National Pet Month is a celebration of the benefits pets bring to the lives of their owners. It started over twenty years ago in England and has five specific goals:
- Promote the benefits of Pet Ownership: Pets reduce stress by providing unconditional love and companionship. To learn more about how pets can enhance your life go to: http://stress.about.com/od/lowstresslifestyle/a/petsandstress.htm
- Support pet adoption: Pets are not possessions, they are family members. If you are interested in expanding your family go to the link below to see which pet is a perfect match for you. http://vetmedicine.about.com/od/petadoption/a/OnlineAdoption.htm
- Promote responsible pet ownership: The health of your pet is critical to their happiness. Are they eating right and getting enough exercise? Are there shots up to date? Do you know how to handle a pet emergency? Who will care for your pet when you are out of town? Visit the websites below for more information on these topics: Pet First Aid: http://vetmedicine.about.com/cs/diseasesall/a/farnfirstaidtip.htm Pet Sitter: http://vetmedicine.about.com/od/veterinaryqa/a/petcaretaker.htm
- Increase public awareness of services available from professionals who work with animals: Veterinarians perform a valuable service – keeping your pet healthy. Give them the recognition they deserve. But don’t forget the groomers, trainers and dog walkers. The old saying rings true -it takes a village to raise a pet. For a question and answer session about Veterinary Medicine go to: http://vetmedicine.about.com/od/veterinaryqa/
- Raise awareness of the role, value and contribution to society of service animals: Service animals are trained to provide assistance to individuals with disabilities. Although all types of animals can help humans; dogs, miniature horses and birds are the most common. Read the article Creature Comforts for inspiring stories about service animals. Creature Comforts: http://www.nytimes.com/2009/01/04/magazine/04Creatures-t.html?_r=3&sq=horse%20riedel&st=cse&scp=1&pagewanted=all&
May challenge: “walk your dogs”
Your challenge for May is to get outside and walk, with or without a fury friend. Track the number of days you walked 30 minutes or more in May and send your monthly total to mtalicska@nmc.edu by June 5th. The person with the greatest number of days will win a local merchant gift card. All others will be entered in a random drawing. Got sneakers? – get movin!
