A Year of Dog-mateship
I have always loved dogs. I remember a particular moment growing up in Ludhiana (Punjab, India). I used to cycle a lot, with friends or just by myself. I loved the feeling of it - not so much anymore though. One day, while pedalling down a local road, I spotted a litter of stray puppies on the roadside. They were impossibly cute. I stopped, played with them for a bit, and right then - at 10 or 11 years old - I decided that one day, I would have a dog of my own.
Two years later I did end up getting a dog - a Doberman pup from a veterinarian family friend. Tragically, he had a congenital disease, and we had to part ways after only two weeks. It was a heartbreak that stayed with me for a long time. I named him Scooby.
Fast forward about 25 years. My partner (who is also a dog lover) and I finally decided it was time. We welcomed our first dog - an Australian Cobberdog we named Cosmo. This is the day (exactly a year ago) we picked him up from the Sydney airport. He was roughly 8 weeks old and had flown down from a breeder on the Sunshine Coast in Queensland.
Why Cosmo? Two reasons: We love Cosmo Kramer from Seinfeld, and we love space (the cosmos). We hoped he would inherit the character’s charm, though mostly he just inherited the chaotic hairstyle and the tendency to slide without stopping.
What's an Australian Cobberdog? No, it’s not a made-up word I use to sound fancy at the dog park. It is essentially a very carefully researched Labradoodle with stable DNA. Think of the Cobberdog as a Labradoodle that went to private school and has a better family tree than I do. While Labradoodles were often bred a bit haphazardly due to high demand, the Cobberdog is a recognised breed designed to be the perfect companion ("Cobber" is Aussie slang for friend or mate).
It's been a year since we've had Cosmo and I wanted to write something on my experience of finally owning a dog.
The Skepticism
I have to be honest when I say that I was a bit sceptical about getting a dog. I was worried that the timing might not be right, that we won't have much support around in case we need someone to dog-sit, that it will be difficult to travel and just generally go out and so on. While having a dog has definitely impacted our lifestyle, the adjustment was surprisingly different from what I imagined.
Let's break down my year of dog-mateship.
The Survival Phase
The first few months were… let’s call them "character building."
The change in scenery wasn't fun for Cosmo, which meant he had trouble sleeping, which meant we had trouble sleeping. The first few nights were brutal. We tried everything. We put him in a crate (more on that in a second). We covered the crate with sheets. We put our worn clothes in with him so he could smell us. We did 2 AM zombie-walks around the block. We even bought a pheromone diffuser that releases a signal translating to: "You are safe. You are secure. Please stop crying." (This actually worked).
We tried crate training, but Cosmo viewed the crate not as a "safe den," but as a Dark Souls style prison. After a few nights of him staging a vocal protest, we negotiated a truce - he sleeps on the floor, and we get to keep our sanity. He has a couple of beds around the house which he uses occasionally but he loves the floor.
Then there was the potty training. We don't have children, so the "bodily functions" aspect was the biggest shock to the system. I have managed large teams, negotiated contracts, and run businesses. But nothing humbles you quite like standing on a street corner at 6 AM, making eye contact with a stranger while holding a warm bag of your best friend's excrement. You just have to get on with it.
And, because he is a dog, Cosmo likes to chew. In the early days, he developed a refined palate for expensive rubber. He didn't just chew shoes; he was a connoisseur of my running shoe laces. He also decided that cables are essentially forbidden spaghetti.
The Shift
Around the six-month mark, the clouds parted.
The accidents stopped. I think Cosmo realised he was a grown-up now and that pooping inside was beneath him. The chewing subsided (mostly—I still find the occasional mangled cable, but I’ve made my peace with it).
The biggest adjustment for me was the mental weight of responsibility. In the beginning, I felt the loss of freedom acutely. I couldn't just grab my keys and leave. But that anxiety faded as we built trust.
Now, we can leave Cosmo at home for extended periods - up to four hours - with enough snacks and toys to keep him occupied. We set up a camera to spy on him, and mostly he just sleeps. We are also incredibly lucky to have a friend nearby who dog-sits when we are away, so Cosmo effectively has a second home.
The "Co-Founder"
Cosmo turned out to be incredibly eager to please. We skipped puppy school because we managed to train him ourselves. He can high-five, roll over, play dead upon being "shot," and even does a solid "Namaste."
He is now 14 months old and has been with us for exactly one year.
I resigned from my job about five months ago to focus on personal projects. This means Cosmo is now my primary co-worker. To be fair, he’s terrible at brainstorming and sleeps during strategy meetings, but his performance reviews are always stellar because he’s such a good boy.
Having him around has been a massive boost for my mental and physical health. He forces me to break up my day, step away from the screen, and get some fresh air. Even in moments of stress, just looking at his goofy face brings my stress down.
The Verdict
The first year with Cosmo has been awesome. Above all, he has been the greatest, friendliest companion we could have asked for.
If you are on the fence, or if you are waiting for the "perfect time" to get a dog, let me save you some time: there is no perfect time. Just get the dog. Everything else will fall into place.
Cosmo Through the Ages
Bedtime Baby Cosmo
Raincoat Not a Baby Cosmo
Hipster Teenager Cosmo
Sleepy Kind of Grown Up Cosmo
