Have You Got Too Much Love For Your Pet?
I was in the car, coming home from picking my mum and her friend up from the airport (they had been on holiday for a week) and my mum’s friend said, “Oh, I can’t wait to see Tilly!”
You’d have thought that maybe she was talking about one of her two daughters, or maybe that it was a pet name for her husband. No. It’s her dog.
Everyone knows that affection for your family pets runs deep, but a recent survey has shown that a third of married women prefer to talk to their pets than their husbands.
Associated Press and Petside.com recently surveyed pet owners and found that 33 per cent of married woman believe their furry friends are better listeners than their husbands.
However, it’s not only women who would rather confine in their pets. Twenty four per cent of husbands believe that their pets are better listeners than their wives.
Worryingly, if you ask me, 8 per cent of pet owners would turn to their pet to talk through their personal problems with.
I’m not anti-pet or anything, I have a lovely rabbit named Lana and as much as I do love her dearly, I’m not about to sit and talk to her for hours on end because, like all pets she doesn’t talk. I know, unbelievable, but sadly, the truth.
Yes, I do talk at her occasionally, but I wouldn’t say she’s a good listener. She ‘listens’ because what choice does she have?
All pets are technically ‘listening’ but that doesn’t mean they understand, sympathise or empathise, it’s like when they bark/meow at you. You can hear it, you’re listening but you’ve not a clue what they’re trying to communicate.
There’s also the food factor. Do you think they’d love you half as much if you didn’t feed them and give their belly a little rub afterwards? Certainly food for thought.
Cara Mason @Cara_FAM