Dogs can be your best friends. They love you when you are happy or sad, or when you are angry or frustrated. They just want your love and attention. That's all they ask - well, and a bone from time to time.

Owning a dog is a huge commitment, or at least that's what we tell our children. Dogs have to be fed, walked, bathed, played with, and also taken to the veterinarian. They require a lot of attention, but for every minute you spend with them you are rewarded by their love and affections 10 times over. Dogs can be your best friends because they tune into your emotions. There are many ways to take good care of your dogs. These pets have their own specific needs that you should attend to. It is best if you talk first with a veterinarian or an animal doctor before you own a dog. In this book you will find a few care tips you need to remember.

Having a dog is a natural thing for humans. I encourage everyone to have a four-legged hairy friend because I believe they complete us. However, having a dog is going to change your life completely! First of all, the most important thing is to learn to live next to each other so as to foster a happy relationship. I have seen many dog owners who feel miserable because of treating their dogs too well. Their dogs are usually bold and beautiful, spending most of their life on a couch and demanding more and more attention, but it's never enough. Was that the life you were dreaming of having with your new dog? Are you now happy? I have also seen many dogs that live miserable lives because they are not allowed to do anything in their nature. They are not allowed to run, not allowed to bark, and definitely not allowed to decide anything for themselves. Does that sound good for you? Does your best friend who would give you his life really deserve such treatment? Are you sure that after this kind of treatment your dog would jeopardize his life for you? For me, it always seems like a bad marriage where one side tries to please or dominate the other side too much.

Dogs and humans must both have respect for each other. There is no alpha behavior when we talk about friendship. No friend would ever demand from another to wait until he or she has finished their food and only then give food to the other friend. No friend would tell you that you have no right to jump, run, or think for yourself. That kind of relationship - I would call it slavery, not a friendship.