My dog is my child. I got him when I was a rising senior in high school, and you better believe I packed him up and moved him into my apartment my freshman year of college. My first year on my own with my dog taught me a few lessons -- good and bad -- that I'm sure many of you who also have dogs in college can relate to.
1. You have to take your dog out before you do anything else in the morning.
You'd rather get it over with before you start your day, but it's still frustrating to stand outside and wait forever for your dog to poop before you even use the bathroom yourself. Is this what being a mother is?
2. Your dog will bark at the faintest sound of a knock
Your neighbor may have closed their door to their apartment, someone may have dropped something, or someone may actually be at the door, but either way, your dog is going to go crazy. When this happens you can forget silence for the next 10 minutes.
3. Your dog is happiest when you have a house party.
If your dog is like mine, he or she loves people. Whenever I have people over my dog is in Heaven. He can't get enough of the excitement and he will greet every person without tiring.
4. Your dog is also the main attraction at said party.
As much as your dog loves people, the people love him or her too. Forget the decorations, food, or other people, your dog is all most people at your party need. Get ready for your dog being used for endless snapchat stories and being fed tons of food.
5. You learn the hard way that you can't leave food unattended.
No food on the coffee table, bed, or end table is safe. It will get eaten, and you will get mad.
6. If you wake up late for class, you will definitely not make it on time.
The dog having to go out in the morning is first priority, and if you sleep through your alarm, you can forget being on time to class. Whereas, other students may be able to jump out of bed and go to class, you have to take out and feed your dog before you can do anything.
7. You always have a Netflix buddy.
Granted, he or she may want to play fetch the whole time, but at least you don't ever have to watch Netflix alone.
8. You can't take spontaneous trips.
Your friends want to take a spontaneous trip but, "Can I bring my dog?" is always your first question. If the answer is no, you have to reevaluate your options. You'd love to go, but you have a dog to take care of. Unless you can find a trustworthy friend to take care of your baby, you'll have to sit this one out.
9. There will be dog hair everywhere.
Unless you have a super awesome hypoallergenic dog, your home's most popular decoration will be dog hair. Just get used to it. Cleaning it up all the time will get really old really fast, but there's nothing you can do.
10. You couldn't imagine going through college without him/her
There may be a lot of work that comes with having a dog and some days might be tough, but when it comes down to it, you love your dog with all your heart. There is nothing quite like being able to be alone but still have your own personal cuddle buddy. You love your pup and having one makes your hardest days at school just a little bit easier.
There are ups and downs to having such a big responsibility when you're also trying to explore your freedom, but there is no way you'd ever trade it in for a life alone. If you don't have a dog, but you really think you could balance school and parenthood, I would fully recommend it. You could always use a best friend that loves you unconditionally.
