Louise O'Neill: I’ve basically become the dog-owning equivalent of a Helicopter Parent

Louise O'Neill's dog, Cooper

I’ve mentioned in this column before that my partner and I adopted a dog from the CSPCA last October. Due to Covid restrictions, Richard hasn’t seen Cooper since Christmas – he seems far more upset about this than the fact that he hasn’t seen me since Christmas either — but he remains a loving if absent father. 

Every week brings the arrival of new toys and training tools, things with names such as ‘snuffle mats’ and ‘Outward Hound Dog Brick’ – which I must then find space for in my nice but small house – and Richard demands a constant supply of videos and photos, enduring chit-chat for a few minutes when I FaceTime before asking if he can be ‘put onto’ Cooper. (I’m trying not to take this personally; the dog looks prettier than I do right, as ravaged as I am by this last year. My kingdom for a haircut and a facial, etc.)