I love my pets—all of them. But I have always been especially fond of dogs. From the time I was a child, I loved dogs. When I was a baby, my neighbor had a Daschund named Brownie. He was my protector, my savior, and my very best friend. I LOVED that dog! 
And he loved me.
When I was a baby, 
the neighbor would babysit me. They would put me down to sleep on a big, overstuffed chair in the living room with tons of pillows around me for safety. Brownie would then settle himself in front of the chair as my protector. No one, not even my mom, was allowed to bother me until I woke up. 
We had our ups and downs of course, like any relationship. One day, Brownie nipped me. The neighbor was ready to get after the dog until my mom stopped him. Then she leaned over to me and asked, "What did you do to the dog?" 
In my littlest voice, I told her I pulled Brownie's tail. She then told me I deserved it and it was the only way Brownie could tell me to "Stop, I was hurting him." She would not let the neighbor get after Brownie, but she was mad at me for a while.
So I learned not to pull dogs' tails. When Brownie was finally gone, I was devastated. I didn't know what I'd do without him.
I have always loved animals, as I've said. All animals. I'm one of those people who couldn't watch Bambi without shedding copious tears. Thus, I spent most of the middle part of my life trying to change myself. Hiding my sensitivity in the closet. I avoided anything that might reveal my softer, sensitive side. I cried in private.
Now, I'm finally learning that my sensitivity to and love for animals is not such a bad thing. It does make it hard when my son-in-law wants to show me the deer he killed during hunting season. And I still can't watch those animal shows where the animals kill each other—even though I'm aware that it's part of life on earth. I'm still a softee, but now I'm not afraid of or embarassed to be called a softee.
I love animals, children, and seniors and it really pisses me off when I read or hear about any one of them being mistreated or abused. So I volunteer my time fostering dogs, driving rescue transport, helping children and the elderly as much as I can. I am, slowly, learning to conquer the fear of being who I really am. I hope you can too.
Love, Claudia, Arleen, and the critters... 
0 Comment(s).
Bravenet Blog 
Blog Community
Get a Free Blog
Manage your Blog
bravenet.com