Why I Kept My Dog With Special Needs

Are you a dog person or a cat person? Nearly 63.4 million households in the United States have a dog and I am no exception. I have had a dog my entire life, from my earliest memories as a child. We had a Mut, then Dalmatians growing up, and as an adult and while raising my children labrador retrievers. What’s fascinating is the role each dog has taken on in my life.

For example, the yellow labrador retriever my husband and I picked up on the way home from our honeymoon knew us as a young couple with no kids. Two years into our marriage when we welcomed our firstborn he became like an additional guardian of the children, he would help watch over and protect them like a guardian watchdog. He was a brilliant dog, he understood a multitude of commands, intelligent, gentle, yet energetic. It was hard to say goodbye to him. Once our yellow lab passed we decided to mix things up a little and opted for a chocolate lab. Long story short, and I know it’s horrible to make comparisons, but, everything that our yellow lab was, Wyatt wasn’t!

Our first dog definitely took on a guardian role and was more along the level of my husband and myself, to the point of even sitting with us while the children would go play. Wyatt on the other hand was like an additional child, a child perpetually stuck in the potty training stage, or should I say in his case, the housebreaking stage (can we all please stop telling our dogs, “go potty”, there is no toilet, no potty, they are outside…sorry, small pet peeve of mine). That was my first red flag or indication that something was off with him. Followed by skin problems, gastrointestinal issues, and high anxiety. A great example of his anxiety is illustrated in the following image where he literally chewed up our kitchen floor. We put up a gate to keep him in the kitchen, gave him a large bone to chew, he had toys, and we woke up to this!

After we cashed out what little retirement money I had and used it to put down a ceramic tile kitchen flooring that he could not chew through I had hoped that his anxiety would subside with age. It never did and his intellect remained challenged. He did attend obedience school and we did as well as a family because let’s be honest, obedience training is just as much for the humans as it is for the dogs. At the training he was very anxious but would learn a few basic commands then it was like they would literally fall out of his memory. To the day he died, I think the only real command he recalled was to sit.

Wyatt had special intellectual needs his entire life. As I indicated he was perpetually stuck in the housebreaking stage, he would go outside run around might even pee, but then come back indoors and do “his business”. It was exhausting! So why did I keep a dog that was basically stuck at the intellect of a puppy his entire life? My reasons are threefold.

Three Main reasons why I kept my dog with special needs:

Long-Term Commitment

The children are always watching! Wyatt was an adorable puppy there is no denying that and he was a lot of fun initially but like all relationships, the honeymoon phase does eventually wear off and is replaced with obligations and responsibility. The key is to be able to continue to find joy in the relationship while maintaining those obligations and responsibilities and caring for a dog is an exceptional way for children to learn this life skill.

Children also learned that we follow through on our commitment, that having a dog is a long-term commitment, that we don’t abandon or “quit” on our dog, and that they are vulnerable and dependent on us as their human caregivers.

Good Dog Making Bad Decisions- Learning and Growth Opportunity

The children are always watching and listening! Wyatt entered our household and family when our youngest was three so he was an integral part of her upbringing, she is now thirteen. From a young age, she witnessed how I spoke and treated Wyatt. It was important to me that she understood that children are good, but they can make bad decisions. I never wanted my children to place themselves in the category of “good” or “bad”. If a child hears they are bad or worse, a brat, they internalize that and often make decisions based upon what their adult tells them they are, and then that same adult seems surprised when that child grows into an adult that brings all those bad assumptions said about them into fruition.

The Alternative was Bleak

The children are always watching, listening, inquiring, and learning! Children are very inquisitive and make great observers, so it was no surprise when one of mine asked why some of their friends got rid of their dogs. Of course, I address the issue of having an aggressive dog, in such a case where a dog becomes aggressive it is important to remember that it is an animal and it can harm humans. The safety of children and humans must always come first. That being said, we thankfully did not have an aggressive dog, just one that has special intellectual needs. And let’s be honest, I don’t know many people who would put up with a puppy for 10 years. Chances are if we had ever given Wyatt away he might have been passed around a few times from foster to foster, possibly ended up in a shelter, and eventually euthanized. I love all my people and animals too much for that, My motto is, once you’re a part of our family you are part of it for life. This is a motto my children know well and take very seriously, just ask my 13-year-old who currently has 4 Guinea Pigs (They are a lot of work with daily feedings and cage cleaning, but she loves those comfort creatures), or my 16-year-old who opted for a snake (easiest and cheapest pet EVER!).

In conclusion, as I sit here one day after the death of Wyatt I can’t help but reflect back on the last 10 years, the amazing, hilarious, and heartfelt moments. And I will be entirely transparent, I also woke up with the relief of not having to clean up another mess.

Thank you for being an integral part of my life story Wyatt!

Sources:

https://www.pawtracks.com/dogs/signs-of-inbred-dogs/