How Important Are Pets To Your Health?

[shivadance]

Walrus - Shogun is gorgeous!! Wow. I can handle rotties but Akita's are too big for me. I've only been a dog person for 3 years now. Working my way up the sizes. :-)

Deliza - Moxie's underbite is soo cute! And in that pic you can see a tuft of fur standing up in back which adds to the 'don't mess with me' image.

[Kelly79]

I do love rotties, you have such a handsome boy. My girl loves to play with the big, powerfull breeds at the dog park. We've looked at a couple rotties at the shelter. We're still waiting to find a senior male dog one with the right chemistry for her (and cute factor for us).

There are plenty of good Rotties in the shelters. My dog's not playful but he sure loves to cuddle me.

[beckah54]

I love all three of my dogs. My daughter thinks I'm nuts to have so many but I love each one differently.
The fact is that they love me unconditionally all the time. They're always happy and excited when I come in the door, because to them I am the most important thing in their lives and they in mine.
I love my family but my daughter is grown and has a family of her own. I don't get to spend so much time with her. These dogs are my kids now.
I never had a pet as a child, but I've surely made up for it now and it's been a wonderful experience.

[shivadance]

I never had a pet as a child, but I've surely made up for it now and it's been a wonderful experience.

I never had a pet as a child either, my mom was alergic to everything. I never even thought of myself as a dog person even tho I love animals. My brother (who I live with) finally bought a house about 4.5 yrs ago and after a year talked to me about getting a dog. I was reluctant but didn't want to deny him. Boy, I didn't know how great it could be. Now I want more. We're looking.

[Mary Kay]

Do you guys talk to your animals like they are people? I do..I don't really expect an answer but sometimes I get one. My cats are very vocal and it sounds like words sometimes. My girl cat makes a sound like "thank you" if you said it under water when I feed her. My husband thought I was nuts until he heard her do it!
The dog gets a silly look on her face when we chat and I wish I could read dog kisses and tail wags. She loves it when we chat. German shepards smile..looks a bit like "I am going to eat your face off"..but it's accompanied with a tail wag that cleans off the coffee table.

[Kelly79]

Do you guys talk to your animals like they are people? I do..I don't really expect an answer but sometimes I get one. My cats are very vocal and it sounds like words sometimes. My girl cat makes a sound like "thank you" if you said it under water when I feed her. My husband thought I was nuts until he heard her do it!
The dog gets a silly look on her face when we chat and I wish I could read dog kisses and tail wags. She loves it when we chat. German shepards smile..looks a bit like "I am going to eat your face off"..but it's accompanied with a tail wag that cleans off the coffee table.

I do and always have but so does my mom. Rottie's smiles are terrifying to the uninitiated, so are their conversational grumbles. I find them adorable though. My baby gets so excited when the postman comes he would go thought he screen if there weren't metal at the bottom, not pissed, I think he's just wondering when one of the packages will be for him lol.

[shivadance]

Yeah, sometimes I talk baby talk and other times I talk to her normal like she can understand me. I really am trying to pick up on visual cues but I have a lot of learning to do. I do believe that all animals communicate, we just need to decipher what they are saying. A bark, a nip, a bite... they all mean something and it's not always agression. So I keep reading and try to learn more. Usually I just think my dog is saying, "I want food."

[Kelly79]

Yeah, sometimes I talk baby talk and other times I talk to her normal like she can understand me. I really am trying to pick up on visual cues but I have a lot of learning to do. I do believe that all animals communicate, we just need to decipher what they are saying. A bark, a nip, a bite... they all mean something and it's not always agression. So I keep reading and try to learn more. Usually I just think my dog is saying, "I want food."

my big baby is a piggy in disguise he is usually saying feed me I think I'm starving lol. When a dog smells food they begin to salivate which makes them hungry whether their stomachs are full or not; it's a holdover from wilder times when they were opportunistic eaters, so if there is food they can smell they usually are saying give me food cause they genuinely think that they are hungry.

[shivadance]

my big baby is a piggy in disguise he is usually saying feed me I think I'm starving lol. When a dog smells food they begin to salivate which makes them hungry whether their stomachs are full or not; it's a holdover from wilder times when they were opportunistic eaters, so if there is food they can smell they usually are saying give me food cause they genuinely think that they are hungry.

I knew it had to be something! She is prone to gaining weight so we have to be careful. We just got her extra 5lbs off, we're not letting it get back on! She only gets extra food/treats when she gets extra exercise like running at the dog park.

[Kelly79]

I knew it had to be something! She is prone to gaining weight so we have to be careful. We just got her extra 5lbs off, we're not letting it get back on! She only gets extra food/treats when she gets extra exercise like running at the dog park.

yeah my boy's 10-15 lbs overweight, but with all the heat here he lacks the energy to play; and he doesn't run around at the dog park, he patrols and paces smelling everything and then makes the rounds for free loves from all the peoples.