Getting treated like a dog

No, my friends this is not a story of woe. On the contrary. What follows are some of my ponderings that made me realize that maybe it is about time we treat ourselves more like dogs (this assumes that we are responsible dog owners).
So you got yourself a dog. Happily you head over to the local pet store to buy your first bag of dog food. You are amazed at the many choices there are. Some look cheap, but some seem to have these happy dogs staring back at you. Immediately you turn the bag around and study the descriptions. "No artificial flavouring added it says, free of extra glutens, no colour added, no filler. You realize this must be the good stuff. Next you check the ingredients list; Wow, 24 % protein, 4% fibre, brown rice, oat bran, rich in Vitamin A, B... etc. Cool you say. This clearly is the healthy stuff. And that is the one you buy b/c.. well of course you love your dog. (At which point you ask yourself if you love your own body at least as much).
And sure, maybe you stop to also pick up a "treat" but even there you study the list: Oven baked, ground barley, duck, brown rice, flaxseeds, dried kelp, sweet potato, apples (the list goes on and the only sugar mentioned is cane molasses somewhere down the list and no my friends I am not making this up). As you add it to your shopping cart you wonder when it was the last time you treated yourself to such a healthy one.
At last you arrive home, happy dog in tow. First thing on the agenda.' Take dog for a walk you say to yourself b/c he/she deserves this. look at all that energy. Surely it would not be fair to coop her/him up all day. And you promise yourself and your dog that he/she can count on some daily exercise for sure. And once again you wonder what happened to your own promises to your own body which too craves that exercise.
On your walk you notice how your dog approaches everything with honesty and exuberance, other dogs are greeted with joy, in the park it is sprint here, sprint there, experience everything, sniff it all and if you gotta go, go. Ah yes to live life with such openness might not be so bad you figure.
An hour later you arrive home... panting dog, sweaty you. Before you know it your companion heads over to the "WATER" dish. Yep, water, b/c surely you did not fill her/his bowl with anything but water. No pop/soda there. "Hm you say, maybe water would not be such a bad idea for myself too"
You carefully measure out the two cups of dog food recommended for the size of your dog.. after all you do not want a fat dog, gotta think about his/her health you say, wishing you applied that same principle to yourself more frequently.
Before you know, your dog is lying peacefully near you, taking a nap, getting the rest it needs, no shortage of sleep here, which makes you ponder when the last time was when you had a solid sleep and did what your body told you. After all, you have read enough research on the effects of lack of sleep on weight gain.
As night falls and the hectic day slowly comes to an end, your eyes slowly close, your dog is watching you with contentment, your last thought before King Morpheus rules is: Maybe I too should treat myself like a dog: Buy healthy food, read the labels, eat portions that are enough, get healthy treats, yep go for walks, embrace life, sleep when you need, drink water ...of course you draw a line at the collar. So maybe , when next someone asks you how you are doing you reply: "Excellent, I am treating myself like a dog:)" Be well.


P.s. I have a happy healthy dog, his name is Jake and he has taught me much.