Owning a Pet and Your Health

Owning a pet is supposed to bring you a lot of joy by adding something to your life. And for most people, this is what having a pet does. But for others, owning a pet can have the opposite effect sometimes. In fact, it can downright make living in your home impossible if you aren't mentally prepared to have an additional burden or if you struggle with allergies.

If you live with someone and you are thinking of getting a pet or have wanted one for a very long time, make sure that you discuss it with the other person because owning a pet won't just be your responsibility; it will be theirs as well and they may not want to have to worry about taking care of anyone or anything else. For some people, their day-to-day schedules are so crazy and busy that owning a pet would be impossible. However, owning a pet is not something to be taken lightly. In fact, it is very similar to adopting a child; it's a huge responsibility because you are agreeing to take care of another life- a life that is almost completely dependent on you to take care of it when it is sick and to keep it fed and comfortable.

Another thing that people fail to realize when owning a pet is the expense. Depending on the type of pet that you get as well as the kind of appetite that it has, you may find yourself in the grocery store more often than you would like as you try to pick out food and toys, etc. For example, if you adopt a cat, you will need to purchase a litter box, some kitty litter, a couple of toys, perhaps a scratching post (although seldom do they ever use it), cat food and two bowls (one for water and one for food). Additionally, when you take your cat to the vet for the first time, you will have to pay a basic fee for the visit in addition to any other fees that you incur for vaccinations, flea and tick medications as well as any other predisposed conditions that your feline friend might have.

Another way that animals become a huge responsibility for people is that it ties humans down in a sense. For example, if you want to travel out of the country or out of town, it can sometimes be a pain to find an airline that will allow you to take on pets. Also, you will definitely be looking at spending some extra cash either way because airlines charge you extra for having an animal on board a plane, kennels will charge you a fee for watching after your pet and if you are bringing your pet with you to an apartment complex to live, expect to pay.

In order to live peacefully with an animal in your home, all people who live in the home must first agree that they want to keep the animal and that they will each take on their responsibility to care for it. Part of the reason that many parents are reluctant to get pets for their children is because they know that after a short while, the child may become bored with having a pet and the parent will be totally responsible for cleaning up after it.

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