May's The Crazy Dog Mom of the Month: Heather and Piper

Your name: Heather Bellwood

Dog's name: Piper Joy

Instagram: @pipertheheelermix

Where do you live: Farmersville, TX

Tell us about your dog: Piper was actually found on a country road in Farmersville by my mom (Piper’s grandma) in May of 2018. She was driving and all of a sudden a tiny, black and white 8 week old puppy started running down the road toward her car. My mom stopped and when she got out of her car, Piper ran right up to her and when she picked Piper up she was so excited and scared that she peed all over my mom lol.

I had been praying for a dog for months before that day so when my mom sent me a picture of her and told me how she found her I knew it was God answering my prayers! Ever since that day Piper has brought SO MUCH joy (and craziness) into our lives and I thank God for her all the time.

Tell us a little about you: I am a Qualified Mental Health Professional which is really just a fancy way of saying I help individuals with coping and life skills to improve their mental health.

I just recently got married and gained a husband and a 4 year old step son. I live on a farm with a lot of animals and am in the process of waiting to hear back if I am accepted into a Counseling Program in Dallas!

What are your dog’s favorite things (toys, treats, etc): Piper literally has a stick in her mouth probably 50% of the time.

Why do you think of yourself as a dog mom: I have to take care of an actual living being. I care for her physically like every pet owner, but I also try to care for her emotionally - I always try to make sure she is comfortable and having fun!

What was the moment you knew you weren’t just a dog owner but a dog mom: When Piper was about 9 weeks old and I let her have most of my pillow at night. I would get like the smallest section and she would have the rest so she could spread out.

What is your favorite part of being a dog mom: Having a companion who is always happy and excited to see me; on bad days she always makes me feel 1000 times better just by snuggling me.

What is your best dog mom advice: Put more effort into praising your pup when they do something good than punishing them when they do something wrong. Dogs are similar to kids in that they respond much better to rewards for positive behavior than they do to punishments for negative behavior.

What is your best dog mom hack: Get seat covers and a small vacuum for in your car for those dog mummas who take their babies everywhere with them like I do!

What is your favorite thing to do with your dog: My favorite thing to do with Piper is laying and snuggling; Piper’s favorite thing to do together, however, is going on walks.

What is one dog mom goal you have: I really want to teach Piper how to speak when I tell her to.

Fun fact about your dog: I’ve never met or had a dog that loves to swim as much as Piper does. If there is a body of water, she heads straight to it. When my husband is fishing we have to watch her because as soon as we look away she’ll jump into the pond and scare all of the fish away.

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