Discussing What New Year’s Resolutions You Can Make To Help Your Pets Live A Longer, Healthier, And Happier Life
The new year is often seen as a chance for a fresh start. For many people, a long-standing new year’s tradition is creating new year’s resolutions. But, people often forget that they can establish new year’s resolutions for their pets too!
Since pets don’t understand the concept of new year’s resolutions, it’s up to the pet owners to create, implement, and maintain a pets’ new year’s resolutions. This article will discuss some great new year’s resolution ideas for your pets so they can live a healthier and happier life in 2024.
Why Make New Year’s Resolutions?
A new year’s resolution is essentially a promise to oneself to make positive changes toward self improvement. More often this includes accomplishing personal goals, continuing a good practice, or changing an undesired behavior.
New year’s resolutions are important because they inspire positive change. For most people, change can be difficult. Especially in the beginning. However, once you begin making positive changes, it’s much easier to keep them going. New year’s resolutions help us make that difficult first step toward improving ourselves and our behavior. Hopefully, one carries these resolutions with them for the rest of the year.
A happy new year’s cat
Pet Resolutions
While you are making new year’s resolutions for yourself, why not include your pets? Even our pets can use a fresh start sometimes! Part of being a responsible pet owner is giving them the best life possible. This includes setting personal health & wellness goals for them.
Here are just a few examples of new year’s resolutions for pets. But, remember that pets can’t meet these goals by themselves. Most of this responsibility falls on the pet owner. However, this can be a good thing as it reminds pet owners to meet their own goals too!
Routine Exercise
In order to stay happy and healthy, pets need exercise on a daily basis. This is especially true for dogs. That’s why we recommend taking your dog on walks everyday. Try walking your dog 3 to 4 times a day for about 15 to 30 minutes each. If that doesn’t work for your schedule, then at least 2 walks a day for about 30 minutes each.
Additionally, you should always take your dog’s age, breed, and environment into account when going for dog walks. The older a dog gets, the less agile they become. Be mindful of your dog’s limits if they are senior or close to being a senior. Also, be mindful about the temperature and weather before taking your dog for walks.
As for cats, the best way to provide them with exercise is through playtime. Cats love to play and it’s a great way to burn off energy and calories. We recommend spending 15 to 30 minutes a day playing with your cat. Try utilizing different types of toys and/or play areas that peak your cat’s interest.
A dog eating dinner
A Healthy Diet
A balanced, nutritional diet is essential for your pet’s overall health. Sadly, not all pets in America are getting a good diet. The Association for Pet Obesity Prevention reports that 59% of dogs and 61% of cats in the U.S. are overweight and/or obese. These are alarmingly high statistics that truly reflect the severity of the pet obesity problem in America.
Because of this, we recommend putting your pets on a healthier diet for 2024. If your pet is overweight and/or obese, consult with your veterinarian about creating a healthier diet for your furry friend. For a more in-depth look into dog food nutrition & diet, click here. For a more in-depth look into cat food nutrition & diet, click here. Additionally, try to cut back on the treats and always avoid giving your pets table scraps.
More Stimulation
While physical exercise is important, pets also need mental stimulation to live a healthy & fulfilling life. For dogs, daily walks provide great mental stimulation as this gives them a chance to see new things, smell new smells, and experience the world around them. We suggest regularly switching up your dog’s walking path and/or taking them to different parks or dog parks. A little change of scenery goes a long way!
Additionally, cats need stimulation too. Similar to exercise, the best way to mentally stimulate your cat is through playtime. Try using a variety of toys, play areas, and even catnip to engage your cat. Providing them with a cat tower or even a cardboard box house can provide some much needed stimulation. For a comprehensive list of different types of cat towers, click here. For some DIY cardboard cat house ideas, click here.
A professional dog walker
Looking For A Pet Sitter Or Dog Walker?
The best way to keep your pets happy, healthy, and sociable is to hire a pet sitter! But, don’t hire just anyone. Hire the professionals! Long Island Pet Services is the best place to turn to for professional, quality pet sitting services.
We offer a wide variety of services including dog walking, drop-in visits, overnight stays, pet taxi, and more! Click here to become a client today or give us a call at 516-247-6976. We look forward to hearing from you! Be sure to check out our social media pages too! Follow us on our Facebook, Instagram, and X!
