Making a Comfortable Home for your Pet

There’s no doubt about it, we love our pets.  Call them what you will, fur babies, our little friends, our kids, or just our lovable companions.  Pets are great and we can’t live without them.  Sure, they often drive us crazy in how they may make a mess, bark annoyingly, tear something up, or just want attention at inconvenient times.  But, the love they give us, the quality time we spend together, and how your pet may appear impossibly adorable, elegant, smart, caring, or just plain fun makes them absolutely indispensable to us.

So, because of this great two way relationship, we bring them into our lives and do a lot to take care of them.  We take them to the doctor, just like we go occasionally.  We take them for walks, to dog parks, and to wander in the backyard.  We also bring them entertainment in the form of games and toys.  Dogs love their chew toys and their favorite stuffed animal or blanket sometimes.  Cats love laser pointer toys, stuffed animals in the shape of mice or birds, and other things that they can pounce on and chase  Birds, such as parrots, love to use their beaks to chew or peck at things.

When it comes to furniture and making our pets comfortable at home, there are many choices.  Dogs have their dog beds, which can be as simple as a pillow, or even a thick blanket, or it can be an elaborate bed with thick cushioning, sides, and an entrance.  There’s, of course, the classic “dog house”, too.  You often see that in cartoons and such, but it’s not something that actually has much relation to the real world these days.

When it comes to cats, even though they may also appreciate a bed like a dog does, they are typically more comfortable in a cat “condo”.  These pieces of furniture are typically of some height and they may incorporate games, toys, and agility aspects so that the cat can also get some exercise, groom their nails by scratching at suitable surface, and also feel like they are in more control and watch over the house.

Birds will have their cages, typically, but often some species are more appropriately left out during the day with supervision in an outside type of branch or tree replica.  In this way, they can participate with their owner family and not feel like they are trapped without any freedom.

As with human furniture, there are a lot of choices and different price ranges when it comes to pet furniture.  The usual rules apply in terms of quality and also materials dictating how much you will spend.  Again, as with anything else, you will get what you pay for and you should use some caution with excessively inexpensive items that will not last and just be thrown away and repurchased.  As well, be careful with materials or chemicals that can harm your pet, if you buy really cheap items.  We didn’t talk about dog crates, as another option for furniture.  These can be very appropriate, especially for young puppies, to get them appropriately ready for later life.

Whether it’s dog crates, kitty condos, bird cages, or old aquariums, you’re bound to have some junk accumulated over the years as a result of our love affair with our pets.  Please be a responsible homeowner and apartment dweller and don’t have this old stuff laying around in your back or side yard.