My "just a dog" is behind our best financial decisions
Every once in a while my wife, who is not a "dog person" will get frustrated with the extra steps it takes to care for my girl (a 9 year-old yellow lab named "Havoc"). This usually comes up as we're packing up the car with the kids and the dog to go on a long trip. All I have to do is counter with this info;
- Without "just a dog" we wouldn't have bought our first house. After all, I couldn't get "just a dog" without a yard, a point that was made constantly when we called our first place the $185K doghouse.
- "just a dog" gets 2 walks a day around our neighborhood. Add it up, that's no small feat. "just a dog" has gone on over 6900 walks and counting since we got her.
- During those many walks, "just a dog" established quite a friendship with "just a neighbor" and his "just a dog". When the house next door to his on a lot twice the size as ours went on the market, "just a neighbor" went out of his way to convince us to sell house #1 and buy house #2. Net profit on house #1 - a little over $200k (thank you very much "just a dog"!).
LSS - we have since torn down and added onto house #2, a place that is now worth just shy of $1mil. There's no way we could have just bought a place like that and I'm certain we wouldn't have done it if it wasn't for "just a dog". All the while "just a dog" has put up with 2 cats, has endured the addition of 2 kids, lived in a garage for a year, and has just generally put up with everything life has had to offer. All "just a dog" has ever wanted is the occasional stroll around the block - which she continues to get twice a day, every day. I'd love to meet a financial consultant that could do as well as "just a dog" has done for us that will work for only the occasional stroll around the block.