National Pet Month
April is the month for celebrating the bond between humans and their pets and for you to appreciate the joy and love your pets bring into your lives. Pets play a significant role in your lives and can offer companionship, love and even improve your mental health and physical well-being.
Your pet can brighten up the darkest of days just by looking at you. They are not judgmental, don’t care what you look like and are always there for you.
Healthy pets mean healthy people
If you have a dog, they need walking every day which means you need to walk as well. If the weather is wet and cold you would most probably talk yourself out of going out, but with having a dog, you have to go out and this will make you feel better, and help to kick start a healthy lifestyle.
It’s not just the walks with your pet that gets you moving, any animal that you own depends on you to meet their welfare needs including keeping them and the home environment clean and well looked after. The responsibility of owning a pet helps your physical and mental health.
Pets can help with loneliness
Pets can help you feel less lonely and vulnerable as for some owners a pet is their only family and companion. You will never be lonely again with a cat as they love to wake you up in the night when they decide they are bored or hungry.
Meeting new people
Pets are a great way of meeting new people, as they are more likely to speak to you if you have a dog in tow. If you feel nervous meeting new people, there will be groups in your area to join like training classes and dog walking groups. This will provide you with the chance to meet like-minded people and will build your confidence.
Talking to fellow cat lovers provides an easy conversation starter.
Pets can be more than just pets
Animals can support us in so many ways. Guide dogs are a crucial lifeline for those who have lost their sight. Pets help people with mental and physical health conditions such as hearing loss or epilepsy. They can also help with alerting their owners to impending seizures, or when the doorbell rings. These animals bring so much to their owner’s lives.
Additional information can be found at the following:
National Pet Month - promoting responsible pet ownership across the UK