Pets Help People

Tests have shown that owning a pet can help people attain a better level of physical health. Petting your animal, be it dog, cat, rabbit or ferret, can lower your heart rate and your blood pressure and even promote healing. So can riding your horse or watching fish in an aquarium. Also, recent studies show that having pets at work lowers stress levels and makes employees more productive.

But pets can help us in other ways, too. They help us to relax and focus on things other than our problems. No matter how depressed you might be, and no matter how much you want to curl up on your bed and stay there for the day, your pet can coax you out – even if only to feed him and let him out the door. When you have a pet, you cannot drop out of the world; you have to stay involved.

Pets fulfill the natural craving we have for emotional relationships. Whenever we do something for another living thing, we feel better about ourselves. Here are some other ways pets make us feel better:

A Cure for Loneliness

Pets can help us to feel less lonely and isolated. Feeling needed also works to foster positive feelings. Ask the many elderly citizens or people living alone. Pets give a sense of purpose; they always need something – food, a walk, a stroke and a kind word, and they are usually appreciative. As an added benefit, if you leash up your dog and take a walk through the neighborhood or through a dog-friendly park, more than likely someone will talk to you. Studies have shown that people walking with a dog talk to new people far more often than if the dog was not with them.

Coming home to your pet gives you something to look forward to. Dogs may score highest in "greetings," but most pets are delighted to see their owners walk through the door and will show it in some way. If you have a pet, you are not alone.

Someone to Love

If you love your pet, that love comes back to you tenfold. And it is love of the best kind – unconditional and enduring. Animals offer this love, along with reliable companionship – often for a lot less trouble than having a relationship with a human. No matter how cranky you get, your pet always forgives you and continues to show affection.

Physical Contact

When your purring cat sits cuddled in your lap, all is right with the world. Cuddling and stroking your pet is good for you and helps you to forget about your bad day at work or your boredom. Your bird perched on your shoulder, your puppy licking your face, or stroking your horse's mane help to promote a sense of pleasure and calmness.

Someone to Talk To

It is a known fact that talking things out relieves a lot of internal pressure, but just having someone to talk to makes a difference, too. Talk about anything – your pet will listen, and, even better, he will not disagree. Share your thoughts, feelings, troubles, worries – or say something stupid – your pet will still love you. You may find that by talking things out, you may come up with your own solutions.

Sense of Security

Certain animals promote a sense of safety. Your dog will bark to warn you of impending danger, and even your cat will wake you if there is smoke in the house. But the sense of having someone with you is often enough to make you feel less anxious and more secure.

Motivation to Move

If your pet needs to be walked every day, you will be exercising – whether you want to or not. Walking with your dog also helps you to deal with the physical stress reactions you have acquired during your day. Walking gives you an opportunity to get outside and breathe fresh air. Let your pet teach you how to appreciate the outdoors.

The Human-animal Bond

The strength of the human-animal bond is not a myth. Although life with a pet is not always easy, the joy of pet ownership can be a wonderful experience. A snuggle from your cat or a slurpy kiss from your dog promotes very special feelings and creates a human/animal bond that can last for many years.

Valentine's Day Dog Hug

Love Pug
Happy Valentine's Day!

Some people believe that Valentine's Day is a "greeting card holiday" and others think it is a day to express their love for the people and things around them.

Although I dislike consumerism, I belong to the second group.

Valentine's Day is also a great day to celebrate our love for pets - whether you buy your dog a special toy or treat, or just take a moment to kiss your dog and say, "I love you".

This loving video really made me smile, and I hope that you will enjoy it, too.

Dog Hug

Ways To Show Your Dog You Love Him/Her

We all love our dogs. Dogs are great. They can be so much fun and they can make us smile every day.

How can you show your dog that you love him?

Here are seven loving things you can do to show your love for your dog:

1. Monitor your dog. One way to show your dog that you love him is to monitor him. Note if he is eating, drinking and having normal bowel movements. If he is sitting with you - feel his body for lumps and bumps and note any abnormalities.

2. Keep him healthy. If your dog looks or acts sick, have him checked by your veterinarian. Dogs cannot talk. They cannot tell you when they are sick and they cannot just get in the car all by themselves and go to the vet when they do not feel good. They rely on you to care for them. A great way to show your love is to make sure that your dog is taken care of when he is sick.

3. Give your dog playtime every day. Know what your dog likes and play with him every day. This is a great way to spend time with your dog and to show your love. Good toys are really important to your dog's health and happiness.

4. Quiet time is also important. Not only does your dog need regular playtime with you, your dog also loves quiet time with you. Give your dog an ear rub or a tummy rub (or whatever he likes) while you are watching TV, listen to music, or reading together.


5. Practice good preventive care. In addition to taking care of your dog when he is sick, preventing health problems with good preventive care is also a great way to show your love.

6. Do not let your dog get fat. Obesity can cause a variety of health issues - especially joint and arthritis problems. Monitor your dog's weight. If your dog is obese, ask your veterinarian about a diet. Cut back on treats Either break the treats into smaller pieces or try a low-calorie treat.

7. Reinforce good behavior. Everyone loves a "good" dog. When your dog does a great job, give tons of positive reinforcement. Then your dog will not only get attention and love from you, but from everyone he meets. This will make him happy and it is a great way to show you love him!

Remember, watch your dog for any signs of problems and spend plenty of quality time together.

