My pets are a prominent feature of my life, they being two Border Terriers, extremely cute and adorable (from a mother's highly prejudiced point of view). Many note that for people who live alone (as I do) pets provide a substitute for human company. I disagree. I find the company they provide is uniquely characteristic of their own particular doggie personalities, and possibly superior to the company of a number of humans I have known. We have developed a good level of instinctive rapport, in that we sense each others' needs and moods and tend to adapt our behaviour accordingly... well realistically perhaps I do more of the adapting than they do. Especially when I arrive home late from work and they are impatiently awaiting dinner, or what is most often the case demanding it through various verbal and non-verbal clues. Left to my own preferences, I would probably sink down in front of the heater, pour a stiff drink, turn on the TV or whatever, but instead regardless of my state of exhaustion, work induced frustration or whatever, race immediately to set out the dog dishes, grab the dog food from the cupboard, stand back from the rush and serve. Guilt plays some part in this to be honest, as I know they have no say in the timetabling of our lives, whereas I have total control.
Oh and I neglected to say, their names are Fergus and Scully. Check out their personal blogs in my blog list, set up thanks to Beneful Dogspace, a great new facility for dog lovers to put their precious pooches online.
