When I first thought about the Best Pet I Ever Had, I considered the dog and the many cats I had growing up. We had cats from the time I was in fifth grade, and got the dog in ninth grade. Oddly, starting in about fifth grade I came down with we all thought was a bad cold that never seemed to go away. So my nose ran constantly and I sneezed my way through childhood, until someone suggested I get allergy tests. Turns out, of course, that I'm very allergic to dogs and, especially, cats. But I still have fond memories of those cats.
Then I considered George, the puppy I picked out on my very own when I lived in a house with a bunch of guys in college in Ann Arbor. George was a great dog, brown and white and cute as all get out. I had George for about three days when Trevor the Australian Roommate took him for a walk in the Arb and lost him.
But I think the winner has to be the two dogs we have now, Calvin and Ruby. First, they're labradoodles, and so, miraculously, I'm not allergic to them. (Really. Yes, I can hardly believe it myself.) Mainly, though, they're great dogs for the kids, just wonderful, gentle, smart, forgiving, and patient. So, in a way, the best pets I've ever had are indeed childhood dogs, it's just not my childhood.
So, what's the best pet you ever had?
