An old dog can teach you new tricks
You've probably heard the saying that you can't teach an old dog new tricks. That's just silly. Senior dogs can be star pupils, and they make pretty good teachers too.
As you can tell from the scholarly photo above, my senior dog Bella was meant to be a professor. What has she taught me?
Well, she's taught me lessons both big and small. Among them:
- It's entirely possible to be adorable in spite of a few gray hairs.
- Naps are awesome.
- Always look on the bright side. Extra pills might just lead to extra treats. Losing your hearing might just mean that you'll sleep more peacefully. (If you don't know that a thunderstorm is coming, you don't need to panic and find your thunder buddy, after all.)
- Be adaptable - don't let change get you down. You'll get through it. (When life hands you lemons, make lemon meringue pie and trade it for some peanut butter dog treats.)
- Take a young pup under your wing (or paw) - mentoring is cool.
- Hold on to your youthful excitement no matter how old you are - it's okay to bounce around like a puppy when your favorite person comes home.
- There's nothing quite like snuggling with an old friend.
- Food tastes better from someone's hand than from a dog bowl (and when you're older, you can totally convince your human to adopt that method).
Okay, I'm not sure that last one is so applicable to my life, but who am I to question the wisdom of such a cute professor?
In any event, the biggest lesson Bella has taught me is a simple one. Just when you think you can't love your dog more, you do. I love every single hair on her head, whether brown, white, or gray. Love doesn't diminish with age - it deepens.
Have you had a senior pup in your life? What did he or she teach you?
A.J. is the blogger behind I Still Want More Puppies and the proud pupil of Bella, a twelve-year-old Beagle/Jack Russell mix. She blogs about pop culture, pup culture, and anything else that strikes her fancy. On her blog, you can find humor with a dose of heart, and you'll quickly discover that she never met a pun she didn't like. All dogs are puppies to her, and she thinks senior puppies are the sweetest of all.