You're probably wondering whether if I'm a terrible human being who despises animals...well I'm not.

On the contrary, I love animals. I once owned two turtles, four cats, and one dog all at the same time. When I moved to the States, I got myself two snakes! Now, I am left with nothing (and no one) due to moving so much in my life. I had to either leave my pets behind in my home country or give them away. I realized I am not the best pet owner.

Roxy is my first dog, she's a Jack Russell terrier. We got her at a pet shop in Thailand when I was around 12 years old. We went during after hours when they had already caged up all the puppies, so when I asked to see the dogs, they opened the kennel and all these puppies started running away from me except one. You guessed it, it was Roxy.

She was a small little thing and super energetic. We nicknamed her Rasputin for various reasons but she stuck by me through every horrible incident she got into. She persisted. I love my dog, I really do but when I had to make the big move to America, I wasn't able to bring her with me. Until today I live with the guilt of being one of the worst pet owners I know.

I live a very travel-filled life, I am now realizing I left my dog at home all the time, abandoning her to be by herself, but this time I wasn't coming home.

I had to leave her behind because I was 16 and I couldn't have a pet. I was moving across the globe about to start a journey on my own and having a pet ties you down.

Dogs are like children, they require care, attention, and love. They need to go to the vet, they get sick and hospital bills are as expensive as mine. I mean I have health insurance through the school so thank the lord but if I had brought my dog to the States with me I would have probably paid for dog insurance... I didn't bring her with me because I could barely take care of myself at the time and to be honest I could barely take care of myself now.

I know puppies are cute and all you want to do is to hug them but they're not just show. Really think about it if you're planning to get a dog or any animal...Are you willing to sacrifice your time to take care of another life? Are you ready for that responsibility?

Dogs don't have any control over their lives, their lives are completely in your hands. If you're going to be responsible for them wouldn't you want to give them the best life? I didn't and that is why I carry so much guilt with me when I think about my dog.

After the move, the first time I saw my dog was only after a few months I had left. She was so excited to see me. My dog is quite chubby, so imagine a chubby Jack Russell jumping onto you; defying gravity in every possible way. It was the cutest sight. Almost every year I go home to visit my family and the sight of my dog just staring through the fence never gets old. After everything I put her through she still loves me unconditionally.

Sure, she's a dog and that's what they do but I still don't think I deserve any of it.