Why We Celebrate National Pet Day

Why we celebrate it?

We love our pets, right?! National Pet Day is a holiday to show them a little extra love and joy, even more than we do daily. But more importantly, we celebrate this day to create more awareness of the challenges that shelter animals face. We want to encourage anyone looking for a furry or feathered friend to visit a shelter before going to the pet store.

Unfortunately, many pets end up in shelters for many different reasons. Their owner is moving and can’t take the friend with them. Our furry friends sometimes run away and end up in shelters. Or others just can’t handle the new puppy or kitty.

There are thousands of furry friends waiting for their new fur-ever home, so please be sure to visit your local shelters before going to the pet store.

Where/why did it begin?

National Pet Day was founded in 2006 by Colleen Paige. Colleen is an Animal Welfare Advocate as well as a Pet & Family Lifestyle Expert. She started the holiday to celebrate the joy pets bring to our lives while also educating the general public on the poor conditions and lives shelter animals live through. Since 2005, National Pet Day has been officially recognized as a holiday and has helped encourage future pet owners to consider shelter animals as their new companions. Here is a quote directly from Collen:

"I believe all animals are sentient beings that deserve our love and compassion...even not-so-cuddly animals like reptiles and rats. No animal should ever have to suffer, especially at the hand of humans. MILLIONS of unwanted animals perish every day due to just that....being "unwanted.” I'd like to ask animal lovers everywhere to pledge to give $5 a month to their favorite animal shelter or rescue to help support animals in need."

Can Your Pets “Read” You?

Do you ever get that feeling that your pet can gauge your mood, feel your emotions, and even possibly read your mind?

When you are feeling down, does your cat come to you with sad eyes? If you are upset, does your dog try to snuggle with you? When you are happy and excited, is your dog happy and excited too?

Here is an excellent article from Jo Maldonado/Animal reader:

“Recently I was giving a demonstration on how our energy affects dogs at an event. From a crowd of people I asked for three volunteers that were having a challenge with their dogs on a leash. One dog in particular was jumping excitedly and barking continuously. I also asked for a group of observers to watch the people and their dogs carefully. My point was to prove to them, that if they were calm, and centered, that energy would travel down their leash to their dog and their dog would immediately respond by quieting down. Through hypnosis in a quick few minutes I led the volunteers into an altered state, suggesting that they all become “calm”. Two of the volunteers immediately responded. One had her eyes closed but remained in a “guarded state”. The two dogs of the other volunteers, immediately laid down, and quieted. The dog of the lady who was on guard, also was on guard and stood at alert, although he was not jumping. As I brought everyone back to the present instructing them to open their eyes, the woman who had the barking dog immediately nervously shot her eyes over to the crowd on the right. Her dog instantly mirrored her actions and began jumping and barking in the same direction. The observers in the crowd all confirmed what I saw.”

Check out her video of this here: https://youtu.be/0JKgdBaJ5Ek.

“If you’re calm, your dog will be calm. If you are tense, your dog may be tense. And the biggest reward, if you remain balanced, IT’S ACTUALLY GOOD FOR YOU. Your energy directly affects all that is around you. Now imagine what you can do with your energy if you go to a party…but you may want to bring an animal along to help you, just in case you’re not aware of the energy you’re sending!”

Ways to Celebrate National Pet Day

Many pet parents celebrate this day in different ways. Here are the percentages of how some fur-parents celebrate this day:

#1 Give my pet a special treat (32%)

#2 Tell my pet "I love you" (19%)

#3 Buy or make a special gift for my pet (15%)

#4 Let my pet sleep in my bed with me (15%)

#5 My pet teaches me to be more patient (6%)

How will you be celebrating this day with your pet? Since it is on a Sunday this year, will you be going to the park with them? Taking them for a car ride? How about going out for ice cream? Be sure to love and hug your pet a little extra on this day.