Ink Spot

Today on Facebook, one of my friends asked people whether she should get a dog or a cat as a pet for her family. This sort of quesiton makes my family jump up and down and wave their arms in the air. "Don't EVER get a dog!" my kids and I shout. Husband just smiles smugly. He warned us. "Dogs are foul," he said as we waived the shelter flyer in his face, some 8 years ago.

Husband grew up with dogs. He had a dog in college, a husky-wolf mix, that lived with him until someone stole the dog. Zeke was his name. Zeke did many foul things that I won't discuss here. Still, the kids and I persisted. "Three against one!" we shouted gleefully. He just sighed. I should note that I only briefly had a dog as a child, so I had no idea what I was getting into. I tend to ignore facts like these when making decisions, not my best attribute.

Ink Spot was adopted from PAWS, a great local shelter which I've mentioned in an earlier post. He was so popular online from PAWS' website, that when we went in to visit him, there was a drawing to see who would be first to visit with Ink and hopefully adopt him. We got all our paperwork in order and dropped our name in the hat. We won.

I love Ink, don't get me wrong. He's a good friend, really sweet, very cute, loves people, is generally good with other dogs, and surprisingly, does not bark. (Unless the UPS truck or our paperboy comes by). But I must say, the degree to which husband was right is embarassing, and he likes this fact. In the time we've had Ink Spot, here are some of his more memorable behaviors:

• trotted by us with a roast in his mouth
• knocked my daughter head-over-heels on one occasion; down the stairs at least twice
• ate an entire plate of chocolate truffles
• gets into the neighbors' unsecured garbage (usually around Thanksgiving)
• after the above step, proceeded to be sick all over the downstairs carpet, instead of the upstairs wood floor
• ate an entire bag (Halloween size) of Jolly Rancher candy
• greets all new people by shoving his face in their crotch
• adores the cat boxes and the tasty treats found within

I could go on, but don't want to ruin any snack you might be eating right now. And it's not just Ink: my friend's dog once got into a cupboard, seized a bottle of cooking oil, and proceeded to douse her couches and carpet in Wesson.
That being said, dogs need to be walked, cleaned up after, and taken to the kennel when you go out of town. Ink doesn't care if we hire the nicest house sitter in the world for our vacations. He howls when the house sitter leaves to go to work, or just to the mailbox. They need vet care, and your vaccuuming duties will increase by tenfold unless you adopt a poodle. (They don't shed as much as other dogs, apparently).

So get a cat. Or a parakeet. You have been warned.