Responsible Owners
"Do you have any REAL" kids?
I have heard that question time and time again.
Granted, dogs are not kids. They will be long gone when its time for me to go to the retirement home and won't have any say where I go.
But, we are still responsible for them, just as parents are responsible for kids.
We make sure their medical needs are taken care of. We feed them a good high quality food. If they become overweight, its our fault. Dogs don't shop or feed themselves. We are responsible for helping them to lose weight by cutting out snacks and getting them more active.
We keep a routine so they know what time their meals are and what time they get up and what time to go to bed. They know what time we come home from work because its consistent.
If we want to go out of town and don't have a sitter, we make changes to our lives and put their needs ahead of ours.
We keep our yards fenced and gates locked to keep them secure. Dogs are like toddlers, they have to be protected from things that could hurt them, like cars.
All of our dogs are now spayed and neutered. Bonnie had her spay done today and while it is worrisome to have her at the vet, it is more worrisome to think of her having illigitimate, unwanted puppies.
So, do we have any real kids?
Maybe not the 2 legged kind that talk back and want a college fund, but yeah, we have 5 kids that we are responsible for.
I have heard that question time and time again.
Granted, dogs are not kids. They will be long gone when its time for me to go to the retirement home and won't have any say where I go.
But, we are still responsible for them, just as parents are responsible for kids.
We make sure their medical needs are taken care of. We feed them a good high quality food. If they become overweight, its our fault. Dogs don't shop or feed themselves. We are responsible for helping them to lose weight by cutting out snacks and getting them more active.
We keep a routine so they know what time their meals are and what time they get up and what time to go to bed. They know what time we come home from work because its consistent.
If we want to go out of town and don't have a sitter, we make changes to our lives and put their needs ahead of ours.
We keep our yards fenced and gates locked to keep them secure. Dogs are like toddlers, they have to be protected from things that could hurt them, like cars.
All of our dogs are now spayed and neutered. Bonnie had her spay done today and while it is worrisome to have her at the vet, it is more worrisome to think of her having illigitimate, unwanted puppies.
So, do we have any real kids?
Maybe not the 2 legged kind that talk back and want a college fund, but yeah, we have 5 kids that we are responsible for.
posted by Suzy Neal @ Monday, February 20, 2006
2 Comments:
At 4:48 PM,
Ashley said…
Amen to that one!!! Our children may not be the kind that everyone else thinks of when they think of kids, but they are OUR babies. We love them as if we gave birth to them. We stay up when they are sick & worry about them when something's wrong or when we are away from them.
So, okay they don't go to college or help to pick your nursing home (which might be a good thing). But they love you unconditionally, they don't talk back (although they do get an attitude), don't get into illegal activities & are very thankful to have been rescued from a bad situation.
There is no greater thing at the end of a work day, a trip to the store or any time that you're away than to come home to happy hounds.
Human kids would never be that excited to see you at the end of the day.
Anyone who says that Joe, Mallory, Ri, Chloe & Bonnie aren't kids is crazy. They all have their own individual personalities. They all love you unconditionally. They all need their mom & dad to take care of them. Okay, so maybe they don't go to daycare or have to have their diapers changed, but that doesn't make them less of a responsibility.
You have 5 wonderful, loving children & you should be proud!!
At 12:37 PM,
Megan: Dyer, Spinner and Weaver said…
It may be an unconventional family -- 2 humans and five canines -- but it is still a FAMILY.
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