I Have a Stalker...He's Brown and Furry

I have never been a huge animal lover, I've always had various allergies to most animals. I met Aubie, a 90 pound chocolate Labrador Retriever a little over two years ago right after my first date with his owner, Merle. Aubie then was 8 years old(56 in dog years), he could be described very similar to Marley on "Marley & Me", he had more energy than any puppy I'd ever seen, constantly jumping and begging for attention. Not to mention Aubie was spoiled, he even slept IN BED! I thought Aubie was pretty annoying, the worst dog in the world. Although I wasn't totally crazy for Aubie he still loved me, maybe bringing him treats when I came into town had something to do with it. At the time I lived in Nashville and about 7 out of 10 times when I would visit Merle I would have an "allergic reaction" to the dog, as time went on I eventually grew out of that. After moving to the Shoals area last year I became Aubie's "nanny" and would dog sit him while Merle was out of town. After spending several weekends of Aubie sitting THE DOG DROVE ME BATTY, he constantly had to have a treat, be eating or entertainted 24/7. After a while Aubie started to grow on me, he really did have a sweet side and was always so happy to see me, how couldn't I love this sweet animal? Aubie became my little buddy, when summer got here we would go swimming and run several afternoons a week, he always looked forward to our runs, he would go stand at the door and stare at his leash. Because of Aubie and his unconditional love for people I have become an animal lover. Maybe I started loving him because he loved me even when he wasn't my favorite person in the world. Aubie loves to watch TV, hold hands and to be involved in conversation. In December we celebrated Aubies 9Th birthday and he is still as full of life as the day I met him! Aubie is now a huge part of my life and one of my dearest friends:)