I have had a dog in my family for around 23 of my 30 years. But, since moving out more than four years ago – and not getting one of my own yet – I’ve realised how much I took having a furry four-legged companion for granted.
I miss coming home every day to her smiling face and wagging tail, having snuggles in front of the TV, the comfort she provides when I’m sad. But, I also miss taking her out for a walk.
Staffordshire bull terriers were named the top breed out of 100 on Britain’s Top Dog 2019. After the two and a half hour countdown on ITV, Ben Fogle and Sara Cox announced the country’s new favourite breed had taken the top spot from Labradors, who moved down to third place.
Nobody needs to tell me Staffies are the best, I have one – so I already know this. However, for a breed that is often, wrongly, stereotyped as ‘aggressive’ and ‘dangerous,’ this is a huge step in the right direction.
But, does this mean people are changing their opinions and seeing them for the loving breed that they really are? View Post
Image via Unsplash.com
Picture the scene – you are sat at your desk typing furiously away, it is 9am and you have an 8 hour day ahead of you. You are feeling stressed because although that may seem like a long time there are just never enough hours in the day and you have deadlines you aren’t sure you are going to be able to meet.
Then you feel a wet nose press into your leg, you look down and see puppy dog eyes looking up at you as a tail wags frantically back and forth.
You instantly feel calmer – and after a 10 minute break in the fresh air (so you aren’t cleaning poop off the office floor) and giving your furry friend a tickle behind the ears – you feel ready to get back to work with renewed motivation. The result; you meet your deadlines and don’t feel drained at the end of the day.
If you were to form an opinion of Staffordshire Bull Terriers from what you read and see in the media, what would you say about them? You would *probably* picture a snarling dog with bared teeth, foaming at the mouth – because that is what they show us. You might then describe them as the dog that attacks anything that crosses their path – because that is what they tell us.
You couldn’t be further from the truth. Did you know that they are one of the only breeds to be described as a ‘Nanny dog’ by The Kennel Club because of how good they are with children and they actually come below Labradors on the list of dogs most likely to bite?
I can remember the last time I saw her face like it was yesterday.
She was 15, which may not seem very old but, in dog years, she was over 90 – a senior citizen and pretty good going for her breed.
While we knew the end was near, I didn’t expect it to be that day and I still wasn’t ready for it – although can you ever really be ready for that last goodbye?
