October 8 was Dobby’s “gotcha day” and I’ve officially had my boy for seven years. It’s crazy to think it’s been that long already! I got him about a month after I moved back to South Dakota, and I even got him shortly before I met Dan. We’ve been through a lot in the last seven years, and he’s still my favorite boy.
He started out being afraid of Dan – as he was with all men – and now he’s not only given him his stamp of approval, but I think he prefers Dan over me these days. He snuggles with Dan every night until I crawl into bed and have to kick him out because there’s not enough room. But when Dan’s gone, Dobby now sits by the door all night like he’s waiting for him to come home rather than snuggle with me! I’ve officially been replaced lol.
It’s been fun to watch him grow over the years. He’s always been very sweet to me, but he used to be a lot more hesitant before trusting anyone who walked up to him. Now, if someone walks up to him on the street, I have no concerns at all. We walk through a park on our walk route every day, and more than once there’s been kids who come up to us and ask me if they can pet my dog. Dobby loves it. He lets them love up on him until I make him move along.
He had a lot of bad habits when I first brought him home. It was clear he wasn’t trained well with whoever had him before me and he was allowed to get away with just about anything. He used to steal food off the counters, go to the bathroom wherever he wanted, and he was awful to try and walk on a leash. I do have to give some credit to Dan, as he helped me train him to break those habits, and now Dobby is a very well-behaved, happy boy. It just takes a lot of love and a little patience!
He’s definitely slowing down now that he’s turning into an old man, and I hate to see it. I want him to be around for a very long time yet, and I hope he is. He’s the first dog that’s actually been mine, and it’s hard to picture what life will look like when he’s gone. For now, I’m going to keep loving him with all I got, and give him the best life possible.
Happy gotcha day to my best boy. Can’t wait for many more!
Until next time! 🙂
Megan Nelson