FirstBlog

My wife and I have chosen not to have kids. I won't get into all the reasons for this, because it's very personal and no one's business but our ours. nonetheless, we consider ourselves parents. Of dogs . Folks that have biological children to care for perhaps don't understand this, but,we love our dogs as much as a we would love a human child. They are our babies. The unfortunate part of being a dog parent is that you are, in all likelihood, going to outlive your child. Parents of human children generally aren't going to experience this, and this puts pet parents in a unique and terrible position. Every ten or fifteen years, they will go through a grief cycle over the loss of their child. Each time rips your heart out, but you take comfort in new dogs to love and care for and in being able to share that grief with others. Our thirteen year old chow mix, Baby, was diagnosed yesterday with renal disease. Last September, she underwent major surgery to re...

I've been filled with an unfortunate sense of melancholia of late. It's not pervasive and it's not permanent, but still it's there. The reason for this melancholia is my dogs. My wife and I have eschewed having children and have instead opted for dogs. Our furry children fill us with joy and love us unconditionally. They don't give us attitude like bratty teenagers. They aren't going to go to college. They don't mind being left home alone. They're a great addition to our carefree and footloose lifestyle. We love them like we would any child. Unlike most parents, though, we are virtually guaranteed to outlive them. Our dog Baby is a chow mix and she’s 12 and a half years old. Most of the time, she’s happy and full of life, but, somedays, she looks and acts as old as her age would dictate. The idea of losing her is very real and very sad. Our other dog, Bella is a 2 and a half year old labra doodle. Even though she is quite young, sometimes the realiz...