Some people just prefer to have dogs instead of children. Yes, we’ve heard how magical parenthood is, but we’ve also seen how stressful, exhausting and downright expensive it is! So for the time being we prefer to focus on our fur kids, and we’re tired of hearing the following comments!

1. “Who will take care of you when you’re old?”

We will. Last year, CNN reported that the average cost to raise a child from birth to age 18 has hit a whopping $245,000. Instead of having those 2.5 kids, we’re going to take the $612,500 we’re saving and live out our twilight years on a beach with our dogs!

2. “Children give you unconditional love.”

So do our dogs. The difference is our dogs never grow up to talk back and rebel against us. They’re like cuddly toddlers that never grow into angsty teenagers. They stay sweet forever!

3. “Dogs are so messy.”

Sure, my dogs enjoy dragging every toy they own into the center of my living room, but compared to some kids I know, they’re pretty darn clean! I’ve never heard of a dog finger painting all over the living room walls or mashing Play-Do into the carpets.

And compared to some kids, my dogs eat like charm school graduates!

4. “But kids say/do the cutest things!”

Um, dogs do adorable things every day. The best part is, they do them quietly. I’m sure we all sometimes wish our dogs could tell us what they are thinking, but overall the no talking thing is great. We get to tell our dogs all our problems without ever being interrupted. Plus, they do that endearing head tilt thing when we talk to them.

5. “Dogs require so much exercise”

Dogs do love a good romp around the park with their favorite human, and physical activity is an important requirement for a happy dog. But after releasing some energy, most dogs are more than happy to slob out on the sofa and enjoy a Netflix marathon. Once their basic needs are met, they are up for whatever their human wants to do.

6. “What will your legacy be after you’re gone?”

Hopefully the legacy of all us dog dads and moms will be that we’re remembered as kind, generous people who worked hard, played harder and loved hardest of all. We should all be so lucky as to have a bunch of adoring dogs show up at our funeral like the strays above did for Margarita Suarez who fed them and cared for them during her life.

7. “You could always adopt.”

We already have. We adopted our best friends. And they give us all the love, fun and happiness we can handle. All wrapped up in adorable furry packages!