t be here to cause havoc.
We think about the void that will take place in our life the day that Buddy is gone.
We think about how we are going to help Brandi live happily without her partner in crime. Toffee has only known him for two years, but has grown to love him and seeks him out to lie next to if Brandi does not want to be bothered. If you are reading this now or ten years from now, Buddy’s spirit will always live on.
He will make it known that he still needs and demands to be loved no matter which world he is living upon.
I think one of the hardest reminders we will have to endure when he is gone is seeing our shoes in the exact place that we left them.
In the past years that we have owned him, I never had a morning where my shoes were easily found.
My mornings usually consist of me screaming to Michael “Babe
—
is my left, black shoe upstairs?”
To which he’d yell down
,
“Yea
h.
I
s my blue sneaker down there?”
This was something we are able to count on each and every morning
,
and
it
is going to be sorely missed when he is gone.
I have a feeling he is not going to go quietly and will find a way to hide our sneakers from Heaven and pleasantly haunt us from wherever he ends up.
I truly hope that he does.
If you have a dog, take a moment to appreciate and love them.
You’ll be happy you did.
Unfortunately, their time on this earth goes by way too quickly, but the valuable lesson
s
they teach us can last a
l
ifetime.
A
Small Tangent...and I Promise I’ll Stop
Opening your home and your heart to an animal in need is truly a great experience. Just make sure it is the right experience for
you
.
I have to write this
,
and then I will stop.
One thing that kills me is people who adopt or purchase a puppy as either a toy for their child or just because it is cute
only to dispose of it when their child gets bored or the cute puppy turns into a dog and they realize it is actually a lot of work taking care of a dog.
Though they cannot speak in what humans call language, dogs do communicate in their own way, they do have feelings
,
and they do not understand why their family would just get rid of them.
It is not like you can explain
the
reason
s
to a dog.
You just can’t. To them, they have just been abandoned and although they can adapt and find a new family (if they are lucky enough to get adopted), they still suffer from major separation anxiety.
It is a real issue, not something that someone just made up. Dogs do get upset when they no longer have their master.
They also get upset when they were domesticated and now have to learn to fight the elements and hunt for their own food.
There are
so many dogs in shelters today. S
ome
are lucky enough to find a
new famil
y. S
ome
spend their days and nights
in boarding facilities in hopes of finding a family
,
while
others have the unfortunate experience of getting
euthanized
way before their due time.
I have heard so many horror stories of the things these dogs
have
had to endure.
I feel it is our job as responsible humans to speak on behalf of these poor animals.
Though I love dogs, I often try to dissuade people from getting one unless they are prepared to handle the following:
1.
Puppies get big.
Make sure you have the adequate space to handle your dog’s expected size.
2.
Dogs bark.
I have actually heard of people returning or abandoning dogs because they bark.
Really?
Is this not common knowledge?
3.
Dogs drool.
4.
Dogs sometimes do not have manners.
5.
They may have an accident on your rug. They may also have one if they get excited.
6.
They may jump on the furniture.
7.
They shed.
8.
They do have waste that needs to be disposed
of
—
by you.
9.
They may have behavioral issues that you have
to deal with.
10.
Vet bills may get very high.
11.
Some dogs need very expensive food (ahem, Toffee) as their stomach
s
can’t handle regular food.
12.
They may live to be eighteen!!
13.
Dogs chew things.
Sometimes it is things that they should not chew.
14.
Dogs steal.
15.
Dogs need to be groomed.
16.
They may get sick at inopportune moments.
17.
They may counter surf.
This means they may steal things of importance off of your counter.
18.
Taking care of a dog
is
a lot of work.
19.
Some
do
need to be exercised constantly, depending on the breed.
20.
There are many other surprises that are too numerous to list.
When adopting, there are so many different instances that can happen.
We knew Buddy was a problem child
,
but we never imagined the many situations he would put us in.
Still, we would not change it for the world.
I cannot imagine what our life would have been like if we
had
not adopt
ed
Buddy.
We are guilty of not doing all of the research prior to adopting, but we sort of made up for it along the way by trying to rectify unpredictable is
sues.
The commitment was there,
only
the knowledge was not.
In the end it paid off.
As with everything, hopefully the lessons that
we
learn
ed
will
not go forgotten.
If you are not one hundred percent sure that you could handle a dog, then just wait until you are ready.
There will never be a shortage of dogs, so if the time is not right, then do not adopt.
That is the best advice I can give.
I would love for everyone to help save lives, but it may not be
the
right fit for everyone
.
I could sit here and list one thousand positive reasons
for
owning a pet, but you have to be ready to embrace it
;
otherwise
,
it simply is not good for you or the dog.
I have to reiterate here for anyone reading, if you are thinking of adopting a dog, think again
,
and think once more.
Research the breed,
and
consider your budget.
Dogs are not cheap.
Literally thousands can be spent at the vet.
They may get diseases or illnesses that require medicine.
Make sure you have realistic budget for a dog.
Know how to take care of it.
Make sure if you do adopt, you spay or neuter your dog (or cat)
.
Thousands upon thousands of animals are put to sleep each year because the parent dogs were not spayed or neutered.
There are clinics that will do this at a lesser charge.
Make sure you have the space for the type of dog you are adopting.
Make sure the dog fits your personality
.
If you are not energetic, do not get a golden retriever!
If you do not like small dogs, don’t get a Chihuahua
.
The Internet is full of websites containing all the information you need to know about each breed, including their expected size, temperament, energy level, life expectancy, etc.
Bookstores have shelves upon shelves of educational material as well.
Do the research.
You (and your dog) will be happy you did.
Buddy’s Favorite Treats:
Michael and I just thought we’d share some of Buddy’s favorite treats.
If you have a dog, try these out at
snack time
in lieu of regular dog biscuits (or if you are looking for a really good bribe for your dog)
.
Just make sure to check with your veterinarian before giving your dog any new or different food or snacks.
1
.
Carrots-
Usually given in place of a regular dog biscuit.
A little bit healthier of a snack
—
but do not tell Buddy that
!
2
.
Peanut Butter on Crackers-
Take any type of cracker and smear a little peanut butter on it.
Do not put too much as it gets difficult for the dog to swallow it
—
even though it could be amusing to watch!
This is typically given to Buddy when we are too lazy to take him for a walk, in hopes that he will forgive us and forget all about it.
3
.
Cheese-
He likes any type, alone or on a cracker. Usually given after Buddy behaves for a while, such as when he has been quiet for more than ten minutes at a time.
