My Hound mix Junee will forever be fascinating to me. It’s not just that shortly after I met her, she turned on her heels, squatted and pooped a few feet away from me. (What a first impression. “Adopt me or don’t, I don’t care.”)
And it’s not just that she randomly shoves her head in my shirt like an ostrich. (Although ostriches hiding their heads in the sand is a myth, they do lie down and flatten their heads and necks on the ground if they feel threatened.)
It’s not even that she takes off running full speed and runs into the corner of her living room crate every single time I open the bathroom door after a night shower. Then, I climb into bed only for her to beeline to my bedroom and the edge of the bed frame so I have to pet her before I go to sleep. (Strangest game of Hide n’ Seek ever.)
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And it’s not that she always walks out the door like she’s late for work and everyone else is slowing her down. No matter what, she always acts like she’s busier than I’ll ever be but then flops down like she worked the third shift as soon as we’re home.
It's not that she goes to dog parks, collects every single ball like an unpaid park ranger and hoards them in a corner.
It’s all of the above. It’s really that I love how her big personality will give me a new story on a daily basis.
Lately, I’ve been seeing a zillion ads for a life-like robot dog, and all I keep thinking is, “Why am I getting this ad every 60 seconds? I would never get this robot dog.” If you’re an ‘80s Millennial, you’ve already seen that episode of “The Jetsons” where the family tried to replace Elroy with Lectronimo. It obviously didn’t work out. Nothing electronic can compare to a living dog — unless there’s something serious going on like pet allergies.
Even when I bought my condo and was told there was a no-dog policy, I joined Wag! and Rover so I could continue playing with and being around breathing, animated dogs. By the time I learned about emotional support animals (to get around the no-pet rule), I’d already grown comfortable with walking dogs. Then, I joined the condo board and got my own dog during the pandemic. And I still walk other people's dogs!
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As an Amazon affiliate, I earn a percentage from purchases with my referral links. I know some consumers are choosing to boycott Amazon for its DEI removal. However, after thinking about this thoroughly, I want to continue promoting cool products from small businesses, women-owned businesses and (specifically) Black-owned businesses who still feature their items on Amazon. As of the first date of Black History Month 2025, each new post will ALWAYS include a MINIMUM of one product sold by a Black-owned business. (I have visited the seller’s official site to verify that Amazon Black-owned logo.) I am (slowly) doing this with older, popular posts too. If you still choose to boycott, I 100% respect that decision.
And my actual dog saved me from an electric baseboard heater fire. Robot dogs just can’t do that — or, they can’t do it the way Junee did it, by being an absolute nuisance and making me stay awake. While National Pet Fire Safety Day isn’t until July 15, do yourself a favor and make sure you’re a responsible pet owner and prepared for an emergency right now. This includes allowing firefighters to know where your real-life pets are and how many live ones there are. Protect your pets the way they protect you.
Order your free ASPCA Pet Safety Pack today!
Shamontiel is a dog lover to her core: 624 completed walks with 99 dogs, eight dog-housesittings and six dog boardings at the time of this publication.
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