I have always been a dog lover. There is something about having a dog that supports my emotional health, brings a level of companionship I may not get elsewhere, and just brings a richness unlike anything else. The hardest part of having walked this earth for four-plus decades as a dog lover has been the goodbyes. While many of my best moments involved a beloved pup, the lowest moments were those “see ya laters”.
I currently have a four-year-old Golden Retriever named Elenor. Ironically, she is the one dog I didn’t want. I’d had to say goodbye to a puppy a few months before and it had been brutal. I wasn’t ready. My husband really wanted her, and so Elenor came home with us.
This girl took a while to bond with, likely due to my hesitation. No one likes to get hurt and I was in the phase where maybe I didn’t want another dog because I’d had my fill of those rainbow bridge goodbyes… but, she’s been an absolute Godsend. These past few years have been the hardest, most growth-filled, and also the best/emotionally-healthiest years I’ve known–all rolled into one. I’ve done compelling work, written a memoir, signed a book contract, built a business with several facets, grown substantially in community, deconstructed from religion, and experienced more loss and grief than ever before. Elenor has been by my side through it all. We joke that she’s my husband’s dog, and in all fairness, he did fight like hell to get her… she does light up the most when she sees him, and she kind of worships the ground he walks on… BUT she is my constant companion. Where I go, she goes. When I’m asleep, she’s by my side. When I’m working, she’s outside my door. This sweet golden floof is always within reach. She is exactly who I needed.
When we rescued a litter of newborn kittens, she became the surrogate mom and the reason half of the litter survived. We kept one, and these two are the very best of friends.
I have partnered with Grace Hill Media to promote MGM’s new film Dog, starring and directed by Channing Tatum. In this partnership, I have the opportunity to give away an awesome Dog themed prize package, which includes 2 Fandango tickets!
DOG is a buddy comedy that follows the misadventures of two former Army Rangers
paired against their will on the road trip of a lifetime. Army Ranger Briggs (Channing
Tatum) and Lulu (a Belgian Malinois dog) buckle into a 1984 Ford Bronco and race
down the Pacific Coast in hopes of making it to a fellow soldier’s funeral on time.
Along the way, they’ll drive each other completely crazy, break a small handful of
laws, narrowly evade death and learn to let down their guards in order to have a
fighting chance of finding happiness.
Rated PG-13 for language, thematic elements, drug content, and some suggestive
material
You can view the trailer here.
To enter the giveaway you must comment on this post by telling us a little about your dog! (If you share this post via social media, please comment back or send a DM with that link.)
Giveaway ends on February 15th at noon est.
Rainy Day in May... 
We have a three year old beagle named Quinn. I love the ‘freckles’ on his front legs and the way he furrows his brow when he’s curious about something. He thinks he’s a grandchild and runs to the door on the mornings my mom comes to babysit and jumps and barks until she pets him.
OMG!!!! This is the absolute cutest!
So so cute! I have 3 dogs. Ruby, Haupia, and Pono (we also have a cat named Cheese). They are awesome members of the family. Pono is an older pit bull. He came to us late in life and we are making sure he’s happy and comfy as he heads to the rainbow bridge. Haupia is a Maltese and she’s too cute for her own good. Ruby is a Maltese, Yorkie, Silkie mix and she’s our anxious grump. We love them.
So much love! Also, GREAT names! LOVE LOVE LOVE! If I had the property for it, I would love to foster senior dogs before it’s time for them to go.
My Goodgirl is named Maci. My partner (and neighbor) and I share custody. She spends the days at my place and the overnights at his. We rescued her at 7 months and due to her stint of “hard time” at the pound she doesn’t love to make dog friends. But we love her, and our family wouldn’t be complete without our Smooch hound knucklehead.
I adore Maci! She’s one of those amazing dogs that prove just how unique each one is…
I don’t have a dog but I do want to see Dog, the movie! (I had a dog when I was a kid, briefly. His name was Shadow and it broke my heart to say goodbye. 😢)
I mean… CT and a dog… Who wouldn’t want to see this movie?????
The dog that still lives on in my heart is Max. He was a Yorkie that my parents adopted from someone who couldn’t keep him. He instantly became part of the family. I miss him still!
I miss my childhood dog too! There is just something so sincere about dogs that drive right past our vulnerabilities and love us differently…
My dog is almost a teenager and he was my first “child.” He has been the best big brother to my girls and NEVER eaten their toys instead of his. I’m impressed by this alone. Since is “long in the tooth” I also fear the day we lose him and know I won’t want to jump back in with another dog. But, I guess like you see, we can’t perfectly time everything.
there is no perfect time. :(
We’ve got two sweet dogs – Timmy and Wanda. Timmy is a mastiff but he has dwarfism, so he looks like a little bear cub. He’s the laziest dog around but he loves absolutely everyone. My husband likes to say that you have to be dead inside to look at Timmy’s sweet brown eyes and not fall in love. Wanda’s our wild child. She’s got energy enough for her and her brother, and she uses it to chase squirrels (and her brother), do zoomies, and investigate every sound she hears around the house. She’s a world-class snuggler when she finally calms down, and makes us belly laugh at least a dozen times a day. I can’t imagine life without dogs, despite the pain of losing them over and over again. Eleanor is beautiful, and she sounds like a true blessing!
I am NUT for great human dog names. I love them! Also, I need a dog that will forever look like a bear cub and nap with me often. SO sweet!
My golden, Daisy, is my dog. We do so much together, and favorite activity is hiking in the woods. This story of Dog reminds me of Fred the Afghan so much I won’t be surprised if it is actually the same! I read both books–so good!
there have been so many lovely books and stories about service dogs! There was a beautiful film a couple of years ago too, I can’t remember it but I loved it so much. As an Army mom, give me a good soldier movie with a dog and I’ll be a sobbing mess.
Love my Beau. He’s my best friend!
Beau is the handsomest!
Dogs are the very best of everything. I like them far more than people!
I am a massive fan of statement tees and have several of them which talk about me being a “dog person” over a “people person”.
What can I say about my Sadie? She’s a beautiful yellow Labrador Retriever. She came to me last Christmas by way of my son as a gift. She’s every ounce a lab with boundless energy, and there isn’t a stuffy that she can’t destroy in a seconds time. She loves to play fetch and can’t wait for her next ride in her dads truck. She’s a little terror, but we love her none the less!