Commandment #3 & 4 for Responsible Pet Owners

Ten Commandments for a Responsible Pet Owner as dictated by the pet

1. My life is likely to last 10-15 years. Any separation from you is likely to be painful.
2. Give me time to understand what you want of me.
3. Place your trust in me. It is crucial for my well-being.
4. Don't be angry with me for long and don't lock me up as punishment. You have your work, your friends, your entertainments. But I have only you.
5. Talk to me. Even if I don't understand your words, I do understand your voice when speaking to me.
6. Be aware that however you treat me, I will never forget it.
7. Before you hit me, before you strike me, remember that I have teeth that could easily crush the bones in your hand, and yet I choose not to bite you.
8. Before you scold me for being lazy or uncooperative, ask yourself if something might be bothering me. Perhaps I'm not getting the right food, I have been in the sun too long or my heart might be getting old or weak.
9. Please take care of me when I grow old. You too will grow old.
10. On the difficult journey, on the ultimate difficult journey, go with me please. Never say you can't bear to watch. Don't make me face this alone. Everything is easier for me if you are there. Because I love you so.

It has been awhile since I commented on my blog post "The Ten Commandments for a Responsible Pet Owner as dictated by the pet" so here I am ready to tackle a couple more. My last post dealt with number 2. I don't really have much to say about number 3, "Place your trust in me". As in any human relationship without trust there really is no relationship. I think that is also true with pets.

Number 4 sends a strong message in my opinion. I never really thought about it in that way. Like children, pets are going to misbehave at times. And if you think about it most of the time they probably have no idea they are doing something wrong or that their actions are making you angry. They are not going to understand why you are locking them up as punishment. Think about it. When you send your kids to time out or to their room you want them to think about their actions and why they were wrong. A pet doesn't have that ability. They are not going to ponder what it is that made "mom" or "dad" so angry. They are probably just going to feel abandoned, confused or maybe even afraid.

And how true is it that we have our work, friends, activities and entertainment to turn to and all they really have is you. All your dog or cat wants to do is please you...all they want from you is love and a little understanding and patience when they do something they are not suppose to do.

As pet owners we know there are going to be times when you will become angry with your dog or cat. It is part of life. But instead of punishing or staying angry for too long maybe it would be more productive to let your pet know you are disappointed in them. They will sense that and as mentioned before they just want to please you. Try to correct their behavior with positive reinforcement and then just let it go. You and your pet will soon forget what exactly it was that upset you...until next time of course...and there will be a next time! It is part of being a proud pet owner.

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Command # 2 for a Responsible Pet Owner

Have you ever been to a foreign land where you did not speak the language? It’s frustrating isn’t it? I liken it to what Charlie Brown hears when listening to his teacher or his parents. If you stop and think about it...that’s probably what a pet feels when you are speaking to them, especially when you are trying to get them to do something. This brings me to number two of the Ten Commandments for a Responsible Pet Owner...(as dictated by the pet) ”Give me time to understand what you want from me.” (If you don’t know what I am talking about look at my first post on these ten commandments.)

We are all guilty of getting frustrated with our cat or dog when we get that puzzled look from them after we have finished barking a command at them. Especially if we are telling them to stop doing whatever it is they are doing. Most of the time they will just go right back to whatever it is we wanted them to stop doing. Ever wonder why? Ok...in some cases your pet just might be “testing” you or trying to yank your chain so to speak. But my guess is your dog or cat just doesn’t understand what it is you are asking them to do.

I look back on all the times I “asked” my dog to please stop chewing his paw. I get the puzzled look and then it is right back to the chewing. He has no idea what I am asking him to do...he does not speak my language. So maybe we need to have a little patience and speak “their” language. Pets understand us by the pitch of our voice. If you yell it may be threatening to them. If you spit out a bunch of words they are not going to understand them anyway. Maybe we should just get down to their level, distract them from what they are doing and then reward them with praise when you succeed in your “request”.

We just need to practice patience and understanding when it comes to communicating with our pets. Put yourself in their shoes...or paws in this case. Remember how you felt when someone was speaking to you in a foreign language and you had that same puzzled look on your face as your dog or cat does with you. Show them what you want and reward them when they do “get it”.

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Ten Commandments for a Responsible Pet Owner

On my last post I listed the 10 Commandments for pet owners as dictated by the pet. I really feel strongly about every one of these. Our pets have very few ways of communicating to us how they feel. I read these over and over and every time it stirs up some emotions about how they really feel. So I decided to comment on all ten of them in my future posts...starting with the first one:

My life is likely to last 10-15 years. Any separation from you is likely to be painful.

This reminds me of last week when I made a trip to Florida for the weekend for a convention. I had to leave really early Thursday morning to catch my plane. Apparently when my housemate returned from dropping me off, the cat immediately started to search the entire house to see where I had gone and being very vocal about the whole thing. And as the weekend went by the searching and crying continued. He began to act out his frustrations by pestering the dog and not allowing anyone to get much sleep and pretty much being a royal pain in the "you know what". But thinking back...this was his only way of communicating that he was upset that I was not around. He did not understand the words "she will be back". All he saw was the absence of his "mom".

We need to spend a little extra time and attention on our pets when someone they see every day and who they depend on goes away for a few days. Stop what you are doing for a few minutes and give them a belly rub or two. Talk to them in a calm voice if they seem upset and give them an extra treat once in awhile. If they see in you that everything is ok and that it is only a temporary separation it just might help them make it through until they their "loved one" walk back through the door.

Summer Is Finally Here

It is that time of year again where we can finally get out and spend some quality time with our pets. As the temperatures rise there are some precautions you should take to ensure the safety of your little buddies. The most important one is preventing heat stroke. Because everyone has been cooped up all winter it is tempting to stay out a little longer and play a little harder. We may not realize how hot it really is. Pets will generally not let you know when they are in trouble until it is too late. The best prevention is to go early in the day or later in the evening and take plenty of water for both of you. Limit your time in the sun. In areas where it gets really hot it might be better to go twice a day, once in the morning and again at night. And please...DO NOT LEAVE YOUR PET IN YOUR VEHICLE. Even with the windows down it can be a deadly mistake. I have seen a dog go through heat stroke. It is not a pleasant experience...one I will never forget. They did not survive.

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Just What Are Cats Thinking?

I don't know about you but there are times when I will be sitting in my favorite chair and I look over at my psycho cat and he is just sitting there staring at me. I'll make a comment such as "what?" ( like he is going to answer me ) and still no reaction or movement. He just continues to stare. What do you think is on his evil mind? Here's what I think...

"Let's just see how long it takes for this stupid human to attempt to make me stop. She should know by now that the more she freaks out and tells me to stop the longer I will do this. And if she puts me in the other room I will just start my "screaming for absolutely no reason" routine".

So what's in the mind of your cat or dog? The world wants to know.