Real Talk

7 Fur Parent Truths That Will Make You Love Your Fur Babies More

by Kevyn Gohu
October 4, 2023

Here are some truths about being a fur parent that many don’t realize or will make us love our pets more.

The true heroes of the home during the pandemic were our fur babies. They always played around, came at our every beck and call, and became our willing ear and companion when things became frustrating, comforting us when we needed it most. But like all things, they don’t last forever. Life goes on but in their short, love-filled lifespans, our pets teach us, fur parents, valuable lessons and truths that not even people can teach us.

Fur Parent Truths That Will Make You Love Your Fur Babies More

1. Life is too short to be angry

We always joke about and associate people who tend to space out or have lousy memory retention with animals like dogs, squirrels, and maybe even a goldfish. But there’s a silver lining to that! Imagine all the grudges and traumas we can process because eventually, a part of us lets go of that. It’s a new day and every hour counts in our short lifespan. Dogs and cats live up to an average maximum of 20 years and while it’s short for humans, that’s their whole lifetime of loving their fur parents.

2. Immortality isn’t as great as people think it is

Every fur parent will wish that their fur babies could be immortal. Or at least, live as long as a human being. But nothing hurts more than watching our fur babies degrade and we can’t do anything except alleviate their pain so they can cross the rainbow bridge happily and peacefully. The same goes for humans, too. We don’t want our loved ones to die in a room surrounded by the four, cold, white walls of a hospital. We want them to be with the people they love before they go so they have something to take with them to the other side.

3. They have pretty simple tastes

We may have bought the fanciest cat trees, dog beds, and dog and cat toys for our fur babies but they somehow still find more joy in a beat-up, old cardboard box. As fur parents, we love seeing them play around with things so long as it doesn’t destroy the house. And if ever we do see a toy that our fur baby may like, there was a wise cat breeder and fur parent who once told my mom and I when we were asking him about cat toys and if they liked them or not, “We’re not buying the toys for them. It’s more for us, really.”

And fair enough, he was right. My cat has a gorgeous cat tree which she now rarely uses since she finds more comfort sitting on our dining room chair or in a plastic box.

4. We need to take care of ourselves as fur parents because they need us, too.

As fur parents, we always try to give our fur babies the best care but it seems so easy to forget about ourselves. During that one time when I brought my cat to The Cat Clinic for dental work, my fur baby had a blood test to check if she was strong enough for her dental prophylaxis since it was considered a surgical procedure. The results proved she was but I had to suppress my urge to hoot with laughter when I heard her fur dad exclaim, astonished, after he saw her blood test results, “Wow, her blood chemistry is better than mine!” The vet on the other hand giggled at his remark; we probably made her day.

She had a steady diet of chicken, kitty kibble, and boiled squash while he, as the stereotypical programmer, ate a whole array of quick-to-prep but heart-stopping meals with vegetables usually being an afterthought. Ever since then, he’s been trying to be more open to steamed or boiled food.

5. Our being there is all they want

We are our fur babies’ world and leaving them in new places like the vet or groomer is scary for them. Surrounded by new people, and various scents that they’re not sure are coming from a threat or a friend, it’s no surprise that a visit to the vet can bring out the worst in them. As a fur parent, I’ve seen cats and dogs scream bloody murder in a clinic because of how unfamiliar the place looks and their fur parents are not there. My furbaby seemed pretty fine, too, but that’s because I sat with her. But the moment I stopped petting her for five minutes, she hissed at a kitten — flattened ears and all — because it mewed at her.

Doing that, my fur baby taught me the next truth…

There are really some pets wherein no amount of socialization will make them like being in the company of fellow fur babies. While some fur parents believe they might feel lonely, adding another fur baby to the mix may actually make them more stressed because they feel like they’re “competing” for their most precious resource: our love. Although we know there’s a lot of love to go around for them, they don’t.

7. The Separation Anxiety sometimes (or probably most of the time) comes from us.

A lot of us say that our fur babies have Separation Anxiety but sometimes, we could be projecting that on them. While some do have Separation Anxiety due to something that happened, other days may have us reflecting our feelings onto them. There’s a part of us that knows that if someone hurts our fur baby, we will release our inner John Wick. Maybe not as smooth as Keanu Reeves does, but the anger is there.

As fur parents, we learn what unconditional love is from our babies.

There are a lot of truths — both easy and hard — to accept when having a fur baby. Sometimes, we want to deny the inevitable: the day that they leave us. It’ll be hard for any fur parent to move on especially when that fur baby grew up with them during the most impactful moments in their lives. But we know that when fur babies need to go, they do leave us with an experience we can pass on: a life filled with unconditional love and trust that we can pass on to another fur baby who needs a fur-ever home.