Wednesday, June 1, 2011

Man's Best Friend


I'm in a situation where I have two souls that require much of my attention when I'm home. They may not realize it but they have it good. They don't have to go to work. They can sleep all day if they chose. When it comes to food, not only do they don't have to make it but it's served to them on time each day. The best part is that they don't have to pick up after themselves, literally. But it's a relationship I wouldn't trade for anything.
Hope and Parker.
My two beagles that make it a pleasure to come home. Even before I turn the key in the door you can hear the excitement, even though I left them alone for the last 7 hours. In some relationships with men, if you leave them alone for 7 hours you get attitude, but my girls have nothing but love which consists of running in a circle and planting kisses on me.
If you read some studies, they warn those who have HIV about pet ownership because of the compromised immune system and the precautions one should take as pets may transmit some diseases.
For me I throw that caution out the window as my pets have given me nothing but calm, affection and showed me the ability to love. Regardless of the risks, many people living with HIV choose to keep pets because they are fun to care for and have many psychological advantages. Pets cannot only provide entertainment and companionship; they can comfort people-both in sickness and health.
I'm not ashamed to say it but sometimes I prefer to be around my dogs than people. I love each for their different personality.
Hope-who was the first one to join the family, was something as a puppy. She was stubborn. To the point we got kicked out of puppy training class. Even today she is the most mischievous. She's discovered the dishwasher and knows that when loading it there's still some food on the plates, so if you dare leave the door down she'll be in the dishwasher trying to do the job of the machine. Or the time when out of the blue she jumped into the Hudson River, just because, but she swam back as if nothing was wrong. And I'm still trying to figure out how she's getting into the tall trash can that you have to push a pedal to open. Even in our stare down battle, she'll win by rushing to me and giving me five minutes of kisses all over my face. How can I compete with that? I even wonder if in her previous life if she was a cat as she doesn't like to be held yet at night she finds that area behind your knees and cuddles close.
Then there's Parker. She's the opposite of Hope as she always wants to be held or touched. If I was to enter the house without bending down to give her a kiss she would follow me until I submitted. One thing about her is that she loves the sound of cellophane. If I want to enjoy a Kraft single cheese slice, I have to turn on the kitchen faucet to drown out the noise of her hearing the cellophane. But if she hears that sound, there she is!
They have truly been true companions and the greatest thing is that they just want to be close to you. I know the hardest part for me will be when they leave as they have a short life span, yet I read something that was so profound.
It said that the reasons dogs life are so short is because they come into the world ready to give love with no conditions and they share this gift with humans so that they can learn to love the same way. I've learned that lesson well.
I have a hard time to thinking of any human who can do the same.
They make me want to manage my HIV as I know they depend on me to be there. And as long as I have breath they can count on that.
Make no mistakes pet ownership is not easy as there's a huge commitment, but believe me if you're tired of dealing with the drama of humans, pets make it so worth having!
They truly are this man's best friend!!

No comments: