I have never owned a dog. I know, I know. Gasps and sighs and all that. But it’s true. My husband and I were going to look at dogs one afternoon. We had it all planned out. And, that very morning, in a rather surprising turn of events, we found out that, instead of a puppy, we were going to be getting a baby. (Kind of the same thing, really…)
Fast forward almost four years, and that baby just had his third birthday. And has told everyone he knows or has ever met on the street that he is getting a white lab named Salt. We don’t know where he got this. But we’re at one of those parental crossroads where we’re thinking that maybe we should get him said dog, lest the child look like a pathological liar.
Even still, I am on the fence. Wet noses and sweet little eyes aside, I’m not sure about scooping poop and vacuuming dog hair all day. But, if anyone could talk me into it, it’s my friend Ann Garvin in The Dog Year. Little Dog may not be the protagonist, per se. But he loves his owner Lucy Peterman back to life — and gives her a brand-new purpose — in the way that only a four-legged friend can. And Lucy’s pronouncement that, “hope is a thing with a tail” could really melt the hardest of dog-avoiding hearts.
Plus, there really is nothing sweeter than a boy and a dog growing up together… If you’re on the fence about a puppy, or already have 100, don’t forget to enter my giveaway for The Dog Year. It’s heartwarming, poignant and complete with lots of little warm noses and furry tales. In some moments, it’s really like having a dog of your own — no poop-scooping required.
I grew up with a dog but when I started to have my own family and kids, I knew that taking care of a dog was a lot of work FOR ME, so we have postponed and postponed it time and again even if the boys at one time were begging, and now we have Sophia, so getting a dog at this point is next to nowhere. But I understand the appeal and the dog I grew up with, grouchy he maybe, made me cry my heart out when he passed away. your son is only 3, so maybe you can wait a couple more years before getting one when he can be a little more responsible in taking care of the dog too. Just a suggestion. 😉