Dog Lover?

After chatting with a friend who is on the fence about purchasing a puppy for her family, I decided to compile this list of questions to ask yourself before buying a puppy.

(I'm an expert because my family had a few dogs growing up - one successfully - and my hubs and I are currently harboring our second dog. Also, sometimes I feed my brother's two dogs.)

I believe that you shouldn't take the idea of adding a dog to your family lightly. I mean, I just learned that my dog may live to be 16. Awesome.

I'd like to remind you that it's easy to fall in love with the front end of a puppy, but to forget that they also have a back end!!

How to tell if a dog is right for you...

Do you like to come home to your children's doll parts lying in a pool of vomit on your couch?

Do you wish you could replace the ding-dong of your doorbell with the sound of YAP-YAP?

Do you want your visitors to take a little piece of your home with them when they go by wearing dog hair on their clothing?

Do you want a relatively easy way to keep your kitchen floor crumb-free?

Do you wish you could yell "NO" all day long, but not emotionally traumatize your children?

Do you like tripping over things that are always hovering silently next to you?

Do you have stuffed things in your home that you would like to have un-stuffed?

Do you like something to stare at you while you eat/pee/dress?

Do you want to pre-recycle your used tissue by having it conveniently pulled out of your bathroom garbage, chewed up and left on the floor?

Do you feel left out by the countless neighbors who have something barking in their backyard?

If you answered yes to these questions, then you are a fool and deserve life with a puppy.

As a bonus tip, if you really want to live a life of adventure, may I suggest a chihuahua such as my dog pictured below.

Chihuahua is Latin for "Harbinger of Destruction."

For added measure, we named our little delight Jasper.

Jasper means "Oops, I did it again".