Life Lessons from Puppy Love

My mom used to have this plaque hanging in our bathroom that said, “Everything I ever needed to know in life I learned from my guardian angel” then listed the simple principles of life lessons. I’ve no doubt been blessed with a guardian angel or seven, and they definitely have gotten me out of some trouble over the years.

But, the more and more I observe my two puppies, the more I’m enamored with the way they relate to each other and to people.

So here goes. The things I’ve learned about life and love from orphaned puppies and rescue dogs:

Always share your toys.

I first noticed this when we brought the rescue Both Daisy andwould leave a toy whenever Oso showed the slightest interest in it. It wasn’t in a mean way. They were just letting her have it. I even caught Daisy, a Pit Bull, letting this little five-pound dog take a toy out of her mouth without any hesitation.

Keep an eye on the sick, hurt and wounded.

When I got Oso, she just wanted to stay in her box and sleep a lot. Daisy, however, thought she needed to be watched. Oso would sneak into her crate and Daisy would go in and pull her out by the scruff of her neck. Daisy was fine just as long as she could see Oso. For the entire week I had her, Daisy never let her out of her sight.

Take time to watch the dump trucks.

Daisy loves dump trucks. When we lived in Tuscaloosa, she would sit on the porch and watch them for hours. It used to drive me nuts because she refused to go inside until they were gone, but it later became this little downtime for me. I knew that standing outside on a pretty day was worth missing 15 minutes of working. I learned that sometimes you just have to be still and appreciate things.

Cuddle for warmth.

See attached photo.

Sneak attack acts of affection.

Scout Finch is the worst about this. It seems like she just waits for the worst possible time (IE when I’m speaking on a conference call) to sneak attack kisses. And she never misses your mouth. I’ve been trying to break this habit since I got her, but it is impossible.

Nap often.

There’s a photo on Pintrest that says something like “You’ll never remember the nights you got plenty of sleep.” That may be true, but you’ll definitely remember the days you were well rested enough to make a difference.

Looks don’t matter.

Scout Finch loves big dogs. She will do anything to go play with a Pit Bull or St. Bernard. What’s worse, the scarier they look, the more she wants to love them. My mommy instincts kick in and I don’t want her to play with them because I don’t know how they do with little dogs. But maybe she’s got it right. Maybe it’s the scary-looking, not-so-pretty ones who need the most love.

If you want someone to notice you, nuzzle them until they pay attention.

If you’re cute enough, they won’t mind that you interrupted them.

When it comes to kindness, act first then worry later.

Whenever I’m upset, Daisy brings me toys. I think a lot of times good people don’t do acts of kindness because they’re worried about crossing some kind of boundary or being inappropriate. I’ve caught myself many times saying, “Oh I’d do this but I don’t know the person that well.” Who cares? When I got Scout Finch, my Daddy said this:

Do you have a home? Yes.

Does she need a home? Yes.

Do you love her? Yes.

And that’s it. If you have something that someone else needs, nothing else matters. So what if they think you crossed a line. So what if you don’t know them that well?

Maybe I’m just being nostalgic. Maybe I’ve been looking on Pintrest’s motivational posters too much. I just can’t help but notice how they rely on their instincts to take care of one another without any kind of hesitation. There is no comfort zone stopping them. Instead of being one of those people who just think animals are cool for doing this, I think we should apply this to real life.

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