Animals have been around since the beginning of Earth’s creation, however you want to explain it. Whether by God or science, we were still given the amazing opportunity to interact with these creatures both from far away and up close. Domestication of animals took place thousands of years ago, and personally, I couldn’t be any more thankful for it. Without this advancement, I wouldn’t be a mom -- a dog mom.

Let me explain what I mean when I say this. A dog mom or dog parent, by definition of my own creation, is a person who dedicates their time to love and protect a dog as if it were in fact their own flesh and blood. Dog parents are the same as human parents in that they teach their dogs right from wrong and watch them grow from a clumsy puppy into an aware and intelligent dog. It’s all the fun of having a child without the hassle of dealing with their smart backtalk in their teenage years (unless you have a very vocal dog, which, in that case, have fun with the small growls and barks of disapproval).

As a proud dog mom, I always try to explain why I feel the way I do about dogs, as I have a long history with them. I was 4 years old when I got my first dog, a yellow Labrador Retriever whom I insisted we name Scooby-Doo. Not my brightest idea, although it does by allmeans top the fish I named Swimmer. Even though I so stupidly gave him an awful name, I loved that dog with all of my heart and I did everything with him. When I say everything, I mean I tortured the poor thing day in and day out. I played dentist with him and stuck my little rubber gloved hands into his mouth. I put glitter glue all over him when I was still very little because I thought it would make him “pretty." I even used him as a pillow to sleep on a few times. But no matter what I did to him, Scooby-Doo never harmed a hair on my head and was always protective of me until we had to put him to sleep when I was in the sixth grade. To say I was broken is an absolute understatement.

I was lucky enough five years later to receive a second dog, a Shih Tzu Maltese who I named Bella. Having a small dog intensifies the dog mom feeling because she will always stay small and I will always be able to call her my little nugget without it being too weird. (Yes, I still receive unsure glances when people hear me call my dog a nugget. So? Sue me.) She’s been the highlight of each of my days these past few years, and being here at Monmouth University means I don’t get to see her as often as I would like. All week long I look forward to seeing her again, and when I finally do, the feeling is indescribable. She runs around my house and flips over for belly rubs, while her tail is wagging a mile a minute out of pure joy of seeing her mommy again.

What a lot of people don’t understand is how strong of a connection you are able to form with not just these dogs, but with animals in general. They rely on you to take care of them and you’re put in a position where you have to basically keep another living thing alive. They can’t communicate with actual words, but their actions are as if they’re shouting full volume into your heart. They might only be there for a part of your life, but for them, you are their whole life. So treat your dog to a special afternoon snack, take endless photos of every cute thing they do, brag to your friends about the new trick they learned, give them that belly rub they rolled over for; and above all else, love them as if they were your own. We’re dog moms -- it’s what we do.