April has more pet awareness events than any other time of year. It is the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ASPCA)’s official Prevention to Cruelty Animals month. American Red Cross has April as the Pet First Aid Awareness month, it is the Prevention of Lyme Disease in Dogs month, national Heartworm awareness month, national Dog Bite Prevention week (April 9-15), national Animal Control Officer appreciation week (April 10-16), national Pet Day (April 11) and national Pet ID week (April 16-22). Why do we care so much about animals to give them so much attention this month?
There are 77.8 million dogs and 85.8 million cats in our homes today according to the Humane Society. 79.7 million American homes own a pet, which is 65% of households. 42% of us own more than one pet. 34% of dogs are purchased directly from a breeder, 4% are bought from pet stores, 6% are taken in as strays, 20% come from relatives and friends and 37% are adopted from shelters. Only 3% of cats come from breeders, 2% from pet stores, 25% are taken in as strays, 25% from relatives and friends and 45% of cats are adopted from shelters.
Web MD tells us that pets are natural mood enhancers where in only a few minutes with a dog, cat or watching fish swim, we become less anxious and less stressed. Pets help keep blood pressure in check in adults, and blood pressure of children with hypertension decreases while petting their dog. Playing and petting with an animal increases levels of serotonin and dopamine (nerve transmitters known to have calming effects) and these transmitters help reduce not only depression, but stress. If you own a dog, you tend to be more physically active, and being forced to walk your dog daily may be one of the main reasons animals help with our heart and stress. Dog owners walk 300 minutes a week compared to 168 minutes for non-pet owners, while walking a dog leads to a 28% increase in walking speed. Web MD says that when children grow up in a home with a dog or cat, they are 33% less likely to develop allergies, and the same is true for kids living on a farm with large animals. So maybe pets are truly the miracle drug we have been waiting for!
We know the medical reasons for a pet, but what about the psychological advantages. The American Psychological Association published a study done at Miami University of Ohio and St. Louis University where they concluded that people with pets were actually closer to other important people in their lives and received more support, not less from their friends and family. The study concluded that pets complement other forms of social support rather than compete with them, indicating there was no evidence that relationships with pets came at the expense of relationships with other people. The study also concluded that owning a pet can teach children valuable life lessons. Kids with dogs have a higher level of empathy and self-esteem, and learning to take care of an animal teaches the value of routine and good habits. Being outside in a public setting with your animal increases social interaction, because pets are great icebreakers and can help ease people out of social isolation and shyness.
But with all of these reasons to own a pet, we still have homeless animals, and what happens to these poor creatures? There are 13,600 community animal shelters across the USA. Entering these shelters each year are 7.3 million animals – 3.9 million dogs and 3.4 million cats. 3 million of these animals are euthanized each year and 4.3 million are adopted or returned to their owners.
Last year according to the pet industry, Americans spent $62.75 billion on their pets - $24 billion on food, $15 billion on medicine and supplies, $16 billion on Veterinary Care, $2 billion to buy animals and $6 billion on grooming, boarding training, pet sitting, pet exercise and pet funerals. Considering that the total USA sales in cleaning supplies is a $61 billion market and the total USA sales in the heavily advertised cosmetic market is $62 billion, pets are a huge industry in this country. The toy industry’s volume was $26 billion last year. Amazing that Americans are spending twice as much on our pets than we spend on our kids…
Even though April is the biggest month in honoring our pets, there is no celebration for the 3 million animals America euthanizes each year. We as taxpayers spend $2 billion annually to round up, house and dispose of homeless animals, but this is not enough to keep our animal shelters running in a humane manner. You would think that such a large profitable industry like the pet industry would step in to rescue these shelters and these poor animals in need, but we have not seen that happen as their sales and profits increase every year. It falls back on all of us to have the heart to help defenseless animals that can’t speak for themselves. For anyone who has ever looked into the eyes of their pet and felt that unconditional love looking back, we cannot continue letting animal shelters go underfunded and undermanned. All of us need to reach deep into our pockets to help these shelters find homes for these innocent animals; and if we don’t have the dollars to help, we should be volunteering to feed, walk, bathe and play with these ignored animals at the shelters. Donate or volunteer at the American Humane Association, the ASPCA, The Humane Society, or the Best Friends Animal Society. And at DollarDays, we also want to help animal shelters stretch their dollars to help more of our pets, so nominate your favorite animal shelter here this month to win one of our $500 shopping sprees.
Pets provide healing benefits for many of life’s invisible scars. They help us emotionally and socially. The unconditional love pets give us transcends work issues, family conflicts, death and divorce. Our pets don’t care if you can read or not, they don’t care about the color of your skin or if you are missing a limb. So during this month long celebration honoring our best friends, do the right thing. Donate to help these shelters and caring organizations ease the burden for these defenseless animals. Volunteer at your local shelter to help these animals cope with being alone. None of us want to be alone; and your simple act of kindness goes a long way for animals who can’t speak for themselves.