Over the years I have seen a lot of interesting things inside people’s homes. During my career as Project Manager in San Antonio I once left a roofing job that required a partial re-deck for thirty-minutes to grab some lunch just to come back to the entire second floor and the ceiling on the first floor drenched from a rogue thunder storm. It was an attorney’s home. As you might imagine, they got a lot of stuff done for free. Sadly, I missed out on my plans to see the Reed Southall Band play in Gruene, TX, because I spent the rest of the entire day and evening manning a vacuum and a shovel.
As a home inspector I see a lot of interesting things as well. I see a lot of dogs, cats, birds…all kinds of interesting critters. It still pains me to see a dog chained up to a post, or some type of structure. I just don’t get that.
Some domestic animals refuse to be ignored. Dogs in particular possess the desire to be around people. They love their owners, even when their owners ignore them or simply have to leave them alone throughout the day while their owners work. I even find it strange for a dog to be considered “owned”. It’s so impersonal.
When domestic animals feel stress, or ignored they will sometimes due strange things. For example, a cat may deliver a dead rat to the front door of your home to show an offering of love. Dogs who get bored or feel a sense of stress may be inclined to destroy furniture, or chew up television remotes versus their chew toy lying in the kitchen floor. Dogs who have become accustomed to air conditioning may decide they prefer the indoors rather than the outdoors. A large dog can devour an entire door opening in an eight-hour day! This type of behavior can potentially create severe digestive issues far greater than your new door opening.
Try to understand your dog. Try to look at things from his/her perspective. This may be a good first step to creating a stress-free lifestyle that you and your pet can enjoy together. September 8th is National Hug Your Hound Day, so don’t forget to take some time to love your doggy or you just might be surprised to find a “new” door when you get home from work, and you just might find me making “notes” on my inspection when it comes time to sell your home.
– Chow!
