I've been up for hours. Dog knows when he needs out that I'm the one to pick on. Poor little old phyco Baby had an upset tummy all night and needed out. Ohhh,the pain of getting up,trooping down the endless stairs to open the back slider so the dog can go out...there's got to be a better way. No dog comes to mind but then I know I have breakdowns when there is no furry thing with eyeballs to look after. O.K.,I admit I'm bonkers but a house without a dog??? Come on! Then it would be totally up to Hubby to track mud in and muck up the floors to no end. Much too big of a job for one man! Need the aid of a dog that constantly needs a bath and can carry several tons of mud dripping from his underbelly. Hubby can leave stuff every where but nothing like a large Shepherd that can chew any given toy into several thousand little pieces all through the rug. Hubby can't match that. And as annoying as men and toilets are...try this animal that figured how to flip the toilet lid up cause it's easier than going to his water bowl downstairs!!! Darn,nipped that one in the bud!!! I can hear when he tries it again,you hear whack,whack,and then smack...so the trick is to yell his name and he comes with that look...O.K.,I'm a bad dog and you know it but do you still love me???? Darn dog!!! Or I can hear when he decides that he's going up on one of the beds to sleep. Not on my watch!!! His too big and you can hear the bed groan,so you yell and he sheepishly shows up tp see how much trouble he's in. All I've got now is the dog,hard work to replace five kiddies but he's up for the job!