May Is National Pet Month

By Stacy Parish, Children’s Department

Furry or feathered?  Scaled or smooth?  If you are considering getting a new pet or adding an additional beastie to your home, these are only two of the many questions that you must ask yourself and your family members, of the two-legged and four-legged variety, because your existing pets are also family.

National Pet Month was created as a celebration of the joys that pets bring to people’s lives, and vice versa.  Some of the aims of National Pet Month are:

• Promoting the benefits of pet ownership
• Supporting pet adoption
• Increasing awareness of the services available from professionals who work with animals
• Raising awareness of the roles, contribution, and value to society that service animals provide

If you are already sharing your home with a pet, here are a few fun suggestions to celebrate National Pet Month:

1. –Do a photo shoot or a YouTube video with your pet!  Who knows, your segment with Captain Fluffypants could be the next viral sensation, maybe even with more “hits” than a Kardashian video.
2. –Look into creating a “Take Your Pet To Work Day” at your place of employment.  (Hey, if they let human children do it, why not the animal children?  I bet you a box of Milk-Bones that some of them would be better behaved and more pleasant to have around for the day than the humans.  Just sayin’.)
3. –Got a hipster cat or a feline princess?  Make them a customized bed that matches their personality.  Pinterest has squillions of ideas.
4. –Get off the couch!  Hit your favorite dog-friendly park with your pooch for some new training, such as jumping through a hula hoop or learning to respond to hand signals, or just take a leisurely stroll along the trails and enjoy the day.  For your feline friend, teach your cat to walk on a leash so she can enjoy the outdoors, too.  Make sure you and your pet stay hydrated while playing outside.
5. –Be a “pet whisperer” and learn to decipher your dog’s or cat’s body language.

Certainly, not everyone can (or should) have a pet.  However, this doesn’t preclude your ability to contribute to enriching the lives of domestic animals.  If you choose not to share your home with a pet, please consider making a donation to a local or national animal welfare organization.  There are several listed at the end of this article.

I hope you have purr-fectly enjoyed this blog, and that I haven’t driven you barking mad.  (OK, y’all know I can’t make it through a blog without at least one pun, right?)

 

Local resources:

• Happy Tales Humane Shelter
  4001 Hughes Crossing, Suite 161, Franklin TN
  615-261-7387
  “Happy Tales Humane is a privately funded no-kill animal shelter.  We envision a world where every companion animal is loved, wanted, and nurtured. Happy Tales is committed to our mission of providing human, no-kill options for homeless and neglected animals in Middle Tennessee.”
• Snooty Giggles Dog Rescue
  www.snootygiggles.com  
  SGDR began when founder Shawn South-Aswad and her husband began taking in a few dogs who needed a place to stay until they could find their own home. As time passed, they developed an affinity for “senior” and medical needs dogs that were being overlooked by the general rescue population. SGDR has now grown into a foster team of more than 50 families who open their homes and hearts to these amazing dogs and foster them until the perfect match of a forever home is found.
• Williamson County Animal Center
  106 Claude Yates Drive, Franklin TN
  615-790-5590
  www.adoptwcac.org
  The Williamson County Animal Center is a public open-intake shelter serving the citizens of Williamson County, Tennessee. The shelter is a county tax-funded agency caring for domestic animals, and enjoys the distinction of being a 2nd place winner in the 2014 ASCPA Rachael Ray Challenge.

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As always, the opinions and viewpoints expressed here belong solely to the author, who is owned by 4 cats (Roxie, Pearl, Blackie Lawless aka Boo, and Jack Bauer), a betta fish named Swimmy Hendrix, and a leopard gecko who goes by the name Charmian, which means “little joy.”  No animals were harmed during the making of this blog.