[rshoffer]

Originally Posted by oot

I have been reading TOTV for a few years now. We really love it and want to move there. I do have to say, posts like this one did tend to make me think twice. But after a few years, I have learned that it seems that people in The Villages hate dogs - but from little I have seen it is not true. Just a few sprinkled in here and there and I do notice quite a few dogs in the area when we have visited.

My mom is 80 years old. She adopted a sweet dog who was 10 at the time. Mom never had a dog before, and he is the thing that keeps her going. The dog is now 12, and mom tries to take him for very short walks. I don't care how long the dog has been in the yard, when he goes for a walk he wants to mark his area. As they say it is hard to teach a old dog new tricks and mom has a hard enough time remembering what she ate for dinner, let alone try to train a dog to piddle in a designated area.

Mom lives in a corner house with a stop sign, fire hydrant and trees. Almost every house in the neighborhood has a dog and they always stop to visit those wonderful doggie places. Her house looks just fine, and the lawn is green as are others in the neighborhood. If a brown spot is here or there, I doubt anyone would even notice.

The point is the neighbors don't scream at her when the dog marks a pole or tree. She has a bad heart, and it is the only exercise she gets. I can just imagine how the person who started the post must have felt when they were told to move on. Trust me, if someone yelled at my mom I would be very angry. She would be so embarrased and I am sure she would never walk her dog again.

Life is too short, and we should be enjoying the smell of the flowers, fresh cut grass, fresh baked bread....you get the picture. I know I will be beat up by this post, and I don't mind. I still have my mom around to enjoy, and her little dog too. And if her grass is brown because of other dogs who visit......well... I just have too much to be thankful for to worry about it....

Nicely stated.