Evolution. Darwin promoted it, science supports it, and even some politicians believe in it. And as the world around has evolved, so has my relationship to the height of evolution, the canine. Slowly, over time, I have learned to…accept.

I was raised in a dogless apartment; Mousy, a first generation house cat, was the ruler of the roost. My encounters with pups were limited and not always pleasant, with a nippy German Shepard living next door. No dogs for me, and I was content.

Of course, I met Barb, a dog lady through and through. Her family pet, a toy schnauzer named Nappy, hated me. The feelings were mutual. He was near the end of life when I met him, and through sheer willpower I outlasted him.

Barb and I spent about the first 10 years of our marriage without a dog. We had cats, we had kids. Once more I was content. But I evolved to the point where I could live with a dog. We adopted Murphy, a medium sized mixed breed, named after the popular TV character Murphy Bown (I know, she’s back!)

We did it right. As 10 pm approached, we would tell her “Bedtime, Murphy” and she would trot off to her bed in the first-floor office. An electric fence kept her downstairs while we slept upstairs. Yes, I was content.

Murphy was eventually followed by Max, the big, loveable Irish Wolfhound impersonator. No electric fence was going to stop the big fella, and when we said “time to go up, Max” he bounded up the stairs with us. I gave him a scratch under the chin, the cat took a swipe at his ears, he gave a mighty groan and settled down on his doggie bed. I had reached evolution point two.

Now there is Milo, the latest bundle of energy. For the first few months, we crated him in the kitchen at night. In the beginning, it appeared to be acceptable to him. After all, anything was better than living in a shelter. But lately, he became edgy at “lights out.” He would whine, he would whimper. Classical music calmed him down for awhile, but that didn’t last. Soon his crate migrated to our bedroom. Days later, the crate disappeared and Milo settled in on his bed on our bedroom floor.

Finally last night, the moment I had sworn to myself would never occur, occurred. Milo planted himself on the bed by Barb’s side and he was not going to budge. He was our bed partner. I waved the white flag and went to sleep. And when I woke up this morning, I was content. My evolution is complete.
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