In Honor Of National Pet Day: 5 Tips For Choosing The RIGHT Pet For Your Family

It's National Pet Day and while everyone is focusing, rightly so, on pet adoptions, the first thing you REALLY need to consider when thinking about a pet is:

HOW DO YOU FIND THE RIGHT PET? 

We wanted a dog, but a cat fits our lifestyle better.

Here are some tips:

1. Consider the time you have to devote to and take care of a pet.  Are both adults working? Are the kids old enough to responsibly care for one? This will help you determine if you need a low-maintenance animal (like a fish or cat) or can handle one that requires more care (like dogs or large birds).
   
   
2. Think about health issues. Sure, you might want a rabbit, but if someone in the family is allergic, you can rule that one out. 
   
   
3. Take into account where you live. Do you live in a high-rise in the city or have you got some land. You don't want to cram a large dog into small living quarters. Do you live in condo where pets may be frowned upon? 
   
   
4. Discuss any fears family members might have. I love snakes but am afraid of the live crickets I'd have to feed them, plus my husband fears these reptiles, so snakes are not welcome in my home.
   
   

5. 

   LOVE guinea pigs, but I'm allergic.  No piggies for us.

   Hold a family meeting to discuss the plan, stressing that finding the RIGHT pet can take quite a bit of time.  This is not a decision to be made lightly.  Plan on visiting a number of pet stores and/or shelters to find the right fit for your family.   
   
   
   
   
   
   

Once you think you've narrowed down the type of pet you want, research it, speak with people who have that pet, grill the salespeople at your local pet store (if they carry that animal) or at your local shelter.

It's better to know as much as you can, so you make the RIGHT decision.

What kind of pet do YOU have?  And if you don't, what kind would you like if you could have ANY animal?

I would LOVE a hedgehog!

10 Signs That Spring IS Coming

I shoveled snow this morning...again...following another school Snow Day yesterday. New Jersey is a constant grey, my mood is a constantly sour, and when I asked a therapist friend how her patients who from suffer depression are doing, she said,

 “Nobody gets better in a Winter like this.” 

Still, with Daylight Savings Time robbing me of an hour of sleep (grrrrrr.....) I have to believe that Spring is just around the bend. And, after all, the “official” first day of Spring is coming on March 20^th. 

So here are 10 signs that the cold and snow will soon be a memory:

1. There are buds on the trees. Really. Look at the ends of branches and you'll see the teeniest little buds growing.
   
   
   
   
2. More birds are about. I haven't spotted the elusive Robin Red Breast yet, but based on the chattering my cat is doing in the window, there are a lot more of our feathered friends out there.
   
   
   
   
3. The numerous emails I'm getting reminding me to join the Town Pool.
   
   
    
   
4. The numerous reminders I'm getting to send the kids to Camp.
   
   
   
   
5. Days are getting longer so I'm looking at snow much longer. Grrrrr....
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
6. The emergence of jelly beans and other Easter goodies which must be hoarded the rest of the year.
   
   
   
   
7. Spring/Summer clothes in the stores. Okay, so they've been there since October, but now I'm actually thinking about wearing them.
   
   
   
   
8. People who only wear pants (as opposed to shorts) on the the coldest days of the year are back in shorts. They know something we don't know.
   
   
   
   
9. The sound of woodpeckers drumming. Woodpeckers drum in early spring as both a territorial announcement and as a part of spring courtship. You may hear them on chimney flues and drainpipes.
   
   
   
   
10. Winter drinks containing gingerbread and pumpkin are fading, to be replaced by ones containing coconut and pineapple. Yum!!!!

As I look over my stomach past the 10 pounds I've gained from stress and boredom eating this Winter, I can't wait until the trail at the local park has been plowed and I can again enjoy my walks around the lake. I'm ready to say “good-bye” to my comforting fireplace and put the heavy blankets away. I'm hopeful that the pollen won't be too bad this Spring so that my daughter and I won't suffer too much. And I'm looking forward to seeing the face of that first crocus pop up from the ground. You'll hear a “whoop” of joy from here, in the Garden State. 

For me, Spring can't come soon enough!