How your dog can get you through the pandemic
Pandemics can be bleak times indeed, but your dog can get you through it all.
Whether you’re an owner or an owner-to-be, you are never truly alone once they become part of your family. It’s been proven already that your bond with your loveable canine can trigger the same neural pathways to the parent-baby bond, so they can really do a lot for you. From spurring you to improve parts of your life you gave up on, or even just to give yourself a chance – they provide a kind of therapy money can’t buy.
Treat your new family member to a healthy and delicious diet with the highest quality grain-free UK-made dog food available! To ensure the health of your new furry friend, consider mitigating out-of-pocket medical expenses with dog health insurance for your pet. He or she will love you for it!
With this positive outlook in mind, let’s look at all the various ways your dog can get you through the pandemic!
Perspective
One of the most important things your dog can offer is true perspective.
Think about their life, and the types of things they enjoy. They take great pleasure in leisurely walks, in eating certain foods, and they have zero regard for anything they don’t like and hold no grudges. While part of this is down to the limitations of their understanding, it’s still a great way to live your life – moving forward, focusing on what you love, and enjoying every second of your downtime.
During a pandemic, it can feel like your life is either at risk or getting away from you. It’s isolating, it’s lonely, and these are all very real things to understandably be concerned about. However, your dog can lead by example here, teaching you to take things one day at a time, and to appreciate the simplest of pleasures. You shouldn’t adopt their lifestyle, but you can definitely cherry pick the better parts!
Under this spell, you can find that some of those bigger problems in your head become more digestible. You’ll sail over every hurdle in your path, and no longer sweat the small stuff when it comes your way. Ultimately, while you won’t forget the heavy toll of the pandemic, you might better learn to exist alongside it.
Happiness
Providing plenty of comfort, cuddles, and memorable moments, dogs are forever keen to love you right back.
Hence why they’re such a dependable companion during the pandemic period. They’re blessed with being ignorant to what’s going on outside, but that doesn’t mean they can’t sense when you’re down and defeated. They’ll be there for you through it all.
Often, a happy dog is a happy owner, as their sheer joy at the little things becomes infectious. Wagging tails, sleeping on your lap, leaping up to lick you, or happy just have you in sight – it’s enough to flatter anybody! They don’t judge or mislead you, they’re simply good, and pure in their intentions at every turn. Your dog is your rock, the one true friend you can rely on in the toughest of times.
Dogs are also pack animals, which means they stay infinitely loyal to their own. They will miss you when you’re gone and depend on you for entertainment and almost everything else too. In the end, it’s nice to feel needed, particularly in times where you can feel invisible and worthless.
Motivation
Looking after your pooch isn’t something you can do one day and leave the next.
To do be a great pet owner, you need to establish a routine wherein you walk, feed, and sometimes even groom your best buddy. None of these things can be put off for too long, and better yet, none of these things are too taxing in terms of effort and time required, either.
You are arguably a better person because of your dog, as they make you more nurturing and responsible. For example, you will want to feed them the best dog food on the market from companies like Bella and Duke. Dogs cannot fully digest dog foods that feature grains (and there are many), so the alternative is much healthier for them in the long run. Bottom line, you’ll go the extra mile for your pooch, even on the difficult days.
When you’re down in the dumps, your levels of motivation can rapidly dissipate. However, having a dog will enable you to get up in the mornings, to keep busy, and to even just have purpose. Purpose is powerful, and it’s the first step you need to conquer before living your life to its fullest.
Exercise
As your motivation builds, so too will your appetite for things like exercise!
Recently, it was reported that a ‘jog with a dog’ was the latest fitness craze to sweep the nation. Why not join in? It all starts with loving your natural surroundings, as the typical spaces to walk dogs are charming woodlands and serene, rolling hills. Eventually though, you’ll want to turn things up a notch, and you and your dog can jog alongside one another and explore any place you want.
The opportunities for exercise needn’t be confined to local areas either when the pandemic has passed. The Peak District, The Lake District, and any other national park you can think of are all on the table for future endeavours. Take a road trip with your best friend, get exploring, and build your health and fitness alongside. The results from these efforts can be truly transformative.
You needn’t put the pedal to the metal, either. Even just those simple four daily walks are enough to keep you nice and healthy. Any amount of exercise is an achievement, so pace yourself at your own leisure. The point is that you have a number of opportunities available to you, and your dog is a great incentive that can help you fulfil your own potential.
Friendships
Of course, as you walk your dog in local areas and beyond, there’s a good chance you’ll bump into a few friendly faces along the way.
It’s quite common to form a little social group with your fellow dog walkers. For example, Cardiff University started a weekly walk and talk event with their canine companions recently, whereby those who were isolated had the opportunity to get out and (under social distancing measures) get to know each other. It’s a great way to create a community, improving your mental wellbeing alongside your physical fitness all at once.
Having a dog can also tell others you encounter online or in person that you have some common ground. It’s a great icebreaker, a point from which you can launch a conversation into meaningful, relatable territory straight away. It’s also rather lovely to gush over your dog and other people’s, and it can bypass unbearable small talk topics very quickly.
There’s also a great deal to be said for the friendship that will form between you and your doggie, also. The more time you spend together, the greater the bond that will develop. You’ll share hundreds of adventures and experiences, and have many stories to relay to friends, family, and colleagues.
In the end, dogs give you a big lift, whether a pandemic is underway or not. With a new lease on life and a bond that will truly stand the test of time, there’s no obstacle life can throw at you that your best, most loyal friend, can’t help you with in some fashion.
