Dogs are the Best

Whilst this is about my gorgeous, crazy, wonderful, naughty, cheeky, silly dog, this post does come with a trigger warning. I won’t be going into detail at all, but there will be some mention of self-h@rm and depression. So please, feel free to skip this post if you need to.

I have a lot of fond memories with my Labrador, Luna. She is so incredibly naughty, but an absolute joy to be around. I rescued her at just ten weeks old. She’d been locked in a cage, completely on her own and she was under-weight. Because of that, she had terrible separation anxiety and would snatch food; swallowing it quickly because she wasn’t used to being fed properly.

Like all pets, she has bought me so much joy. I didn’t quite realise how alone I was until she came along. She follows me everywhere, and yes, that includes when I try to go to the bathroom. There’s no privacy when Luna’s around.

Luna is three this year. And like I said, I have so many fond memories with her and she does so many things that make me laugh. Like, when she’s up to no good, her ears go up, and if I catch her doing something she shouldn’t be doing, she looks at me, sticks her ears up and ever so slightly sticks her tongue out. That girl really knows how to wrap me around her paw. Another memory I have of her, is the first time she saw snow. She was a little dubious at first, but once she realised it was harmless, that was it… she never wanted to come inside! She dragged me out at every opportunity. Then, we’d come inside, and just as I was warming up, she’d keep nudging me and moaning, because she wanted to go back out. On the odd occasion that I didn’t give in to her commands, she’s sit staring out the window, just watching the snow fall. She isn’t keen on rain, and she doesn’t care much for the sun either, but she LOVES the snow.

But perhaps my favourite memory, happened relatively recently. I’m only admitting this because I write under a pseudonym on here. I self-h@rm. I have done for nearly twenty years. I’m not proud of it, in fact, it makes me very anxious and self-conscious; I’m in jeans and hoodies all year round, including summer. But anyway, I was home alone one evening and it was hot, so I took my hoodie off. Luna jumped up onto the sofa to sit with me, like she always does. She noticed the cuts. She put her head in my lap and looked up at me. After I stroked her for a little, she sat up and began licking my cuts. Now, you have to understand, Luna always has so much energy, and she’s always running around. So for her to sit there, calmly, and lick every single cut, was an amazing moment. It actually made me cry. I’m used to being alone and having no one to talk about serious stuff with, so to actually have this beautiful creature care for me, was truly heart-warming.

When she’d finished, she cuddled into me. As soon as I began to randomly cry (one of the most annoying things about depression), she gently nudged me and gave me her paw. She hates her front paws being touched, so that’s a big deal for her.

Since that day, I think we’ve gotten closer. She’s certainly more protective of me now. Sometimes, when she can sense that I’m sad, she’ll bring me one of her toys and wag her tail. I’ve never really been close to animals before. I grew up around pets, but I can’t say we were ever close. So this was a first for me. Luna and I are very similar, and we know when one another need our personal space. But we also know what one another is thinking. I can look at her a certain way, and she’ll know it’s dinner time. Or if it’s time to go out. And the funniest… when it’s time to cut her nails. She runs away and tries to hide. She is glorious.

We all think we have the best pet, but for me, Luna will always be my most beloved companion.