“My husband and I fell in love with Abbey, a Golden Doodle, the minute we laid eyes on her,” said Brigette. “She was over the top cute, and you could already see her breed’s well known traits of intelligence, loyalty and gentle demeanor with children in her sweet little face.
We
were planning on having a family so we were also drawn to the fact that she was a non-shedding dog. Golden Doodles are said to be a hypo-allergenic breed, but it depends on the dog’s dominant genetic traits. Abbey is 50% Golden Retriever - I don't know if any dog is truly allergy proof to everyone.
After Declan was born and for the next few months, Abbey wasn't sure what to make of it all. (Neither were we!) Abbey looked sad and jealous as she watched me holding
the baby, instead of cuddling her. My husband and I made a commitment so that Abbey received attention and alone time with us. Having her was a blessing as she encouraged us to go for lots of walks. Soon, she came to love the baby. If the baby was coming for a walk then he was useful to her after all!
Nowadays, Abby is lovely around Declan and has the patience of a saint. She doesn't flinch when Declan yells and grabs her tail, although I'm sure she doesn't like it one
bit. It is amazing how gentle she is. When he cries, she comes over to check on him and gives him a little kiss - truly a heart warming moment that happens regularly.
Our son thinks that Abbey is a celebrity. Whenever she walks by, he laughs and yells her name with glee, pronouncing it 'Abba'. In fact, besides mama and dada, Abba is one of the only words he uses. He repeats her name about a hundred times a day, always with sheer delight! He absolutely adores ‘his’
dog.
It is wonderful for our son to grow up with a dog as a family member. Dogs nurture and demonstrate a pure unconditional love, not to mention responsibility and empathy in its two legged family. The love bond between a human and a dog is a very deep and special connection. It's important for our son to feel that Abbey is an important part of our family, and that she deserves as much respect, nurture, and love as any of us.
Abbey is a great
teacher. She will teach us about love, life, and when the time comes ... even death. Every day she helps us realize that it's the small, simple things in life that sometimes have the most importance and give us the most joy; a quiet walk in the rain, splashing in the puddles, the warmth and softness of her head as she lays it on our lap, the unbridled happiness that a wagging tail can show, as we are greeted eagerly at the door. Yes, simply wonderful moments of
joy.
Abbey towers above Declan in height and she weighs more than him. She has a tendency to get overly playful, and our son has received some scratches, but he is learning about dog boundaries at the same time. Occasionally, when he's trying to throw a stick for her, she’ll enthusiastically bump him and knock him right down. Declan loves it though, and whenever he sees a stick on the ground, he points at them and yells 'Abba'.
Almost everything
Abbey does makes our son smile and he breaks into spontaneous laughter when she walks into the room. His favorite thing in the world is playing with ‘his’ dog. And Abbey’s is playing with her little buddy, Declan.”