When I came to college and I went through all my struggles, I missed a lot of things about home. One of those big things was my dog.
When I got diagnosed with my mental illnesses, I started looking into Emotional Support Animals (Which DO NOT have to go through a certification — all of those are scams). The only thing you need is a letter from your doctor stating that an animal would benefit you, due to your disability.
DISCLAIMER: This is not a service dog. An ESA is basically a pet that stays at home to comfort you there and does NOT have public access rights. A service dog is a dog that is SPECIFICALLY trained to respond to their owner to mitigate their disability anywhere. They DO have public access rights.
Anyway, I was looking into it for about a year and a half before I actually met with puppies that had good temperaments and could be easily trained for obedience (just because well-behaved dogs are much easier to live with).
I was all set to get a beautiful, female Sheltie puppy that was quiet, smart, and sweet. On the day that I was supposed to get her, the woman stopped responding and basically ghosted me. This, of course, hit me really hard. I had told this lady why I wanted the puppy. I had already met the pup and fallen in love with her.
It was hard for me to look for other dogs. I had been thinking of her as my dog, even though she wasn't. Finally, I found a Golden Retriever runt that a woman was trying to get rid of. I was reluctant to go meet him, but I did anyway. I loved the breed and, at this point, I really wanted a dog.
When I met him and his family, I fell in love. His brothers were crazy and about twice his size, but he was so calm and sweet. I was sold and I took him home that day. The whole way home, he sat between my neck and the seat.
The first night, he kept me up with his crying. It sucked, but I finally got a schedule going and within a week, he started sleeping through the night! If he was taken out every two hours or so, he had minimal accidents.
He was such a great addition to my life. I had a reason to get up in the morning. I had a reason to smile when I didn't want to. He even made it easier to talk to people who spoke to me when I was taking him on walks. He is a being that will always love me even when I don't love myself, and that is the most important thing that I get from him.
As he's grown, he's stayed very small. He looks like a miniature Golden Retriever! Even though he can be a turd, I often find myself watching him nap and wondering how my life could be this great without him.
I love waking up to my little man every day — even if he's a midget. He might be little, but he takes up alot of room in my heart.
