Pets and Your Emotions
If you are a dog or cat owner, you have no doubt observed that your dog or cat can tune into your emotional state. Now there is mounting scientific evidence that supports what we as pet owners already know. We still don’t fully understand how they read our emotions but we know that they do. Researchers believe that pets can read and process visual, voice, and sounds ques and maybe scents to determine our emotional states. I believe it goes far deeper than just physical senses. As pet-sitters, who are being relied on to take care of pets while the owner is away, this is vital information.
Imagine this situation. You are walking up to a house at night to look after a couple of Rottweilers that you met once a few months back. As you approach the front door you realize that the house is completely dark inside and you can hear the dogs barking and growling. You freeze for just a second trying to recall where light switches might be and remember the dog’s names. The dogs are right at the front door. Here’s a question for you…would you be able to walk right in the front door as if you owned the place look after the Rottweilers?
Often we are called upon to look after pets that we may have only met once or have not have met at all. This means that, to look after them we must be able to walk into an animal’s home as if we belong there. If you are afraid of a dog, the dog knows you are afraid and may behave as such. This is not a good situation when the dogs needs to trust to you in order to receive proper care and attention.
Whether you are considering pet sitting as a career or for extra money over the holidays, here are a few tips putting yourself and pets at ease when entering a home:
1. When we enter a home to look after pets our minds set, our attitude, our feelings (emotions) are that we belong in the home to love and care for the pets and the pets can sense that.
2. Call out to the pets as you enter. Make sure they know you are there so you don’t surprise them.
3. Smile and greet the pets as you would greet your own pets in your own home. If you are calm and relaxed the pets will be too.
Denver Metro Pet Sitters is a collective of professional pet sitters working together to make life better for our clients and their pets. By working together, we make life better for ourselves as well.
