The universe is conspiring against me and my dog. Yeah, I’m really busy and my dog Honey would have to be dealing with that anyway. But the extreme cold is making things even worse. Can I really blame winter for my neglected dog?

My dog Honey is the perfect size. Her head lies right where my hand falls when I walk. But wait. Doesn’t that mean she’s always staring at my knees? I need to remember to get down on my dog’s level sometimes.

I can’t stand it any more. Every time I try to find a cute golden retriever to watch on YouTube, I’m hit in the face with torture videos. Okay, there’s no blood. Or broken bones. But I can’t watch them nonetheless.

My husband is outside shoveling snow. I’m upstairs writing. Honey, who just finished breakfast, is downstairs barking. What should I do? How should I reply to my dog’s bark?

It was the last place I expected to see controversy. If asked if their dog loves them, most people would reply, “Hell yeah.” At least that’s what I thought. But after seeing the responses to a video I shared on Facebook, I’m wondering if asking if our dogs love us is the wrong question.

Honey’s birthday week has been more than just fun and games. In the middle of long walks, play time, and snowy outdoor dining with her (hopefully) favorite people, Honey also helped reunite a wandering dog with his person. Way to go, Honey, for helping to bring a lost dog home.

I’m a sucker for a lovely story about someone creating a “bucket list” for their dying dog. They get me every time. But they also strengthen my determination to enjoy every day I have with Honey. And not wait until it’s too late.

Now that I’ve been married more years than I was single (goodness, that’s a startling realization), I feel the right to judge the marriage advice columns I see online. The more I read them, the more I see good advice for living with dogs. Maybe it’s time to treat your dog like you’re married to her.

Every day I see someone pulling his dog away from an interesting smell, yelling at them for barking, or looming over a new dog they want to greet. I wonder what would happen if more people tried to see a dog’s point of view?

Honey’s birthday is coming up. Normally I wouldn’t do much for it. I’d tell myself that as a dog, the day doesn’t mean much to Honey. But everyone deserves a special day sometimes.