I have recently given a home to a dog called Cassie. She was living in a local animal sanctuary and as soon as I saw her I knew that she was the dog for me and my family. To say she was a bit of a handful to start with is an understatement, however she has now, with a little bit of training, calmed down a lot and is very well behaved. In this article I write about the reasons why I believe more people should own a dog and the benefits it can bring to ones life.

Cassie is now very happy in her new surroundings and shows this happiness in many forms. She is very loving and very loyal. I have two children and she really enjoys playing with them, especially ball type games, however has never become over aggressive with them. Some people state that a dog is a mans best friend and even though I possibly would not go that far, Cassie is somebody I enjoy spending a lot of time with.

In some peoples opinion taking a dog for regular walks would be one of the reasons why they might choose not to own one. I actually really enjoy taking Cassie on her walks as it gives me a chance to clear my head, to meet other people and is a really useful form of exercise. I always take a tennis ball on our walks and she is now becoming an expert at catching this ball after the first bounce and even at times without the ball bouncing at all. She wags her tail in enjoyment and this also fills me with a feeling of pleasure.

During the evening after another one of her long walks, she settles down in the living room and cuddles up to go to sleep. Cassie is now another member of our family and I am sure that she feels this as she curls up for little snooze. She always looks so contented as she starts to dream, I often think that she would have probably have dreamt of living in such an environment when she was living in the animal sanctuary. I hope that her dreams have come true.

Cassie has become a great companion to the members of my family including myself. She is a great listener and never answers back, unlike my children and wife.

I would certainly recommend other people to give a dog a home. It may cost you some money in the way of dog food and may take up some of your time in the form of dog walking. This is a very small price to pay however for the rewards which the dog is likely to bring you.

Companionship, loyalty, happiness as well as the health benefits of exercise via the regular dog walking are just some of the reasons why I love owning Cassie.