(WJW) — When Austin Conway posted about the struggles of having a dog, he never expected the impact the post would have.
The professional baseball player shared the realities of life with his German Shepherd mix, Stella.
“Really hate to be making this post right now…,” Conway, who plays in the minor leagues for the Chicago White Sox, wrote. “My girl Stella is just too much to handle sometimes.”
“She is constantly shedding all over my bed and clothes. Is always wanting to go outside at the most inconvenient times. The other day she even stole a piece of bread off of my plate when I wasn’t looking,” he wrote.
He said he also pays higher rent since it’s hard to find an apartment that will allow such a large dog.
“I have came [sic] to the decision that I will not be giving her up,” Conway wrote.
“I will continue to deal with pet hair on all of my belongings. I will continue to get out of bed at 6 am or midnight when she’s begging to go out even though I just took her. I will continue to deal with a food thief,” he said.
“I will continue to base my living situation of [sic] her for as long as she’s alive,” he continued. “And I will continue making any sacrifice I SIGNED UP FOR when I adopted her over 4 years ago.”
“She will continue to be with me no matter what city I move to, however many children I have, or how much of a pain in my ass she can be. She’s family and if you don’t view an animal in this same way, please do us all a favor and don’t get a pet until you do.”
Conway’s post was shared more than 250,000 times, had more than 440,000 likes and more than 62,000 comments.
In a follow up post, Conway said he was “blown away” by the response to his post about Stella.
“It’s been amazing seeing how far this message has spread, and to see how many others feel the same way about their pets,” he wrote.
“I’ve had endless amounts of comments and messages thanking me for speaking out, and some telling of the struggles they have with their dogs and that the post was just what they needed to hear to gain some patience,” Conway said.
“Whatever you’re going through with your pet, good times and bad, it will always be worth it.”
Animal activist Beth Stern was among those touched by Conway’s post.
She shared his post on her Instagram page and wrote, “It’s been one of those days but this FB post was the sunshine I needed.”
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