Skip

Growing up, our family always had pets.

We had 6 dogs, 3 cats, 2 horses and 1 rabbit.

We didn't have these animals all at once, this was over an 18 year period.

Now, obviously, my parents were animal people.

Now I have concluded, after great study and years of research, that there are 2 kinds of animal people in the world.

One kind is what I like to call “Crazy Pet People” or CPP if you will.

Here are the characteristics of CPP:

- They consider their pet a member of the family
- They get every shot, vaccination and preventative medicine vets have to offer.
- They often times dress their pet.
- They have birthday parties for their pet.
- They have family portraits with their pet.
- When you have a conversation with them, they always talk about their pet, even if it is unrelated to the topic of conversation.
- They take the pet everywhere with them.
- They will pay any amount of money to save the pet if it is sick or injured.

If you have 3 or more of these characteristics, you might be a CPP.

The other kind of animal people are simply “Pet Owners” or POs.

Here are the characteristics of POs:

- They see their pet as a possession.
- They may love the pet, but do not consider it as a family member.
- They avoid any extra medical costs by only getting the necessary shots and medications, nothing more.
- They do not dress, have parties for or family portraits with their pet.
- They probably don’t even know the pet’s birthday.
- If the pet is sick or injured, euthanasia, not surgery, is usually the choice.

If you have 3 or more of these characteristics, you may be a PO.

Now my parents, all growing up, fell into this second category.

They were Pet Owners.

My mom grew up on a farm with the mindset of “If the animal is sick or injured, just put them out of their misery.”

This kind of euthanasia, I assume, involved a different kind of “shot”.

My dad was a duck hunter and he had dogs that fulfilled a purpose and had a job to do.

I am a PO.

Stephen comes from a family of CPPs and is a CPP (in denial).

Ok so I have said all this to tell you about Skip.

A couple years ago, the last of my childhood pets died off and my parents swore no more pets.

Imagine my surprise when earlier last year they told me they got a dog, Skip.

And “bam!” just like that, my parents became Crazy Pet People.

My dad takes him to work everyday.

They dress him in a raincoat.

They not only have all the shots for him and preventatives but they also give him special medication for his irritated skin condition.

They talk about him every time we are on the phone.

They told me that they wanted me to take some really nice photos of Skip when I am home.

They were so (and I mean SO) excited for me to meet him when we came home for Christmas.

Well, I met him.

He is a pretty great dog.

He is perfect for my parents.

So without further ado, here’s Skip, the rough coated Jack Russell that turned my parents into CPPs.









Credit must be given to my pet photography assistant Stephen who kept Skip semi-still by holding a treat in front of his face.