1. Depression 

During those times when you feel so alone and like no one gets it, you at least have a fur baby to keep you company. I don’t know exactly why this is, but maybe it’s the constant joy you feel when you are around such a pure and loving soul!

2. Anxiety 

So, there is a reason that dogs are trained to be service dogs with anxiety disorders, autism, epilepsy, and so many more health/mental health disorders. Where this kind of coincides with depression, there is a sort of calmness that comes with having a dog during that time that you are panicking, feeling on edge about something, or just sort of feel like secluding yourself from the world.

Granted I know anxiety is much more than that and even so with depression, but we're keeping this at its most basic level for reading times sake.

3. Laziness 

Ahh, one of the biggest reasons why I am so thankful for my dog. My pup keeps me on my toes every single day. Whether it's those mornings when I just do not want to get up or times when I would rather binge watch a tv show (or two), he is a constant reminder that it's about more than just me.

And honestly, I kind of consider him to be my child so I definitely don't want to neglect him in any way. I already feel bad enough when I sit at a high top stool and he just stares at me whining because he would rather I play with him.

4. Breakup 

I am going to be honest here... I was about two weeks fresh out of a break up before I moved to Oxford for school this semester. If I hadn't had Boomer here, I would have certainly sulked in my bed and experienced that adjustment from being with someone almost every day to not at all by myself, and it would have lasted much longer than it did. But somehow or another, caring for my dog and making sure he was given the best care was super important to me and even helpful in helping me be distracted during that time of moving forward. Normally, going through a breakup I would have been super upset for months and would have sulked and found every reason to not move forward. But instead, my dog got all the lovin's and care he deserved because it kept me moving forward.

5. Anger 

I cannot tell you how helpful a dog is when you are angry about something. You walk in your house from having such an awful day and there is your dog jumping on you and making these weird noises because he is so excited to see you and licking your legs (at least that's what my super short wiener dog does). Even though I might still be upset, it is like he brought that high intensity of anger down several notches and I can finally breathe. Then, before I know it I don't even realize I'm not upset anymore.

6. Mingling 

So I am the worst about meeting new people. I am not good at making new friends at all. But my dog has at least one new person coming up to me a day. Whether we're going for a walk through the apartment complex or we're in Walmart, it never fails that we meet someone new. I have been added to a dog park GroupMe and have had several people want to have play dates with our dogs. Plus, it is super fun when a cute dude comes to pet my dog.

Then I just wonder if they are going to save that number from Boomer's dog tag...

7. Happiness 

I don't know about any of you, but I am finding that I wake up in the mornings and I feel so much happier than I did before I had Boomer and let him sleep in the bed with me. I don't really know what it is, but he's sort of the size of a baby so he does these super cute things all of the time. and it literally just makes my heart so happy and then my eyes tear up and it's all just a big super sappy bonding moment I have with this dog.

For example, he loves to cuddle right next to me at night. Sometimes he will curl up or sometimes he will lay straight and on his back but always right up against me (almost underneath of me). Well, the other night he scoots closer and closer and he couldn't get comfortable. So he gets up completely, finds the way underneath the four layers of cover, scoots closest to me, and lays his head right next to mine. He licked my cheek once. and the next thing I know he is snoring. If that isn't just the best way to go to sleep then I don't know what is!

8. Alarm clock 

I am a light sleeper, so this might not be true for others. But around the same time every morning, Boomer gets up and starts pawing at my face to wake up. He also will go back to sleep if I don't get up (sort of like I hit the snooze button) and then will get up again. I truly think that if I didn't set an alarm, he would wake me up just the same. The best part is that he doesn't bark at me to wake him up. Thankfully I don't wake up to my heart jumping out of my chest!

9. Mental breakdowns 

If you read my last piece, you might remember that I have yet to have a mental breakdown this semester, which is extremely rare! This is also my first semester having a dog.. correlation?? Maybe so. None the less, he has been super helpful in constantly having to move forward. I guess I never really paid attention to how stuck I would become in my life, kind of like not knowing how to keep moving forward or what direction to go. But somehow or another I have managed to feel a little more grounded with having Boomer.

10. Steadiness 

Complimenting the previous note, this is that “groundedness" I mentioned. I can't really describe it in any other way than just to say that he keeps me feeling a little more level in all aspects of my life. Rather than constantly thinking about myself and everything I am doing right or wrong or not doing at all (like I normally would), I have a little less time to do that. Plus, I ultimately feel happier than I was before I had him, so maybe that has something to do with the more “positive" mindset.

11. Ultimate vacuum cleaner 

Any time I have dropped food (solid or liquid), there he is.. Boomer has gotten to it before I can keep the napkin. Keep in mind: I don't feed him human food. So he only gets my wonderful tasting food in small quantities. Not only does he clean up the food dropped on the floor, there he is also cleaning out the garbage can all.over.my.floor. He must really enjoy human food because he knows the trashcan anytime I leave it down when I leave the house and then doesn't eat his own food.

12. Unconditional love

The best part about having a dog, HANDS DOWN. No matter how many times you say no, leave them for hours while you're in class, go out for a girls night and leave him home, or accidentally step on his paw, he still is excited to see you every time. He is truly the best dog I could ask for in that he isn't that much work (though some dogs are). But he keeps me on my toes, and I guess all of that is what constitutes the “unconditional" part. This loving and carefree dog loves me no matter how much I mess up or get onto him.

And in return, I don't kick him out when he destroys my white carpet with the garbage bag he's strung into my room, opened up, and eaten/licked bare.