Iv always lived with dogs. My parents had their dogs when I was born and when I was about 5 or 6 we adopted Bessie who shared our lives until March this year.
Sophie came to us in 200 and she was my special girl, did everything together, she was my very best friend. She unfortunatly left us too early in feb 09.

Now I have Flint and Simba [joint with my OH]
I cant imagine myself without dogs.

Always had dogs and was brought up with doga, although when i was a kid I was horse mad,I was one of those kids who was at the yard at 8 in the morning to get the hunters tacked up and boxed on hunt days, and still there at 6 at night being dragged down the ramp on the box cos they wanted to be in their box and fed.But my great love has always been dogs. my father showed Airdales and irish terriers,and my mothers family showed Wire Haired Foxies and had a couple of black Poms...so I really think dogs are in me trhough and through the longest i have been dog less is 5 days.

My parents adopted their first dog together when I was about 4 or 5, nobody trained her, and I was the one walking and training her by the time I was 11. I taught her lots of tricks in her old age and adored her.
I've always loved all animals, not just dogs, but there is something about an animal that seems to gain as much from interaction with you as you do from interaction with them.

I now have 3 dogs, all owned jointly by me and OH, and I cannot imagine not having dogs in my life. They are a big part of my lifestyle and every day living, in fact, everything is based around my dogs.

But then my sister doesn't have a dog now nor does she miss having a dog around, and I can't imagine my younger brother getting a dog any time soon, although my youngest brother probably will, he's a lot like me.

I have always loved dogs. I pestered my parents to get one but I had to wait until I was 11, since then I have never been without at least one dog

I agree that there is a huge difference between an owner and a lover of dogs. I see some people that seem to have a dog just for the sake of it and not because they love it, if you know what I mean?

For me a home is not a home without a dog and I love the fact that all of my children have grown up with dogs, what better way to spend your childhood than having a furry friend to play with

Some lovely stories, thankyou

I grew up with dogs and my husband didnt, I always wanted dogs but we decided to wait till the kids were grown up and we had the time to look after them properly, I bit the bullet last yr and started looking for a dog , I did all the research , kept telling them at home it was happening, eventually found Tom , I took the family to meet him to make sure we were all happy with the decision and the dog , ,my kids looked at him (he was a bit of a state in the rescue centre) and said Are you sure ? Anyway no 2 dog here now too and all is well, my husband was a bit like , they are your dogs and you are responsible for the first few weeks , now he is a complete convert and loves them to bits , I think he was a bit unsure as it was a new experience for him but now he sees the pleasure they bring I am working on him for number 3 , so I think you can become a dog person with the right experience even if your first experience is as an adult,he gives them so much fuss and really enjoys the interaction and 'games' he plays with them and its quite funny when I come back into the room and he is having a full blown conversation them lol They are now firmly part of the family and interact well with all of us , they dont mind who will give them a space on the sofa and a lap to rest their heads on !

I agree about that there is a difference between dog owners and dog lovers. My bro in law owns 2 dogs but they are for his farm, you never see him being affectionate to them and only come in the house occasionally.

I am a dog lover, my mum had dogs and I will always have a dog. When OH takes the dogs out the house just doesn't feel the same without them. I do not however spoil them OTT with treats, I manage their diet correctly and train them to be obedient....otherwise they will just own us!

The difference between dog owners and dog folk:

Dog owners don`t....

Say hello to your dog first
Remember your dog`s name but not yours
chat happily about the consistency of poo
find it odd that you spend more on the dogs than the OH at Christmas
spend all day in the rain helping you look for a missing dog
weep and give you a hug when your dog has died.
understand why you don`t fly abroad for holidays
happily lend you a lead / poo bag / biscuit without a moments hesitation

I like dog folk

ive never had a dog before i got mine just about allowed to have budgies mum had said id made up for it having so many

When I was just a couple of months old and my parents got their own place somebody my Mum knew had a litter of collie crosses so she had one. Hence I grew up with a dog which looked very much like a petite black and white BC. I always remember taking this dog everywhere with me (when I was old enough of course!). Due to my Dad's drunken stupidity one night, he let her escape whilst she was in season and she came back pregnant.

Shaney died when she was 10 or 11 from cancer so then my dad went out and brought another collie cross which we named Mindy. She turned out to be very destructive so my parents gave her in to the RSPCA whilst only a few months old. Several weeks later they fetched her back because the guilt was too much. She died when she was 11 also from pyometra.

We'd also had lots of other pets like a cat, hamsters, rabbits etc so my Dad made a rule that no other animals were allowed in the house as it was too upsetting when they died. So it wasnt until I got my own place that I could get another dog so I made up for lost time and had 3.

I've always been a doggy person and was able to name most breeds from a very young age (various dog breed books were my bibles as a child!) but I wouldnt say I go gooey over dogs, I generally dont pet other peoples dogs for example. However, during the years at home when we didnt have a dog, I always felt there was a big hole and I cant really see my life without a dog in it.