Ever since I left home for college, I've wanted my own dog at school. I would spend hours trying to convince myself and others that I am, in fact, responsible enough to have my own dog and I WILL have enough time to take care of it. Finally, after practically begging my mom to let me keep my dog from home in my apartment for a couple of weeks, my mind has completely changed.

Don't get me wrong, I love my dog to death. I've had her for years! But, I never realized how much work having your own pet could be until I was actually fully responsible for her. At home, my parents could pretty much take care of my dog when I was feeling lazy (which they did). However, now I'm responsible for everything.

Having a dog on your own means waking up half an hour before you normally would, because you have to stand outside for 30 minutes with a stubborn dog who gets distracted from using the bathroom by the wind blowing. It means coming home during the day to check in and let the dog out when you would normally be spending the 8+ hours of free time you had before in the library studying. Having your own dog means finally understanding the embarrassment of having a dog named "Tinkerbell", when you have to yell her name because she's chasing the neighbors dog down the sidewalk. One thing I didn't really realize having your own dog meant is that I would spend more money on her food for the week than I would on mine, because I refuse to buy the cheap low-quality dog food.

Almost everyone says they want their own puppy in college. We see the cute little pups in the pet stores or on the rent-a-puppy days and just die inside. I'm learning now that they're actually as much responsibility as the adults in your life warn you about, and I'm thinking I'm going to wait to get a dog until I'm about 30 years old. Surprise, mom was right again!