Is Your Pet Getting In-between Your Relationship?
If you are a pet owner that is suffering from pet problems in your relationship, here are some tips to help you get through some of the issues you may be having. Of course we aren't talking about your fish, or your pet corn snake...that you have to handle on your own..but if you have a dog or cat that is getting between you and your lover, we are here to help!
1. Take you animal to the vet first. Why? Well if you haven't recently it is always good to get anything out of the way, like pain, arthritis, sickness, etc. that may be causing your animal to be snippy or possessive, dominant or grumpy! If you have an un-neutered male cat, he may be peeing all over your boyfriend's clothes for a reason! So go check in with the vet first and get their opinion on their behavior.
2. Take the bed back. If you are letting your animal crawl all over your lovers head and nest in their hair, or snore and drool on their pillow, or make a nice cozy wedge in-between you, I can bet the romantic wake up you could have had at 3 am is most likely not going to happen. Get a nice cozy bed for your pet for the floor and put it next to you so that you still feel close to your animal but they aren't in the lover zone.
3. Make a chore chart. You want to share the responsibility of an animal so that one person doesn't feel like they are doing all the work and the other is not connected to the animal at all. Play with your dog at the park together, go pick out his food together, and take turns with the poop! It is great training for kids too...just sayin'.
4. Remember your animal is an animal! It is not a baby. If you are coodling and coddling your kitty and she does no wrong when clearly the ripped up curtains in the bedroom..the ones your girlfriend just bought..are kitty's work then you need to set some rules and boundaries for your animal! Respect your partner and their stuff and remember that a pet is like a roommate and needs to behave!
5. Watch the signs. If your pet is getting poorly treated, your partner yells and disciplines it all the time, doesn't care for it or respect it's needs and you feel like the animal is being the brunt of all the arguments or problems then you probably need to look at the PERSON instead. There are some big red flags there, underlining issues and some anger that poor little Fido is in the crossfire of. That is when you need to protect your animal and get to the root of your real relationship problem.
If you are need of someone to talk to and want some more expert advice on your relationship, please give us a call - our consultation is free !
860.952.9070
