Putting Your Pet’s Needs First

Traveling with our pets is partly for the pets, so that they don’t spend the time locked in a kennel, but it’s mostly for us.  I don’t know about you, but anytime I travel without my pets, I end up missing them quite a bit — I miss the warmth of my cats sleeping on me at night, and the enthusiasm my dogs greet me with every time I walk in the door.

It’s hard to admit, but sometimes traveling with our pets really isn’t in their best interests.  And staying behind may not be as bad as we think.  Instead of kennels, you can now board your dog in cage-free doggie daycare facilities, where they can play all day long.  As happy and exhausted as my dogs are every time I’ve boarded them at daycare, I’m pretty sure they were too busy having fun to miss me.  Then there are the times when I’ve had a favored friend stay at the house with them when they’re gone — I’m pretty sure they didn’t miss me then either.

Sometimes you can’t take your pet with you when you travel because it simply wouldn’t be fair to them — perhaps it’s a busy business trip, and you will hardly be spending any time at the hotel.  Or maybe you are flying, and your pet hates to fly.  Those are both good reasons toleave your pet behind when you travel.

Another good reason is for the sake of your pet’s health.  That’s something I’m dealing with right now — one of my cats hasn’t been feeling well, and hasn’t been eating well as a result.  In fact, he is doing poorly enough that I will probably put off my next trip another week — I’m concerned about going anywhere until he is eating a little better.

Owning pets is a lot of fun.  They are wonderful companions, and can be great travel companions too.  But we can’t become so enamored of their company that we forget what is best for them.  Owning a pet means that we have to be able to recognize — and do — the responsible thing, for the sake of our pets.  This might mean boarding your pet somewhere or getting a pet sitter, or it may mean putting off your trip if your pet gets sick.  To me, owning a pet is like being a parent — it is fun and rewarding, but it also means responsibilities.