Great Activities For You and Your Pet

To better understand your pet's view of the world, photograph or draw a room in the house from the pet's point of view.

On individual note cards, write down what your pet expects of the family. Then create similar cards listing what each family member expects of your pet. Build a chart or graph to compare the expectations of the pet to the expectations of the family.

A "pet peeve" is a small behavior that annoys in a big way. With a high energy pet, you can get quite peeved…and it requires patience to respond appropriately. Test your patience… draw tournament brackets for this challenge. On the top line of each bracket, list a behavior of your pet that is frustrating. On the bottom line of each bracket, put your own name. Observe your pet closely and see if you can identify what your pet is really trying to communicate with the annoying behavior. Is it "I want your attention?" or "I do not feel well?" or "I need to go outside?" Design ways to address the need rather than overreact to the behavior. Each time you see a behavior on the tourney bracket, and are able to respond with patience… mark yourself the winner. Continue to take on the challenge in each bracket, until you win them all. When all the brackets list you as the winner… both you and your pet WIN.

Connect with a local Senior Center and ask about taking your pet in to visit residents.