WEB EXCLUSIVE

Bentley was the dog I grew up with. He was my best friend. We did everything together from traveling across the country to Niagara Falls, to taking a swim on a hot summer day. He was by my side for 10 years until he passed away last December.

With Bentley being gone my life was simple, so simple to a point where I felt lonely. As the house grew quiet, so did I. The fur scattered around the house began to disappear as well as my happiness. I started to realize I wasn’t acting like myself. I felt lost and know I needed something to care for.

I started researching different pet rescues and breeders. I finally found a breeder that was at a reasonable distance away. I told my mom about it and she agreed to go check it out. When we got there, there were three 5-month old puppies. Two of the puppies were white and spotted black and the other was different shades of brown.

After spending time with the puppies both my parents and I decided to get the brown puppy. We signed a bunch of paper work and decided on the name Reeves since our cat’s name is Keanu (If you don’t get the joke, shame on you).

On the way to go pick our little Reeves up, we had to get him toys and essential puppy things. I picked out the toys and found a blanket and dog bed set. As all the items collected in the cart I realized I now once again had something to care for.

Caring for Reeves has certainly kept me busy. From training him to find his food bowl to taking him out to go potty at the crack of down, he sure was a handful. Although I have less free time, I am surprisingly less stressed. This is because I focus less on my own faults and problems and more on making Reeves feel happy and loved.

It has been a month now that Reeves has been a part of my family. There are still some things he needs to learn, but watching him transform from a scared shy puppy to a playful happy puppy has made me grow to as a better person.