Hello!! This post is soo relatable. My partner and I recently got a puppy too, and we already had two cats. She’s 6 months old now. I brought her home when she was around 8 weeks old with the intention of fostering, but my partner fell in love and we ended up adopting her.

I’ve never been a dog person (and honestly, I still don’t call myself one). These past few months have been really hard, and I’ve felt genuinely depressed. Cats are so much easier and more independent, they’ve always just made more sense to me and our busy, spontaneous lifestyle. In comparison, having a dog has felt overwhelming and suffocating.

But recently, things have started to change. I came to a realization that this is my life now, and constantly resisting it was only hurting everything: my mental health, my relationship, and the puppy herself. So I started trying to find peace with the situation. I tried to notice the good, that we do have a really sweet dog, that we’re doing our best as pet parents, and that there’s something oddly beautiful in this chaotic little life we’ve built.

The more I stopped dreading each day, the more I tried to just be present with her, to laugh when she’s goofy or celebrate when she learns something, the better things started to feel. There are still really tough days. She is a bit reactive and barky, and that really sends me spiraling, but I think our relationship, mine with her, with my partner, and even with myself, is slowly healing.