🌟The Things Dogs Teach Us
## Life lessons from a canine companion
What can we learn from dogs?
Well, there are a couple of things. How to crap anywhere without the fear of being judged and the most effective methods for squirrel-catching.
Read also: Dogs are the best people- See why
Learn MoreBut there are things they can teach us about life, too.
**Lust for life**
> “We live an entire week of our lives for every single day a dog lives. So maybe the dog knows it won’t live as long as we will. Maybe it knows it’s got a truncated life expectancy relative to humans. Maybe it knows it’s got to make every day count.”
When I watch my dog roll around in the grass, even if he gets covered in sheep poo in the process, I’m reminded how much he loves to exist. He soaks up the little things, finding enjoyment in his day-to-day.
Can I honestly say I share his lust for life? Certainly not. I’d be setting myself an extremely unrealistic target if I were hoping to enjoy life as much as my dog does. But can I try harder? Most definitely.
Dogs teach us to enjoy the moment and that we should be pretty damn happy to be alive. While it might not seem like it when we’re young, we don’t have that long either.
Next time life feels mundane, just remember how happy your dog is when it’s rolling in shit.
**Material things don’t matter**
> “A dog has no use for fancy cars, big homes, or designer clothes. A water logged stick will do just fine.” — **John Grogan, [****Marley & Me**](https://www.goodreads.com/work/quotes/14961)
We so often get caught up in our need to have things. Nice things. The nicest of things, even. When our friends get a new car, it makes us want one too — perhaps an even better one. There’s always something nicer and more expensive than the things we have and we’ve got no choice but to pursue them if we’re going to be happy.
Do dogs care about how much their toys cost? Hell no. _A water logged stick will do just fine._
Man’s best friend will find value in whatever we give them. In spite of all the toys we’ve bought him, my dog loves nothing more than shredding a cardboard box.
Dogs assign value to things based purely on joy and we should too. Why does it matter how hard we worked for something or how much it cost us? If our beat up old Golf makes us happy then there’s no good reason to trade it in for a Mercedes.
**The pursuit of happiness**
My childhood dog, Monty, is getting old. His joints are weak and achey and he’s no longer able to jump through the long grass and chase birds at high speed anymore. But Monty still pushes through the pain in pursuit of happiness.
Even after a hundred falls, he still tries to run as fast as he can. His failed attempts at jumping onto the sofa are yet to deter him from trying again. He’s not letting age get in the way of happiness even when his body is pleading with him for a break.
While it’s painful to see our once athletic dog struggle so much to do the things that once came so easily, it’s heartwarming to know that his limitations fall short of being an adequate deterrent.
I often find myself making excuses for why I can’t or shouldn’t do something. The smallest of obstacles often feel like the best of excuses. If our dogs could talk they’d tell us to keep going even when things get hard.
If our dogs could talk, they’d be right.
While it will never be acceptable for us to squat and drop on the street, there are still plenty of ways we can learn from our dogs. They show us the way to live life to the full and we should start listening.
We could all do with being a little bit more dog.
Contributed by [Louis Bray
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