The Goodest Co-workers

I was sent to work from home very suddenly near the beginning of the pandemic. Like many people in similar situations, I had to make adjustments to become more comfortable with my new work environment. At first my girlfriend was also working from home, but after a while she was sent back to the office. So, there I was sitting in my home office by myself, which for the most part was fine by me. Then we decided we should look into getting a dog. We started looking on the Petfinder app for dogs in our area that we available for adoption. Eventually I stumbled on an adorable little corgi mix that was named Taz. I am not kidding when I say I fell in love with the little guy right away from that single photo. We put in an application immediately. After a brief scare where the shelter took him and the rest of his litter off the app temporarily because they were being treated for ring worm, we got word that we were approved, and he was still available if we wanted him.

We decided to rename him Fenrir, after the giant wolf/child of Loki from Norse mythology. Unlike his vicious and destructive namesake, our Fenrir is the sweetest little guy. He became my office buddy while I was working. He would play and nap while I did my job. It was and still is nice to have a dog hanging around while I work. Just having them around makes an otherwise unpleasant task a little more enjoyable. Early on he presented some challenges, he would occasionally chew on something that was not his or have an accident before he was potty trained. But even those minor stresses were nothing when stacked up against the benefit of having a cuddly little office mate.

Almost a year later we adopted another puppy, this one a basset hound mix, and named her Hel, after Fenrir’s sister in the myths. Fortunately, she is infinitely cuter than the Hel of myth. Now they both keep me company while I work. Hel has also presented a few challenges with potty training, but I was better prepared for that this time around. They also keep each other company, Fenrir and Hel love to play. They rough house with each other for about half the day, between naps of course. I find that even though my work sometimes stresses me out, being able to turn around and see them wrestling or cuddling on their big dog bed tends to help me wind back down a bit.

They also let me know when someone is at the door. Is it always MY front door? No, no it is not. But they let me know anyways. They come over to my office chair for pets periodically. Usually, they wait patiently for me to notice that they are there, although sometimes I’m very wrapped up in my work and they will whine a little to get my attention. On my breaks I used to just mess around on my phone, but now I have two dogs to play with and spoil rotten. Sometimes I’ll let one of them sit on my lap for a bit while I work, which certainly helps with the stress relief.

I highly recommend bringing a dog into your home office. They liven up the room and help get rid of the miasma of stress that can collect around a home workspace. They help me maintain a more positive attitude, if for no other reason than getting to enjoy their adorable antics all day. Are they the quietest co-workers I’ve ever had? No, but they aren’t the loudest either and I find them less disruptive than some other people I’ve share an office space with. They are without a doubt the best co-workers I’ve ever had.