Growing up with a family dog is beneficial to a child in many ways. Dogs teach kids responsibility, but they also impart valuable lessons of unconditional love and support.
Tilley, a Bernese Mountain Dog, is a huge part of her human brother Joey’s life. A recording shared by The Dodo reveals, in Joey’s own words, how special his relationship with his dog sibling is.
A Boy’s Love Letter To His Dog
This sweet love letter Joey wrote to Tilley will warm your heart and remind you of your relationship with your own childhood dog. The note begins:
“Dear Tilley, I love being your big big brother. When I found out I was going to be a big big brother, I wanted to be your best friend. My favorite game is when you steal something and I have to catch you. I love cuddling with you because you feel like a big fluffy pillow.”
Adult female Bernese Mountain Dogs can weigh up to 95 pounds, which is a lot more than a three to five-year-old human weighs. Of course, when Tilley joined the family she was just a puppy, so she was smaller than all of her humans.
Ultimately, size is the main thing that’s changed in Joey and Tilley’s relationship. As she grew larger than him, their dynamic remained solid.
Playtime with the dog is a great way to encourage kids to exercise. Joey likes to roughhouse with his enormous dog, play tag, and toss snowballs to her.
“My favorite thing to do with you is playing in the snow. We run around, eat snow, and catch snowballs.”
With classic childlike joy, Joey even finds Tilley’s naughtier personality quirks to be endearing. For example, the pup loves to steal and chew socks, and Joey thinks of it like this:
“For Halloween I want to make you a sock monster because you always steal socks.”
The final words of Joey’s letter will make you really miss your childhood dog:
“I like it when you give me kisses after I have done something nice for you. You are my best friend and the cutest thing in the whole wide world. Thank you for making me giggle. I love you Till Till, you are my sweet baby girl.”
Listen to the letter’s recording and watch Tilley grow twice as big as her brother in the original video.
