We’re not going to tell you not to get a dog. No way. We love dogs. There is just something amazing about home life when you have a dog to come home to, or a dog to keep your child entertained, or a reason to get up and out of the house, even when the weather turns. Dogs are truly amazing. Little balls of love that love you unconditionally, sometimes in the way you wish your child would love you. But that doesn’t mean life with “man’s best friend” is going to be perfect.
Yeah, there are some things you should know before bringing a dog into your home. Like we said above, we’re not doing this to put you off because the pros well outweigh the cons (it’s not even close). We’re telling you this stuff because we don’t want you to be blindsided. We want you to get the home ready, and know about the little things no one tells you about so you can look forward to them and embrace them. They’re the quirks of dog-ownership, the little things some may call imperfections, but we call the good stuff.
Be Prepared Not To Sleep
Puppies are adorable. Oh, they’re the cutest thing this side of kids versions of adult clothing (baby converse are the cutest). However, you shouldn’t ignore the fact that you are welcoming a hairy animal into your home. Yes, an animal. An animal that hasn’t been potty trained yet, nor one that knows how to hold his bladder from dusk until dawn, which means you may have to deal with a few trips to the garden in the middle of the night.
Don’t worry, though, this phase passes as you introduce a little structure into their life. So while you may have to explain to your boss the reason your eyes are so red and you keep yawning when they are talking is because of your night owl of a puppy, this phase will pass sooner than you realize. After this, well, you’ll have that dog lovers life you see on the commercials.
The Privilege Of Spontaneity Has Gone
If you have kids, then you’ll be aware of this already, but one of the biggest changes to your life, when you get a puppy, is your inability to leave the house at a moment’s notice. Oh, the whole game changes. Maybe there will be places you can take your dog, in which case load them into the car and take them with you, but remember they won’t be used to cars so you’re going to want to read some bark collar reviews for the sake of your sanity. Loud barking in a small space is not great. That’s just the tip of the iceberg, too.
Going away for a weekend becomes more tricky, going to the bar with your friends becomes a touch harder, and vacationing requires that little bit more planning. Don’t worry, though. You soon fall into a routine, and you kind of forget what it was like before. You’ll have a dog sitter on call, or a friend who’ll happily take them, and you’ll learn to talk them into the car and all of that stuff will become worth it.
Furniture Will Change In Style
Whether you like it or not, scratch marks and bite holes are going to be in fashion, at least for a little bit. Luckily, this information won’t be anything new to you because it is something all new doggy-parents buy into consensually. It is just a matter of enforcing your no dogs on the furniture policy with longevity in mind. The thing you have got to be conscious of is that your puppy is going to break that rule the moment you leave them alone in the house. So we suggest you get a healthy sized cage for them or have a room where you can shut them away without compromising their health and wellbeing.
The only reason we’re telling you this is because we don’t want you to be shocked when you find claw marks on your leather arm chairs or the corners of your expensive coffee table chewed off (yes this has happened to me). We don’t want you to be surprised when you find bits of foam all over your house and a huge hole in the sofa cushion; or a matte of dog hair and an indentation in the sofa where they have been lounging all day while you were out. So, lay down some rules, train them properly, learn how to reward good behavior and understand the power of consistency. All of these will have a huge impact on how many sofas you have to buy.
It Is A Dog Eat Dog World
There are two elements to this area of your life, both of which will come as a surprise to begin with. The first is the fact you will never – never ever – be able to leave food unattended again. It could be that you’re having a sandwich when the phone rings. Trust us, that sandwich is gone before you’ve even said hello. Seriously, you could leave a slice of pizza sitting on the chimney on your roof and your puppy is going to find a way to get up there. It’s just what dogs do. Luckily, this is a lifestyle change that you have to make and one that is relatively simple to commit to. Either you learn or you go hungry.
The other thing you are going to have to get used to is “the stare.” This will happen every time you eat something because, even though they don’t know what it is you are eating, you are eating it which means they want to eat it too. That’s when “the stare” comes out. They just look at you while you eat, their eyes will be big and miserable, and their body language will suggest starvation. You will crumble. We all crumble. What are your options on this front? Well, you are either going to have to learn how to handle that stare, lock them in another room while you eat, or you are going to have to lay them a place at the table and just accept you are a softy. There are your three options, right there.
