There are many reasons why some people don’t take their pets outside in the summer months. Perhaps they are afraid of the heat, or they think that pets aren’t meant for such an environment. Regardless of your reasoning for not putting your pet outside, there are definitely situations where you should.
The one that I think is the most important is when you are out in public and you see a cute little dog or cat. Maybe it is a new baby at your neighbor’s house, or maybe it is a little puppy that you saw at a pet store years ago.
When I was a kid, my mom used to let me spend a day out in the field with my dog, Bambi. He was a very tiny orange-and-black mutt, and he would often run around with me chasing down birds and squirrels. One day, he and I were out in the field with our other dog, which had been having a bit of trouble lately.
I recall going out with Bambi a lot as a kid – I don’t think he’s particularly fond of me, but I always gave him a smile or a hug or something as I went by. Well, I was so upset about how I looked that I did not even give him a second look. My mom told me not to worry, that she would take care of Bambi! Well, she never did.
I guess I have to admit that I was a little bummed to get a smile or a hug. But I do wonder if this is the first time in my five years of life that I have been a target, so I guess I can live with it. A dog, a squirrel, and a bird. I think a little bit of a smile and a hug would probably have been enough for that.
I feel like this is very similar to the way I feel when I see my mom. I feel like maybe I should have been a little more respectful of the fact that my mom took care of Bambi Well. We all need to just try to be kind to each other. Not taking care of pets is just plain rude.
Pets love you right? That’s why they love you. I mean we’re mammals and we like to keep a bunch of stuff around. It seems like there’s something more primal about the affection we have for other living beings. I have a dog, and I can’t imagine being a dog without my pet. That’s one of those things that you have to learn to accept.
Pets are not just living things. They are sentient beings that are capable of feeling pain and pleasure, and they come with needs that we share. While the majority of us have a simple need to pet a dog or cat, there are a lot (maybe even most) of us that will happily eat, drink, and sleep with a dog or cat. And we would probably like to have one so we can be close to it.
The thing about pet ownership is that it is one of those things that seems to have some of us pretty stumped. A dog is a great companion, but you have to be able to deal with the obvious discomfort they bring. Likewise, a pet may have a lot of physical needs that you would like to share with them, but you may have to be prepared to deal with some uncomfortable feelings.
That’s why you should probably keep those feelings to yourself. However, that doesn’t mean you should be avoiding dogs or cats with big hearts. We are going to get to that in a second.
