How A Ball Of Fur Can Fill Your Heart

Guess who? 

Hello readers! I do apologize for the absence. You know that I'm either procrastinating or caught up with life. Maybe I feel I have a lot of things to write but I can't seem to start anything. Thanks for the patience. Here's a really random topic: my dog.

Growing up with pets especially dogs was never really a big deal for me. Since I was a toddler until primary, I grew up with two dogs, an old white female Spitz named Julie and later on after she passed, a tiny male Jack Russell named Benny which was actually my cousin's dog but my aunt decided to give him to my grandparents to care for it. I grew really fond of Benny. Maybe because I was in my tween years, with all my angst and all that, I just needed someone to be there for me, and Benny was there, listening to all my rants and lending me his furry body for hugs and kisses. He soon passed away because of a snake bite. When I went to my grandparents' house one day, I couldn't find him. My grandfather slowly told me he had passed. I didn't cry at first but I broke down later on. I still could remember the hurt I felt and how quiet the house was after that. Somehow, they really fill a space in our hearts that losing them feels like losing a person we love. Later during secondary school, my aunt passed three more dogs to my grandparents, two female Chihuahuas (one of old age, the other younger) and an old female German Shepard. The German Shepard soon passed away. And the two Chihuahuas had to be given away.

Honestly, I never really had a pet which I could call my own until I was 19. One of my friends from college asked me one day in class if I wanted to adopt a puppy. She said that her friend's friend took care of some dogs at Alor Setar and one of the females gave birth. Two puppies were up for adoption. After some consideration, my family agreed that we could adopt one. I contacted them and they said one was already adopted, so I told them I could adopt the other sibling, it did not matter to me. So that's how I met the piece of my heart (whatever that means). The couple who was giving the puppies away for adoption were so kind people. They drove all the way from Alor Setar to my grandparent's house in Penang to give the puppy away. They even gave a bag of free food. They wanted to make sure if the house was the right house and if we were the right people for the puppy. Until now, I'm really touched that there are still people like that around. Those people who go all out for animals are the people I respect the most. My grandmother named the puppy, Jojo. So the name stuck. The little fur ball entered my life.

First day she arrived. Sleeping so soundly. She's so tiny!

First night.

First few walks.

Playful girl.

:P

First time at the beach.

Never a decent picture.

High on life. 

Kisses. 

Small adventures. 

Take time to smell the flowers (then tear them to pieces).

There were some ups and downs but I will never regret the decision. Even with all the mindless bullshit that is happening recently in my life, she gives me so much joy. I believe I don't have to tell people who have pets about the life lessons we can learn from our animals. We know we learn a lot from them, things that can never be put in to textbooks. Even with all her character which includes her stubbornness and her timidness, she is still and forever a loving girl who loves to give people 'kisses' even though she might be a little hesitant to approach you at first. Once she gets to know you, I don't think she will leave you alone. You can ask my parents and boyfriend about that. ;)

I know that I'm not a one hundred percent perfect fur-parent. I'm still learning. I still have to Google for things every once in awhile like how we self-diagnose ourselves when we're feeling a fever coming on. But of course, going to the vet is always the better option. One thing I still haven't got the hang of is: cutting her nails. She struggles a lot and she just despises the thought of having her nails cut. She did have her nails cut growing up but until now I still can't get her to calmly sit down and let me do her nails. I know I have to have patience but seeing her struggle so much is very unnerving for me. So if anybody has some suggestions, please do let me know. How do you guys do it? What methods do you use to handle dogs that hate getting their nails cut?

Oh well, I know it's a bit weird that I'm suddenly talking to you guys about Jojo. But I know I have yet to share this part of my life to you guys. This is really a random post about my girl. But I hope it brought a smile to you guys seeing some of the pictures of her growing up. I actually have loads of pictures of her like every other person who is obsessed with their pet but some will do for now. Thanks for reading as always.

Happy Friday to all of you and hope you have a great weekend!


MY.