I have always loved dogs. When MWD and I were dating, I told him I would always have a dog; he took it like a man. There are benefits to having a dog that go beyond security and companionship. It’s hard to explain, but I love dogs. However, I don’t have a dog, I have a puppy and that’s a whole ‘nother show.

When my sweet Sadie died after sticking by me for twelve years, I told MWD we could have a dog break. We would wait until there were no more diapers in the house and we had a fenced in yard again. That was about 7 years ago and the time finally came to get our family a dog. I searched the listing for a few weeks and finally found our little Monkey. She is the cutest little boxer you ever saw and smart too, even if I do call her “Dummy” at least twice a day.

Now that I have a Puppy, I remember all the things I forgot. So if you are thinking about getting a puppy, let me remind you of a few things:

1. Unlike babies who have a diaper on, puppies poop and pee on the floor and have to be housebroken. This means constant supervision for weeks. It means getting up in the middle of the night if they can’t hold it in the crate all night.

2. Puppies whine just like babies. When crated (at first) they whine and fuss like you are stabbing them with pins. They also screech when put outside in the cold for more than 30 seconds.

3. Puppies have to be trained; they know nothing. Sit, come, bed, outside, breakfast – these words mean nothing to the little minds of mush.

4. Puppies chew on everything. This includes (especially) human hands and feet. And even if you correct it every damn time and give them a toy, they still feel the need to chew and you have to wait it out.

5. Puppies terrorize the family cat. Poor Gracie hasn’t had it easy since Monkey came to town.

6. Puppies have horrible gas.

7. Puppies need exercise even when it’s raining.

The good news is that #1- #4 will definitely get better and maybe even #5. Tough luck on #6 & #7. I realize this is all an investment and a year from now I will have a happy little Monkey that fits right in our family, but this is harder than I remembered. And it’s work.

Emily summed it all up perfectly the other morning. She was sleepily trying to make her toaster waffles when Monkey kept biting at her shoes and tearing up her laces. After shooing her off for 10 minutes, she screamed at the top of her lungs, “MONKEY!” Then she spun around with a burning venomous look that immediately disappeared when her eyes made contact with that little cocked puppy face, “How can I stay mad at you, look at that cute little face.”