It was March 17^th, 2010. My yellow lab named Weston was 14 months old, full of piss and vinegar. I was working long days so I needed a support resource. I chose a local doggie daycare center and dropped him off early that morning.

At 4:30 p.m. I entered the lobby to pick him up. The vibe was weird. Then the owner launches in. “We had a problem with Weston today.” I wondered what that could be—and I would soon find out. “Weston was playing outside in the dog park with the other dogs. We accepted four new dogs into the center, and the pack attacked Weston. We took him to the vet. He was put under, stitched up with a wound deep into the muscle area on the left hip, slightly less serious on the right hip. Lots of abrasions.”

She took a breath and finished offering to take care of Weston for free for the next 10 days and administer antibiotics. Because I listen for a living, I remained silent except to say no thanks to the offer of free care. As you are reading this, I’m sure you are appalled, and you should be.

As I drove home, I got angry. I thought about calling a lawyer, judged them, blamed them, and vowed some sort of revenge. I was firmly planted in the victim perspective.

Once home, he curled up in his doggie bed and fell into a deep post-anesthetic sleep. As I stood there, I realized I had a choice. I could keep villainizing the daycare center or I could focus on helping my injured dog. This shift changed everything.

My brain started working. I realized they sent him home with no pain medicine. I launched into accountability mode. I had pain medicine left over from when he was neutered. I grabbed it out of the cupboard. I decided I would take him with me to work as he healed and supervise him closely. I got my priorities straight.

I share this today to remind you that the accountable perspective gives you far more capacity to make things better. Weston recovered on both a physical and psychological level because I decided to focus on him.

Life is not fair or within your control in many cases. I encourage you to be accountable, even when the worst happens. I never went back to that business, I do not disparage them by name. I moved on to enjoy the 14 years of joy Weston brought to me and my family.

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