I had the Post Puppy Blues
Getting a new little being of your own to raise in this big wide world can be surprisingly overwhelming. If, like me, you too have endured way too many years of longing after such a lifestyle, the expectations are high. You can never be fully prepared for the drastic lifestyle changes that such a small being will inflict on you. And I am not talking about a real-life human baby, I am talking about a baby of the fluffy sort. A puppy.
The preparation for this new life is truly exciting. After going shopping and buying new bedding and toys and dog bowls, and yes, of course they perfectly match your interior. After puppy proofing the kitchen and (naively) feeling prepared for toilet training. Even after you hear puppy horror stories from family friends’ about having to redecorate their whole house because apparently a puppy’s favourite snack are curtains, cushions and skirting boards. Dare I say it, regardless of stories and after all of this prep I was feeling quite smug. Confident that my puppy would be toilet trained, sleeping through the night and keeping the house clean for me.
Why so smug? I had spent hours and hours excitedly researching, taking gimmicky quizzes titled something like ‘what dog breed is best for me’ and visiting pet stores with friends. My planning was clear and efficient. I spent days pensively scrolling and investigating dog breed temperaments, hours spent reading expectations such as; exercise requirements, likelihood of snoring, tendency to bark or dig. There are even stats out there comparing different dog breeds tendencies to drool. Would you believe it? This may seem rather trivial, but I completely fell in love with the process and loved expanding my dog knowledge. Who knows, having all these stats in the memory bank may come into their own one day.
I think, as with most exciting things in life there is an impending crash of emotion around the corner. For me, this crash arrived a week in. After introducing the puppy to all my friends and getting used to having this little fluffy playmate around 24/7 and spamming my friends and family with countless adorable pictures of my proudest possession. You can eventually grow tired, not only are you mentally over the initial excitement but quite physically too. I had been warned countless times that puppies are not much less demanding than a new-born. I can now vouch for this and warn anyone that will listen. The endless nights of trying to ignore that cute little puppy cry, awake at midnight telling myself that I cannot cave, I must resist the irresistible, otherwise I will endure a lifetime of sharing my bed with a dog, but… would that be so bad?
No amount of preparatory reading could have built my tolerance for a little fluff-ball clenching onto my slipper-socks as he is dragged across the floor, moving with my feet whilst I try to prepare breakfast. Irritating, yes. And then of course you are graced with boastful stories from fellow puppy parents whose puppies were just born knowing not to run away with one of your shoes the moment you tried grabbing your keys to leave the house, in an oh so desperate attempt of an hour or so’s independence. When you do manage to wangle the shoe out of your pup’s tightly clenched jaw and escape, the guilt of leaving him just for an hour or so will play on your mind — is he ok? Was his water-bowl full? Did I shut my bedroom door? (praying that I did, in order to avoid complete refurbishment). It must be importantly noted however, all this work is completely worth it, entirely based on the greeting you receive Every. Single. Time. It doesn’t matter if you left your house for two minutes or a few hours, your pup gets so excited on your return, tail wagging and eyes glowing that all mischievous acts are instantly forgiven. And now, this is your life as the owner of a puppy, it is a wonderful kind of reciprocated love and nurturing.
The sleepless nights, the countless bottles of pet-friendly cleaning spray, puppy guilt and replaced furnishings are all totally worth it in the end. Bedtime routine established and toilet training complete, it does get better I promise you, so hold on in there.
And there it is, the struggles of post-puppy blues. Although this may not be a common topic of conversation, these feelings are not uncommon at all and I encourage those that this may concern to discuss it with people around you.
