Tips to Help You Pick the Best Pet for Your Home

Tips to Help You Pick the Best Pet for Your Home
Pet Care Advice for Seniors
by Jessica Brody
photo credit user bogitw via Pixabay.com
It’s time to get a pet. You want something to keep you company, but what kind of animal fits you best? Most people either gravitate to a cat or dog, but there are also birds, rabbits, ferrets and all sorts of things. Use these tips to help you find the newest member of your home.
Test the waters
One of the best ways to figure out what kind of pet is right for you is to spend time with different kinds of animals. You can ask a friend if you can spend the day with their dog or cat or you might want to consider becoming a pet sitter. As a sitter, you can get experience caring for a variety of pets while getting paid in the process. Another great way to get experience with animals and to give back to your community is to volunteer at a local animal shelter. As with pet sitting, volunteering to care for animals is a great way to get a feel for the day-to-day requirements of caring for different kinds of animals.
Gauge your energy level
Some animals, like dogs, require someone with a lot of energy. While some breeds of dogs don’t need or want to be walked often, others will need someone with enough energy to keep up with them. Dogs are a great high-energy companion. For a senior that may need to get more exercise, a dog that likes to be walked often is a great match.
Cats on the other hand offer just as much companionship without the need to be walked. A pet like a rabbit or bird can also offer a sense of companionship without needing to be walked. They can all be a great match for someone who is not able to walk a dog. For those with limited mobility or who are at risk for falling, having an animal in a cage is safer than having a cat or dog that could get under foot.
Required cleanup
All pets come with a certain level of required maintenance and clean-up. A dog usually needs a yard which means picking up after them, and cats, of course, have the litter box. It is a trade-off between not having to walk the cat but needing to be able to bend and lift to deal with the litter.
Birds, rabbits and even fish come with a certain level of cage clean up. Having a clear understanding of what that type of clean up entails is important when deciding if the particular pet will work in your home.
Best pet for your living situation
Depending on where you live, certain pets may not be realistic or even allowed. If you are renting a place to live or live outside of your own home, your lease may stipulate which kind of animals you are allowed to have. The noise a pet may make can also be a factor in how compatible any given pet is with your living situation.
Beyond the lease, a smaller apartment is going to be better for a small dog than a big one. Cats also tend to do fine in a smaller place since they spend much of their time sleeping.
Safety concerns
While some seniors may be physically able to care for a variety of pets, others have special situations that would make certain kind of pets unsafe for them. For example, an elderly person with frail skin or a lower immune system would not be a good match for a cat because they could be seriously affected by a scratch.
For those with limited vision or who are not sure on their feet, it’s important to pay close attention to the risk of a dog or cat getting underfoot. Small dogs or young cats would not be a match in this case. A bird in a cage or even a tank full of fish would be a safer bet.
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