Are you a pet pawrent or a pet owner? Some people don’t like the terms Dog Mom, Dog Dad, Furkid or Furbaby. Some people even believe doggos should sleep outside…the horror. As a true pet pawrent you already know in your heart that you are mom or dad to a furball, but just for fun, and a bit of confirmation, let’s look at 12 ways you know that you are a pet pawrent.
Your camera roll is full of photos of your furbaby
All moms love taking photos of their babies and sharing them with anyone willing to have a look. As a dog mom, your phone’s camera roll usually has more photos of your furkid/s than of anyone else in your life. You also tend to, proudly, show these photos of your furkid/s to people you just met, and when your storage is full you would rather delete an app than even think of deleting a photo of your furbaby.
You have the ability to cook in a kitchen with a floor covered in furbabies
Dog moms have the amazing ability to cook or bake in a kitchen while standing wide-legged over furkids, and flawlessly move around the kitchen without stepping on any furbabies, like a perfectly choreographed dance. On the odd occasion that a dog mom is off her game and accidentally steps on a furkid, she apologizes profusely and pleads for the furkid’s forgiveness.
You rock dog hair like a fashion accessory
Let’s face it, all dogs shed. Some just do it with more exuberance than others. Yes, we can use de-shedding tools and lint rollers, but sometimes you just have to rock the dog hair like the proud dog mama you are.
You own at least one item that says dog mom/dad
Whether your collection started with a coffee mug that declares your status as dog mom or a top or cap that shows your love for your furbabies, a surefire way to spot a pet pawrent is the fact that we all own at least one item that will tell you this. We can be spotted on a walk or at the gym with our dog mom/dad water bottles, or on a casual day out with our dog mom/dad clothing on. We also love to buy our own parents pet grandpawrent gear.
You tell your furkid you love him/her before you leave the house
Any time you leave the house (and occasionally when you just leave the room) you have to tell your furkid/s exactly how much you love him/her. This usually also includes telling him/her that you “will be back soon”, that you “will miss him/her”, and that you are sorry for leaving.
You turn on the TV or radio when your furkid is home alone
You already feel guilty that you are leaving your furkid/s at home and cannot imagine having them sitting alone in a quiet house so you switch on the TV or radio before you leave. Some dog moms even get specific calming music for dogs and play that for their furbabies when they go out.
Your furkid and social gatherings
Let’s be honest, if our furkids are not invited we might “not be able to” attend your party and in the event that we do, we might just have to leave early to get home to our furbabies.
You have a birthday celebration for your furkid/s every year
Birthdays should be celebrated and dog birthdays are no different. It is a wonderful opportunity to celebrate our loved ones, show them love, and spoil them. So what about rescued furkids, you say? Well, that is what Gotcha Days are for 🙂
Whether you are hosting a full-on birthday party with invitations, décor, party packs, etc. or you are just having some family or friends over for some birthday cake, your furkid’s birthday needs to be celebrated. Birthdays also mean gifts, and what better way to spoil your furkiddos than by showering them with gifts. FYI: this also applies to Christmas and any other celebration where gift-giving is traditional.
Your furkids respond to multiple nicknames
Dog moms tend to talk to their furkids A LOT. If you are like me, it is a constant conversation, which includes little songs and random noises 🙂 This causes us to call our furkids by any term of endearment that pops into our heads and they respond to all of them.
You spend more on your furkid than on yourself
As mentioned earlier, gift-giving is a thing. Birthdays, Halloween, Christmas, Hannukah, whatever celebration we can find, we will give our furbabies gifts. We will also take photos of them while their gifts are being opened, as moms do. Apart from “official” gifts, we also love spoiling our furbabies as much as our budgets allow, and would rather buy something for our furbaby than buy something for ourselves.
When all you want is your dog
There comes a time in every dog mom’s life when she is sad about something and instead of turning to another human person, all she wants to do is go home and hug her dog. Sometimes just being with your furkid and confiding in him/her about whatever is wrong, is all you need.
Your plans always include your furkid/s
Your furkid is a priority for you and you, therefore, take him/her into account in all your decisions. When you are going on vacation, you first search for pet-friendly accommodation. When going out for lunch, you search for pet-friendly restaurants. When you need to move to a new house, you first check if it is pet-friendly and then you check how big the garden is.
How many of these signs do you display? Are there any that we missed? Let me know in a comment below.