Giving Thanks to Your Canine Companion

During these tough economic times, it can be easy to get hung up on what we don't have, rather than focusing on what we do have. Thanksgiving is the perfect time to take a step back and really appreciate our loved ones—including our canine companions!

This Thanksgiving, take a moment to think about all the ways your dog has helped you and what they’ve taught you about love, loyalty, and honesty. Let your dog know how thankful you are to have him in your life by taking a nice, long walk outside and enjoying Mother Nature together. This time spent living in the moment will be appreciated more than any fancy toy or expensive treat.

I wish you and your canine companion a wonderful Thanksgiving holiday filled with the love and warmth of family—and lots of good food!

Do Dogs Really Fall in Love?

True Love, Yes or No?

"We don't know," says Dr. Bonnie Beaver, a professor in the department of small animal medicine and surgery in the College of Veterinary Medicine at Texas A&M University. "I cannot prove it isn't so, but I cannot prove that it is. We cannot evaluate animal emotions."

"You have to call it a bonding thing," says Dr. Patricia O'Handley, a veterinarian with the small animal clinic at Michigan State University. Pets introduced to other pets at critical stages of socialization will form a bond with the other animal: dogs with dogs, cats with cats or dogs with cats. Dogs, who are social animals by nature, bond more easily than cats because of their predisposition to live in packs. "It's companionship, or dependency, rather than an emotional attraction that lies at the root of these pairings," says Dr. O'Handley.

Not so fast, Dr. O'Handley. "I'm tempted to say (pets) can fall in love," says Dr. Nicholas Dodman, director of the animal behavior clinic at Tufts School of Veterinary Medicine and a PetPlace.com consulting vet. "Close relationships between dogs and dogs or dogs and cats are possible, but films like Lady and the Tramp and Air Bud are contrivances of the media."

Friendship Is the Key

The "love" Dodman sees between pets is less the hearts-and-flowers stuff of Valentine's Day than the other stages of love that humans also experience: a mother's love for her offspring or the love of a friend, for instance. "The Greeks, I believe, had seven different words for love - the love for your children, love for your parents, love for a partner, and so on - while we are saddled with just the one word - love - to describe all of these relationships," says Dr. Dodman, who suspects the Greeks would have had a word for the love relationships between pets.

"Romantic love is a stretch of the imagination for dogs and cats, but can they be friends with each other? Yes," says Dodman. "It's well known that dogs grieve when separated from a preferred companion, experiencing sleep disturbances, loss of appetite and general despondency," adds Dodman, who writes about unusually needy animals in the book The Dog Who Loved Too Much (Bantam).

Cats and Dogs Are Promiscuous

Unlike some species that mate for life, cats and dogs breed promiscuously.

As for puppy love, the infatuation experienced by giddy boys and girls in middle school, who wants to put their pooch through that? It's tough enough watching your kids get dumped. Imagine the heartbreak. What then? Probably a letter saying, "Dear Rover, it's over."

Does Your Dog Really Love You?

In the English language, we have just one word to describe the different types of love. The ancient Greeks were a bit smarter in this respect; they used different words to describe the love for a spouse, a sibling, a parent or a friend.

You have to wonder which word they used to describe the love between pets and people. We know how we feel towards our pets, but do they experience the same emotions toward us? Or is the bond simply a mixture of instinct, dependence and social role?

In short, do our pets really "love" us, as we understand it? In a word, the answer is yes, according to clinical evidence. Food does play a large role in feelings of affection between pet and owner. But dog does not live by biscuit alone! The mere presence and/or touch of a preferred person has been shown to reduce the heart rate of these animals – a sign of bonding.

Puppy Love

Like people, dogs don't simply like or love someone just because they are there. The personality of the pet and the person makes a large difference. A dominant or independent dog, for instance, is less likely to become enamored with a submissive owner. But he may become attached to someone who is a strong leader. This same person may terrify a dog that has endured hard times. A dog like this is more likely to adore a comparatively gentle owner.

In his book, Dogs Don't Lie About Love, Jeffrey Masson wrote about his relationship with three rescued dogs. Presuming that These dogs were needy, and he is a kind person, the title makes sense. These dogs very likely wear their adoring hearts on their sleeves, so to speak. In Nicholas Dodman's book, The Dog Who Loved Too Much, he wrote about a needy, hyper-attached dog with separation anxiety. It was the dog's owner who came up with the title to describe her dog's apparent, total devotion and intolerance of separation.

Some dogs do become hopelessly devoted to their owners, greeting them so exuberantly that the owner has no doubt he or she is the center of the dog's universe. But this kind of love is fawning, pathetic and, in a way, self-serving to the dog. It is certainly not a healthy sort of love.

At the other end is a very dominant, confident and independent dog. These dogs may border on indifference, and their feelings are along the lines of tolerance than attachment. They tolerate the owners simply because they are fed.

What is far better is the love in which a dog has learned to trust and respect his owner without abject humility, fear or desperate need to be around all the time. The image this brings to mind is that of a mature Labrador or golden retriever, walking beside his beloved owners, perhaps on the beach. Such dogs have enough confidence to run off and play in the ocean, but enjoy returning to the social group that is the family. This can be described as a healthy love.

Of course, there are those special bonds we have all heard about – when an owner dies, but his or her dog waits patiently for their return. Such was the case of Greyfriars Bobby, an Edinburg dog who sat by his master's grave for many years, until his death, waiting for his master's return. If that is not love, I don't know what is.