WEBVTT
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Welcome back to We are the Hansens.
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Today we're diving into topics that might seem small at first,
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but is actually a huge part of our family's life. Pets.
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If you have a big family like ours, you know
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that managing daily life is already an adventure. But today
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we're going to talk about why adding pets into the
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mix isn't just doable, it's beneficial. From teaching responsibility to
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creating laxing memories, pets are incredible addition to a large household.
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Let's get into it.
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In a house full of kids, you might wonder do
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we really need more living things to take care of?
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And you know the answer is for us and it
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has always been yes. Pets bring something special to a
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family dynamic. They provide companionship, emotional support, and even structure
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to daily routines. Now, when our older kids were little,
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we lived on a farm and we had miniature horses,
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we had Sicilian donkeys, we had chickens, we had ducks,
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we had baby goats.
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And after we.
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Moved from the farm down here to Missouri, you know,
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we've always had dogs and so our dogs have always
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been a big part of our family and we used
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to raise mastiffs and they were the best dog for
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a large family. English Mastiffs were our big quantity of
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mastive pups. And then we also had a bowl mastiff and.
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I end up.
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Looking back and seeing, you know, I really miss our
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mastiff breed. They were so good with our children. Yes,
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we still have dogs now. We did have cats, we
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had baby calves, We've had pigs. You know, we've had
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baby skunks. So pets are a huge part of our life.
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I always tell my husband once these dogs are gone,
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no more.
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Because.
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It is so hard to travel and find somebody to
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take care of them when you're gone. And I want
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to take my kids all over the place. I want
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to take them to Florida. I want to take them
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to Georgia. I want to take them all over. It
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is just too hard with animals. But I know me
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saying that it ain't gonna last long because we love
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our pets, and kids in a large family learn to
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share space, toys, and attention, but pets introduce another layer
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of understanding. When a pet is sick, scared, or just
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need some extra love. Children learn to be gentle and patient.
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If our dog gets nervous during storms, our kids know
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to speak softly and comfort them. These small interactions shape
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them into more compassionate people. My kids love their pets.
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No matter how chaotic a day is. Pets are always there,
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ready to offer a moment of peace.
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You know.
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We used to have cats, and a cat curled up
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in a child's lap while they read, or a dog
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wagging its tail when the kids come home from school
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creates a deep sense of security and love. My animals
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were always happy to see our children, whether it be
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the donkeys, the miniature horses, the baby cows, you know,
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even down to the ducks, the baby goats, they would
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always get out and they would always greet my children.
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The donkeys would even get out. But life in a
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big family can be so busy, and sometimes it's easy
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to get caught up in different schedules, but pets naturally
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bring people together. Caring for pets isn't a solo job.
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It takes teamwork, and we learned that when we had
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our pharm Everybody helped do chores. Everybody helped feed the
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chickens and the ducks. Everybody helped feed the goats. Everybody
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helped feed the donkeys and the miniature horses, whether it's
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you know, going on a walk together, bathing the dog,
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or picking out a new toy for the cat. These
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small tasks create bonding moments. It doesn't seem like it'd
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be that way, but it definitely is. When you have
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to bathe your dog, my kids are always the first
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ones that say we'll do it. I do tend to
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help because otherwise we'd have a huge pool in our bathroom.
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You know, think back to childhood.
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Some of the most heartwarming moments often involve pets. When
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I was a kid, we had a dog named Tucker,
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and he was so scared of thunderstorms, so he would
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jump up on the bed by us kids and he'd
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get under the covers and hide. Maybe it was that
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time that you know, the dogs stole up a sandwich
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off the counter, or when the kids tried to train
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the family cat to do tricks and failed. These moments
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become stories that get retold for many years, and eventually
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the grandkids will be telling these stories because it is
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a never ending thing. There's always a story to be told.
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Big families mean lots of energy. Pets just add to
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the fun, whether it's playing fetch in the backyard, running
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around with the dog, or even setting up obstacle courses.
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Pets encourage movement and outdoor play and keeping kids active
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and engaged.
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And that is the truth. I don't know the dogs
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that we have now.
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They are older, while two of them are older, and
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you would never be able to tell with how much energy.
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They bring.
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Our dog, Boomer can play for hours and still want
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to play and you're dead tired, and he is ready
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to play. He loves playing with his rope, He loves balls,
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and he loves when you put a flashlight down the
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ceiling and make shadows. He jumps to try and reach
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the shadow. It is so fun and the kids always
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show their friends that because we've never seen a dog
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do that. And Boomer was a rescue. He was actually
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dumped at our house, thrown out of a car at
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our farm, and when he came to the door, he
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was just a pup and he was covered his whole
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body with cigarette burns. He had, his eye was tore.
