If you have a dog, you'll totally see the humor in this picture because our furry friends are hilarious. They love us unconditionally, lick our faces to render a kiss, and make us laugh.

This is Bo.

He is a chow/retriever mix. He can be as stubborn as a chow, but not often, and he's as friendly as the retriever.

Yesterday, I'm out raking leaves and he's playing while I work... until I am about to rake the last patch of leaves. This is when Bo decides to sit down and look me square in the eyes, like he knows that if I finish up, we're going in and his playtime is as good as over. Could it be true that he knows exactly what he is doing? Because Bo dives into the pool just after I've dried him off, or quietly slinks off in the other direction when I walk toward the car to leave the dog park, I am 100% positive sure he knows what he's doing. Like any two-year-old, they are smarter than we think.

I completely understand why authors write about their pets. We are entertained by our four-legged fuzzy friends, which makes for a great story. Even I write about my childhood dog, Oreo, in my novels.

Shout out if you remember the Ramona books by Beverly Cleary. I loved Ribsy, Henry Huggins' dog. And how about Winn-Dixie and Marly? Great dogs. Funny, too.

And then, there are these two: Little Ann and Old Dan from Where the Red Fern Grows. Yes, sometimes the stories are tear-jerkers, but it's because we fall in love with these pooches. Isn't it better to have loved and lost, than to have never loved at all?

And for you cats lovers out there, a future post will signify that I love cats, too.

Payton rules our house.

And that, in itself, is another story.

The Family Dog: An Author's Muse