Five Things to Learn from Your Pet

  Posted on December 11, 2010  by Joy of Living  No comments

I was reading the January 2011 issue of Real Simple magazine this morning and came across this article.  I really liked it so thought I’d share:

• Celebrate everything. Even if I’m gone only 10 minutes, when I get home Bo and Jessie are so glad to see me!  Take time to acknowledge and celebrate the small events in every day.  If our pets could speak, they’d say, “you deserve a yummy treat for that!”  Who can argue with that logic?
• Just being present is enough.  When having a bad day, your pets can sense your mood is not what it could be and will stay close, cuddle with you as a comforting gesture.  They don’t say anything, they don’t have to, their closeness is enough.  If faced with trying to figure out what to say to a friend that might be dealing with a serious illness or loss of a loved one, words aren’t really necessary, what really matters is showing up.
• Brain size doesn’t matter.  The author tells a story of a parrot named Chicken.  Although Chicken’s brain wasn’t very large, she took pleasure in human-like activities such as rearranging the cupboards.  If you observe pets, you’ll see that even though humans are smarter, we’re still just animals with the same emotions, like anxiety and joy.
• Don’t try so hard.  Cats are independent creatures who stay true to themselves and resist outside influences.  It wouldn’t be such a bad idea for us to take a cue from them and dance to our own music rather than clamor for affection and acceptance.
• You can get along with anyone.  How often do we read of various unlikely species such as cats and dogs, dogs and birds becoming the best of friends?  If raised in a warm, caring environment the natural conflicts can very often fall away.

I’ve heard people refer to that “dumb” dog or that “goofy” cat, but when it comes down to it in many ways animals are sooo much smarter than humans!  Take a moment today to acknowledge the natural intelligence of your pet, they’ll love you even more for it!