two dogs are better than one

Last night, we spent about an hour sitting on the back porch, enjoying the weather once the sun sank behind the trees

and the temp sank to a level that seemed downright nice compared to the sweat-pooling-in-my-bra-while-standing-at-the-bus-stop it had been at 5 when I spent about 10 minutes standing on a sidewalk in the blazing full sun.  We also swatted at mosquitos (curse you South Carolina marshes which are apparently heaven on earth for the lil bloodsuckers), wondering why our geraniums weren’t doing a better job repelling bugs– seriously, we were sitting with a giant geranium in between us, ruffling its leaves periodically to release whatever it is that supposedly makes geraniums repel bugs.  We even lit our citronella torches and wondered how in the world they managed to have such insanely huge flames.  Guess Jon’s going to have to spray the yard with poison again.

But we endured the bugs because it is such fun to watch our two dogs playing together.  They chased after tennis balls, chased after each other chasing after tennis balls, and just plain wrestled.  Sometimes they paused to graze.  Yes, graze– I’m starting to wonder if my dogs are either watching their ladylike figures by munching on salads, or perhaps suffering from some sort of nutritional deficiciency, as they munch on our grass like it’s the best snack ever.  Anyone know what’s up with that?

Anyway, as we sat their watching our hilarious puppygirls romp and play, tails wagging and tongues hanging out, just enjoying their lil puppydog lives, Jon said, “You know, most people who have one dog say they don’t want another because they don’t have enough time for the one dog as it is.  But really, two dogs are way less work than one.”  It’s totally true!  When we just had Bessie, we were the be all and end all of Bessie’s social life.  We were, aside from the scoundrels who dare to pass by our house and must be barked at like the bad people they are– HOW DARE THEY PUSH THEIR STROLLER PAST OUR HOUSE, THOSE ROGUES!– her only source of stimulation.  We finally had to cave and install a doggie door because we couldn’t get through a 30 minute TV show without Bessie wanting to be let in and out at least 3 times.  We had to throw balls and tug ropes and take walks all the time.  We’d take her to the dog park, where she’d have so much fun playing with other dogs, and we’d talk about how we really needed to get her a buddy, and we’d wonder if we had the time to devote to such a buddy.  Surely two dogs would be twice the work, right?

We couldn’t have been more wrong.  Somehow the math works out like this: 1 dog + 1 dog = 1/2 dog in terms of work.  Now, instead of being puppy entertainers, we get to be entertained by our dogs as they entertain each other! Sure the transition was a little bumpy– a few brawls ensued, and everyone had to figure out a place in the society of our house.  But now, 6 months in, we’re pretty sure that everyone should have 2 dogs.  They snuggle and give each other kisses, melting our hearts with the sweetness (seriously, at least five times a day one of us is saying to the other, “Oh my gosh, look at the puppies, that is soooooooo cuuuuuute!).  They pester each other and play constantly, cracking us up as they use their paws to whack each other in the face or taunt the other with toys.  They even wrestle, which is sometimes more fun to watch than the endless episodes of CSI:New York that I’ve been watching on Netflix recently.

So, seriously internets, if you only have one dog and you think you can’t handle a second, you probably can.  You may even be able to handle it better than one! I’d just recommend asking the shelter where you plan to get dog #2 (YOU DO PLAN TO GET DOG #2 FROM A SHELTER, RIGHT?) if you can bring your current dog with you to see how they get along with the new dog.  We had the luck of adopting Olive after spending a week watching her interact with Bessie, so we knew they’d get along fine.

Now, someone please tell me that kids work the same way.  Two kids=half the work?  (I know you’re cracking up, my mommy friends.)