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It was just really really sad and I could not
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I tried to get a rescue to take him, and
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I just couldn't do it because he stole my heart.
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He was that dog and he has the saddest eyes.
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But knowing what he went through before, just by seeing him,
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because I don't know who dumped him, but just seeing
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all the burns on his body, he went through pure hell.
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And I was always scared that if I found him
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another home that he would be mistreated, so I'd rather
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just keep him. He's nine years old roughly, and I
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know that he's happy here and he loves our kids
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and he loves us, so he's stuck with us. And
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then our little dog Minie, she was a rescue as well,
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because same thing with her. She was abused, and we
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took her home. And then we inherited a dog from
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our friend that had passed away, and he requested that
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we take his little dog. We're kind of stuck with
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these dogs until they're gone, but that's okay because they
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keep us busy, they keep the kids busy and happy
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and entertained, and.
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We love them. So.
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Of course, pets come with their own set of challenges,
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especially in a large family, but just like anything else
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with a little structure, it's completely manageable. It's easy for
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kids to get excited about getting a pet but lose
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interest in taking care of it. And we learn that
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when we had our cows. The kids begged for these
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little cows, and you know, they had to bottle feed them,
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bottle feed them, bottle feed them, and then they started
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training them to come off the bottle, and at that
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point they lost interest. We make sure each child has
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a specific pet related job and we rotate them so
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no one gets stuck with the not so fun task
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all the time. The kids don't like to clean up
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the potties in the backyard, and so they each take turns.
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We have a little scooper and they go out in
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the backyard and they clean it up and it's usually
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done every two days. That way, nobody steps in it.
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You know, a big family is already loud, and adding barking,
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or if you have cats meowing or birds chir being
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to the mix can feel so overwhelming. We found that
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setting quiet zones for pets and kids helps keep the
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house from turning into a zoo. The only dog that
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barks is the new one because she had never been
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around a lot of people. She was with one person
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all the time, and so just the littlest things she barks.
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And she's a bigger so when you have food, she
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barks for that too. Because I'm pretty sure she was
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spoilt by her previous owner, and he probably gave her
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a lot of scraps. Not all pets fit well into
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a large family. High maintenance pets might be tough, while
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others like dogs, cats, or even guinea pigs tend to
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do better in a big household. It's important to choose
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pets that match your family's lifestyle. That's why I love
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the massive breed. The bond between a child and a
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pet doesn't just last through childhood, it shapes the way
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they interact with the world as adults.
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Kids who grow up with.
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Pets are often more empathetic and nourishing, and they understand
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that animals have needs and emotions, and this translates into
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how they treat people. Studies have shown that pets help
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reduce stress, anxiety, and even depression for kids going through
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tough times, whether it struggles at school or big family changes,
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having a pet can be comforting. And I can tell
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you it is. You know, when my little Anna has
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her seizures, you know the dogs know it. They lay
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by her, and I think they sense that stuff. You know,
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just by watching our dogs and animals, even our cats.
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When we had cats, when the kids seem sick, they
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would be right there laying with them. It was almost
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like they knew. And I also believe that there are
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pets out there that can sense bad. I remember one
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time we had this massive name Bison, and we lived
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in a It wasn't a big town, it was a
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smaller town and we lived right in town and Bison
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was outside and we were outside and the kids were
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playing in the yard and we were sitting on the
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deck and I remember he was laying there on the
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in the yard watching the kids. And this guy went
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walking through the alley behind our house and Bison stood
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up and all his hair on his back stood up,
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and we were like, hmm, that's weird because he's never
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acted that way.
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And the guy said is he friendly?
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And my husband said, no, I mean he is, but
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he's I wouldn't come any closer, you know, he's I
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think he's protecting our kids. Well, that guy just kept
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on walking and it was like a couple days later
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and we were looking on the registered Sex Offender registry
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and here that guy that was out there was a
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registered sex offender.
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He was a life registry.
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So dogs can sense evil, Dogs can sense bad, and
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they will be the first to alert. And I honestly
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believe that you listen to your pets because even though
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they can't talk, their actions will tell the tale.
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And I believe that's true.
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Just like when kids are sick and they are laying
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with them, an animal knows, an animal can feel that.
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So our family wouldn't be the same without our pets.
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They brought us joy, laughter, and even a little extra chaos,
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but it's all been worth it for sure. You know,
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whether you're thinking about adding a pet to your big
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family or already have a few, remember that the love
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they bring makes every challenge worth it.
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Do you have pets.
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In your big family and what's your favorite pet memory?
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You can send us a message on our We Are
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the Hansen's Facebook page or send us an email at
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we are the Hansen's Show at gmail dot com, and
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please go and subscribe to our YouTube channel We are
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the Hansens. Thank you for joining us on We Are
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the Hansens.