Can an old dog learn new tricks?

The story about how we got our dog is a good one. My son and hubby wanted a dog. I did not. Despite the fact that I love dogs, I thought we had a pretty busy lifestyle and the family was not ready for a dog at that moment. So during the school winter break, my hubby took my son to the local animal shelter to check out some dogs. They went the first day, played a with a few dogs and came home. My hubby had sent me  a picture of a German Shepherd, which is my favorite type of dog. I replied that he was adorable and that was it.

My hubby went back to the shelter with my son to play again with the dogs. They came home alone. I felt great. My son was able to enjoy the dogs and even help at the shelter. All was working out perfect. We all were happy. However they asked me again if I would be interested on adopting a dog. I said no, we are not ready.

The next day was December 23th. I came back form work, open the door and there I saw my son and my hubby seated on the couch. In between them, there it was that "adorable" German Shepherd. Before I could even say no, my son jumped to say Merry Christmas mom, this is your Christmas present and you know you cannot return presents. Yep, they got me good. They gave me a dog for Christmas, even though that was not on my list.

After he came home it was time to adapt. Mostly for him, but we also needed to learn to live with a dog. He has separation anxiety disorder and has chewed a few things, he gets really sad when we leave the house, he hauls and barks when he is alone, but overall we have all grown and we have learned from this experience.

To everyone's surprise, Da Vinci has changed his behavior a lot. He has actually learned some new tricks. It takes a lot of patience and dedication, and most of all love. But he is the newest member of our family and we want the best for him.

He now sits, lay down, rolls over and gives high five on command. He has learned not to to escape from the house when the door opens and he has not chewed anything for a while. He stills gets really excited and misses us, however he is living proof that you can teach an old dog new tricks, all you need is love!

I cannot imagine our lives without him. He has been hands down the best Christmas present I have ever gotten and even though we cannot understand why someone gave him once up to the pound, we are glad they did, because now he is our not so little blessing on disguise. 

If you ever want to get a dog, consider rescuing one from the animal shelter. It could change your life.