1..2.. Wait why am I counting...

This post is dedicated to the reasons why you should probably not own pets before having children. I realized this while I was taking a picture of our dog and counting 1...2...3...Smile. Gratefully, before I got to three I realized what I was doing and said "why am I counting..." causing my roommates to explode with laughter. So I had to really sit and think... how doooo we treat our pets?

1. Baby talk- So while I love our pets, it bewilders me that we tend to treat them like babies. In fact I digress into baby talk when I talk to them, especially my cat. Why... why do I do this? Perhaps I think the high pitched frequencies will translate into woofs, barks, and meows...
2. Dress up- Now this is a shout out to Potter who does own several outfits (well maybe I shouldn't say HE owns them... but he is the only one who wears them... so...) I used to make fun of the Legally Blonde heiresses that prance their animals around in couture fashion. Until I realized that it doesn't have to be high fashion to be dress up. Most of Potter's outfits (or I should really say, coats and sweaters) are from places like REI. Yep... REI... which is hysterical because the last time we were at REI we saw that they actually has dog hiking boots. Yep, you heard right... I just have to wonder about this target demographic... it must be a profitable market... so maybe I need to break out the sewing machine to make a few quick bucks. :)
3. Preferential Treatment- Most people know that it is quite expensive to own animals, but when animals trump people (similar to the "my baby is cuter than yours" syndrome), it goes a bit too far. My favorite example of this is when we were all packed into Lindsey's car coming back from snowshoeing, I was in the back middle seat (with my feet on the hump) and Potter was in the very back of the Xterra, but usually he sits in the back seat with his rear propped up on the top of the seat, giving him a commanding view of the car. So while I was sitting there, he was upset at me for taking his spot, but without a bark, he started to muscle me out of the use of the top back of the seat. So as we battled butt to back of head for the spot, he finally won, and I think I even saw him say "he, he, he."
   

Ok, so really pets are great, but this blog sort of makes a case for the silly ways we are naturally inclined to interact with pets.