I love my Roo. She is loving
and loyal, and cute as can be! Roo is an Australian cattle dog mix; I’m not
certain what she’s mixed with. She’s a rescue dog, and when she came to us, she
was wild as a dingo. Still a puppy back then, she chewed up wash cloths, socks,
and anything else she could find. She swallowed my engagement ring once, but
everything came out just fine in the end (if you know what I mean *wink*).
My husband and I debated
about keeping Roo; she made more than her fair share of messes back then. But
in the end, we realized that no one would tolerate her dingo-of-a-dog ways with
more patience than we could. So she found a home with us… and she quickly
became a part of our family. That was nearly a dozen years ago. She’s slowed
down a lot since then, and I can’t believe I ever thought about not keeping
her. I know she benefits us in many ways. The love she brings to my heart tells
me that.
Here are a few more benefits
of owning a pet:
Lowers Blood Pressure – The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) has reported
that having a pet has the potential to lower blood pressure, especially for
hypertensive or high-risk patients.
Eases Pain –
A study from Loyola
University
Lowers Cholesterol – The CDC says that pet owners—especially men—have lower cholesterol
than those who don’t have pets. This is probably because owning a pet means
more physical exercise. Dogs do need to be walked!
Childhood Development – Kids benefit in many ways when they grow up in a
pet-owning household. When children are attached to a pet, they learn to
express themselves and they relate better to others. Children can learn
responsibility when they’re put in charge of feeding the family pet (with lots
of guidance, of course). Holding and petting an animal can be calming for
children and adults, alike.
Here’s a picture of my Roo.
Do you have a pet in your house? How do you benefit from having a pet in your
family?
~ * ~
USA Today Bestselling Author
Donna Fasano has written over 30 romance and women’s fiction novels. Her books
have won awards and have sold 4 million copies worldwide. Her work is available
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readers.
Excellent post, Donna. My family loves our little shih tzu dog, Henry. I'll post a pic tomorrow for the 4th. :)
ReplyDeleteJosie, I can't wait to see a picture of Henry! :)
DeleteThanks for sharing the story of your pet. We had a multitude of pets while our kids were young. Four dogs, a half dozen cats, hamster, fish. Now we are without pets because we are empty nesters and travel a lot. We don't have to worry about what is going on with our pet while we are gone.
ReplyDeleteI can understand where you're coming from, Merrillee. We don't do much traveling without Roo because I don't trust anyone to take care of her.
DeleteRoo is adorable. I adopted my cat when he was 8 years old. He had been abandoned by his owners and I'll never understand why because he's such a joy. He has quite a personality.
ReplyDeleteDogs offer more than just companionship. If you’ve got a furry friend already, you likely have quite a few reasons to thank your dog. My mom always felt safer in the house when we had a dog. She could be home by herself but would know if someone was near the house because of the dog. She said she always felt safer.
ReplyDeleteWhen it comes to pet ownership, there are a number of proven health benefits for people, including physical, mental and emotional improvements, from enhancing social skills to decreasing a person's risk of heart attack.
ReplyDelete