I'm no dog lover.  Please forgive me if that sounds insensitive.  As a child, my family often took in stray dogs.  We fed them and cared for them.  But for the most part, the dogs we owned were merely part of the "living on a dirt road" scenery.  We pet them when they asked. They told us by their barks that there were visitors; rattle snakes and armadillos or an unfamiliar car. They often killed their own food, but they ate our scraps too (no Blue Buffalo dog food). I have never had much luck in training a dog. To be honest, there has never been much effort. My dogs know no tricks and they live outside.  That hasn't stopped them however, from teaching me some valuable life lessons.

Things I've Learned from Dogs

They don't mind if you're late; they're just happy to see you.

Just being present is often more important than wise words.

Removing the "dirt" in life can be unpleasant.

Mexican Lasagna isn't worth eating.

New dogs don't replace the old ones.

Once one's gone, even the small annoyances will be missed.

Dressing up can sometimes be more trouble than it's worth.

To protect loved ones, sometimes barking is necessary.

 Barking is lessened when a loved one acknowledges your reason for barking. 

Even the easiest "tricks" are not mastered if there is no motivation.

 

A little bit of encouragement goes a long way.

Feed them and they'll come.

There's nothing better than the love of the Master.

 

To really enjoy a dog, one doesn't merely try to train him to be semi human. The point of it is to open oneself to the possibility of becoming partly a dog. ~Edward Hoagland

 

What's your canine wisdom?

Don't forget to swing by tomorrow for "A Thursday for Your Thoughts".  You'll get to hear from my baby sister.

To drop me a line-  kristiburden@gmail.com