We now own a dog. We are now “dog owners”. Our house now has a distinct dog owner smell that we cannot detect but others certainly can. We are out first thing in the morning and in the evening with the other dog owners and are now recognized as “one of us” instead of “one of them”. Our step counts are through the roof. Our shoes and socks are under constant threat. We are now aware of a universe of dog training YouTube channels. We have a clicker (unused) and stashes of treat jars around the house (very much used). We are clearly working on too much “skill training” at once. We have more meat in our fridge and freezer than we have had for several years. We are keeping an eye on the consistency of our dog’s daily poo. We have preferences and stong opinions on leash styles.

Life is certainly busier.

Keep busy. No dog ever pissed on a moving car.

Tom Waits

All of this is beyond exciting for my daughter Vivian. My son Sam is somewhere between somewhat amused to ambivalent. My wife Kav and I are feeling both the burn of having yet another child-like needy thing to look after and the joy of having more child-like unconditional love and surprises in our life.

Unmistakably, life just got better for all of us.

2020 is now the year of the dog.