Beyond Food And Shelter

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Issue # 121-January/February 1990

PET CONCERNS

Responsible pet ownership earns great rewards.

THE MOMENT YOU TAKE A PET INTO your home, you become responsible for its needs. Most pet owners do a decent job of providing the essentials-food and shelter, and medical care when their animals are sick or injured. But all too often, other responsibilities are overlooked.

Social Training

Surveys show that a majority of dog owners report behavior problems in their pets and that fully 40% of all dog owners are dissatisfied with the way their canine chums behave.

In many cases, that dissatisfaction is the result of unrealistic expectations from the outset. I tell my clients that when they opt to have a dog around the house, they've essentially decided to take in the equivalent of a permanent two-year-old child terror. I advise them to take a good, hard look at a "normal" two-year-olds personality and realize that most dogs will stay at that intense level of erratic, get-into-trouble behavior and will retain the joyous attitude of "I think I'll do something stupid today because it's so much fun," for the better part of their lives. Most dogs require just as much time, patience, and training as a toddler.

Likewise, it's important to realize that most of what we humans consider proper pet behavior is entirely contrary to an animal's natural urges. No biting allowed. No leaving a mess in the yard or playground for the kids to step in. No barking at all hours (or any hours, for that matter). No chasing the neighbors' cows or cats. And no raiding the neighbors' bird feeders.

Those are a lot of Thou shalt nots. And each addresses the sort of behavior that's disturbing and upsetting to our natural order but virtually instinctive to animals. Nothing is more natural to a critter than squatting wherever and whenever the urge strikes. Like a bear in the woods. Dogs bark for fun, defense, and out of fear or excitement. Likewise for biting. And, certainly, catching birds is to a cat much more natural than eating from a bowl.