I am a ridiculously early person. If possible, I tend to be at least 30 minutes early for everything. These days, this is an excuse to get some extra reading time; it used to be an opportunity for a glass of wine to settle my nerves when jumping into a party.
On the night in question, I was almost an hour early and could not locate an open pub. I was in a part of east London that I had never visited, and I didn’t even know the host of the party, Charlie. I only knew the guy who had invited me, and he wasn’t likely to arrive for another hour or two.So I went to Charlie’s house. To get me out of the way while he finished setting up, he took me to the spare bedroom and introduced me to his new French bulldog puppy. I fell in love immediately.A shower caddy makes a great storage solution for all your doggie stuff.
I spent the entire night in the room with the puppy.
For seven years in my 20s, I worked as a European sales rep for a celebrity photography agency, travelling almost all of the time and barely spending enough time at home to switch laundry, let alone have a boyfriend or a steady routine. But I had recently changed jobs and was working on a magazine; my hours had settled. That evening at the party, I realised I was finally ready for the one thing that I had always wanted: a pup.I grew up with a springer spaniel named Lacy, who used to get jealous of the books I read and put her paw in the middle of the page to draw my attention. Towards the end of her life, at the beginning of my senior year in high school, she got into bed with me. Upset by this unusual behaviour, I woke my mom; she reasoned that my bed was lower than the bed where Lacy had slept for my entire life and so was easier on the old girl’s hips. Lacy spent that final year that I lived at home sleeping with me every night. She died in my first weekend away at college and her gentle, silly ways have stayed with me.Use Rubber Gloves to Pick up Stray Dog Hair. Does your dogs hair get everywhere, or is it just me? My favorite method for picking up all that loose hair is using a pair of rubber gloves. You put them on and run you hands over your furniture; it’s amazing how well pet hair clings to rubber gloves.
To have a puppy of my own: that was the dream. But was it selfish? Could I handle the responsibility? The plan had a lot of things going for it. I lived opposite the Royal Veterinary College. The house I lived in had a dog door in the back – and I had already settled on a name. My flatmate and I were obsessed with The Wire and I thought naming a dog McNulty would be a brilliant barometer for future romantic and platonic friends. I just had to convince my flatmate that I was ready for the imagined McNulty.INTERESTING FACT ABOUT YOUR PET: According to the ASPCA, around 2.7 million shelter animals are adopted each year. Interesting in adopting a pet? Make sure to do your research ahead of time to find the animal that's right for you!
INTERESTING FACT ABOUT YOUR PET: More than half of all U.S presidents have owned dogs.
That night at the party, I decided that it was time. I was ready.
Make Your Own Elevated Food Bowl. You can make your own elevated pet food bowl with an $8 table from Ikea. Elevated food bowls make eating easier on dogs with arthritis and joint problems since they won’t have to bend down as much.
The secret to getting a puppy – and getting it right
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I know I don’t have long left with her, but she has been so loved and treasured. She is irreplaceable. Oh, and yes, she has met the real McNulty (the actor Dominic West) – and the picture was my Christmas card. Not sure she was bothered.Keep an Eye On Your Dog Around Water (Especially Pools). Not all dogs are great swimmers, and when it comes to pools they can be very dangerous for a dog. Keep an eye on your dog if they’re out in the yard by the pool and make sure your dog knows where the steps in & out of the pool are.