As yesterday was National Dog Day, we all got to swoon over the cute dogs in the world, and I got to think back  to my plot to get my current dog, Graham. Now what I’m about to say, may or may not work for you, but it worked for me, so it’s worth a shot.

Setting the scene: It was junior year of high school and my dog at the time, Misty, was getting close to her expiration date. Yes, I used expiration date, as in the hospital they write “expired,” when a patient passes away, which just doesn’t sound good to me, but that’s not what this post is about. Moving on. I’m the type of person that doesn’t cope well with goodbyes and I guess have to fill the void of those gone. Therefore, I knew I needed to have another dog to help mourn the loss of my current dog.

Mom and Dad stated over and over that our childhood dog was the only dog they would have and we weren’t going to get another dog. Misty, was a mixture of a chow, golden retriever and sheltie. Needless to say, she shed….a lot. So they had mentioned, if for some reason they did get another dog, it would have to not shed. So of course I go to my friend Google and start researching dogs that don’t shed and dogs that retrieve/play (our other mandatory need in a companion.) My search showed the cutest breed of dog I had seen, a cockapoo; mixture of cocker spaniel and poodle. Known to not shed and also had a chance to be a retriever.

I found a breeder within a moderate distance of driving that had fresh pups and found the cutest thing ever. So here we go with the steps.

How to Convince Your Family to Get a Dog in 10 Steps 

1. Print out picture of the dog you want
2. Show mom and dad the multiple pictures and pick the cutest one out to display proudly, the others can go in your locker at school, because duh.
3. Put the cute picture on a place your family will have to see multiple times a day. The fridge. Another duh.
4. Bring it up in conversation cleverly, “how adorable is he? man I wish he was ours”
5. Hook them in. You have to personalize it to grow a connection. “Hey dad, what name would suit him?” “Hey mom, dad thinks
   Graham could be a good name because he looks like a graham cracker. It could also be after Graham Norton (mom’s favorite BBC late night show with British inappropriate humor, because duh, or the Graham Colton Band (a band my brother and I used to listen to and enjoy.)
6. Let them know that we will be making a trip to Kirksville to move my brother into his new house and the breeder is conveniently only an hour from there
7. Say “we should just go say hi to him. He’s too cute not to go play with at least”
8. Have dad hold him. Watch him as he also tries to walk and falls onto his booty because he’s still learning his balance. Us Thierry’s are known for junk in the trunk and he fit right in with that characteristic.
9. Fall in love. Hooked.
10. He’s ours and his name is Graham, and we loved him so much that we almost got his sister too. Almost.

Like I said, it might not work for you, but that is the story of how we got Graham and he’s seriously the cutest thing ever. The breeder told us that he probably wouldn’t retrieve, but the day we went to pick him u
p to take him home, we threw balls and frisbees and he went to retrieve and bring back.

I would be a terrible dog mama if I didn’t brag that he sometimes catches frisbees with his paws, like a human. But I also would like to put a disclaimer that his catch rate is pretty low when his hair gets shaggy.

Good luck for all those future dog owners!

Q: How did you get your dog?

Q: What type of dog do you have?

Q: Did you celebrate National Dog Day?