I have a five-month old puppy. He is more demanding than my three-year old. For anyone that has ever had one you know what I’m talking about. Oh, did I mention that he is already larger than a kelpie? He is a German Shepherd x Greyhound and shos no signs of slowing down in size.
Some of you may know that we lost our dog Diesel last year and the transition to puppy has been very difficult for me. Every time I look at him and he stares back with loving eyes I get a pang of guilt. If I’m honest I’m not sure I love him yet, the loss of Diesel is still very raw and I feel guilty as I know he loves me.
My husband generally leaves for work around 5am, which is the exact time the puppy wakes up. He barks and jumps at the back door (he has only been sleeping outside for maybe 6 weeks, but that’s an entire different story!) and the only way to get him to stop is to let him inside. He jumps right onto my bed to snuggle and promptly goes back to sleep.
Last week said puppy started barking at 5am, I let him in and he thought it was playtime and started running around the house and made so much noise he woke my daughter up. My daughter decided she didn’t want to go back to sleep no matter how much I tried. So great it was a 5am start for us.
For the next hour every 5 seconds my daughter was yelling at the puppy, the puppy was stealing her My Little Ponies (omg they are her most precious things), she wouldn’t eat breakfast, the dog ate breakfast came inside and because he was running around like a hoon threw up. You get the gist…we’ve all had mornings like this right?
Every morning I battle my daughter to get her out to door to take the puppy for a walk. This morning was the same, defiant she didn’t want to go. Puppy doesn’t settle down until I can tire him out. You can imagine my mood, I was about to lose my shit. Then we all bundled outside and off we went.
The days I work and are super busy I try to make the dog walk my exercise and walk briskly. Good idea on paper, but puppy has other ideas. Oh, a leaf, oh a butterfly, omg some grass, oh another leaf. He walks so slowly, but that’s ok. My mood was lifting for the simple fact I was out and moving. By the time we got home everyone had calmed down and my mood had greatly improved.
Every time I feel myself getting wound I simply take the puppy for a walk or do a quick 20-minute exercise. No matter how busy you think you are exercise is a great stress reliever. It’s something I try to incorporate everyday, even if my schedule is packed, as I know I will not only feel better, but my mind becomes sharper and I’ve done something for myself, all contributing to my overall wellness.
Remember, as an entrepreneur if you go down, the ship goes down.
