My dog turned my 100% CF to 1000%, but he did the opposite for my friends 🤦‍♀️

I rescued my dog from some friends last year after he bit their daughter.

Poor dog was traumatized when I got him and he's gradually healing. He lets me pet him now, he can sleep by my legs (still has to be touching me) instead of having his face in my face, when I open the door he'll go out without me and hang out outside without fearing that I'll lock him out, he moves around in the car instead of being paralyzed in fear while shaking like a leaf, he doesn't try to attack other dogs, the vacuum, the drill, the blender, the mixer, or the elliptical, and (the biggest change I enjoy) he tries to solve his own problems (like when he drops a chewy from the couch) instead of barking at me to get me to fix it for him.

He's my 5th dog (the 3rd rescue), but he's been the hardest by far! And the whole experience gave me the clarity that I really and truly do NOT want to raise a kid! I spent my childhood responding to my older sister's outbursts (she has a mental illness) and I have NO desire to relive the experience of being stuck with someone who needs me again. I missed the carefree childhood experience: my childhood was actually quite frightening and stressful. So was being married to an alcoholic. I'm enjoying the peace and quiet of singlehood and adulthood too much to compromise it!

The wildest part for me: the same dog convinced my friends that they DID want kids! They were CF before him. As a recovering codependent I know some people love to be needed and maybe it's a testament to my own healing that I feel put out by it now, but I also find it confusing. They were prioritizing the dog's safety over his own feelings of safety (by putting him in the trunk, grabbing him and holding him tightly to clean his paws every day, tricking him into going outside so they could lock him out, etc) to the point that he's traumatized and they thought, "we're loving this so much we want to make life even harder on us with a child." Then they proceeded to be so overwhelmed that they neglected the dog. And now they're antivax. 😵‍💫