We’re Moms Too! …Well, Sort Of
With the gap widening between passing generations each year, the traditional family unit of man, woman and child seems to be growing obsolete—or, at least “un-cool”—with a portion of today’s Facebooking or blogging moms.
Based on the traditional timeline, 28-year-old Summer Brown, the author of Blogspot’s “Summer and Sometimes Chris,” might have been on her third child by now, or at least be planning for a first. Instead, Brown and her husband Chris, 33, are the proud “parents” of Trane, a mini fox terrier, and Illy, a German Spitz.
While some may snicker at the idea of a happily married couple opting to raise furry surrogate offspring instead of the real thing, the Browns say they currently prefer their barking brood to the pitter patter of little baby feet.
“You get about as much pleasure from owning pets as you do from owning kids,” said Chris Brown. “I wouldn’t prefer a pet over kids, per se, but dogs are more supplemental to my lifestyle, whereas kids are lifestyle-destroying.”
It’s not so much about not wanting kids, said Summer Brown, but pets can be a great placeholder, or practice for when you decide you’re ready.
“They’re better right now for me,” Summer Brown said, “because I don’t want to have kids at this particular point in my life.”
The Browns aren’t the only ones online who are earning practice parent hours, either.
According to a national survey done by the American Pet Products Association in 2008, an estimated 63 percent of Americans (about 71 million families) own pets, while a Gallup poll (http://www.gallup.com/Home.aspx) conducted around the same time showed that only 72 percent of Americans polled who were over the age of 18 have expressed a desire to have children.
Even for those who never would’ve considered themselves pet lovers, these furry companions can fill a need that a person didn’t even know they had, said Ilona Csapo-Junaedi, an unintentional cat owner and new member of “PeTS..!!!”, the largest Facebook club for pet owners.
“I never intended on having a pet,” said Csapo-Junaedi. “But I found her on my porch during a thunder storm six years ago.” Csapo-Junaedi said she planned on taking the cat to a shelter, but was told that they often put down any sick stray animals as a rule. She decided to keep the cat, just until she could return it to proper health.
“Even after three months, still every day I would tell myself that she wasn’t my pet,” Csapo-Junaedi said. “She was just there until I found someone else to give her to.”
Csapo-Junaedi said she should’ve known she was fighting a losing battle.
“After all this I forget to close my bed room one day, and there she was in the middle of my bed, making herself at home,” Csapo-Junaedi said.
It was then that Csapo-Junaedi finally gave up, and admitted she no longer lived alone. She’d completely adopted—or been adopted by, she never could figure out which—a new family member.
Some pets even burrow their furry selves into your routine until, before you know it, they’re as much a part of your life as a child would be, said D. Mitchell, a self-proclaimed “cat fanatic,” and member of one of the “My Cat is Better than Your Kid” Facebook group.
“My cat is my alarm clock,” Mitchell said. “Every morning at between 4:30 am and 6:00 am he’s right there, nudging me to get up to feed him… It’s amazing how much he is like a little kid sometimes, always wanting to sit on me or sleep in bed with me.”
In the popular pet book, Between Pets and People: the Importance of Animal Companionship by Alan M. Beck and Aaron Katcher, the authors ask an important question: “Why are we willing to spend such sums on living beings that have little or no utilitarian value and bring us little or no status?”
The answer, Beck and Katcher claim, is that pets do play a most important role in the lives of their human masters: “they love us.”
Megan Skidmore, a pro-pet Facebooker from New York, said her cat, Lulu, has proven to her that even tough, independent types like her need a little loving now and then.
“Lulu provides me sheer joy when she wakes me up to cuddle,” Skidmore said. “That’s more than any jaded male in New York has ever done.”
In addition to providing a warm body to cuddle with, pets can alleviate loneliness for people who live by themselves; which can in turn improve health, said psychologists Louise Hawkley and John Cacioppo in a recent article for Medical News Today.
This is especially good news, considering the fact that researchers like Steven Cole of the University of California are continually finding links between chronic loneliness and decreased antiviral responses; thus proving that being lonely is unhealthy.
“You will never be lonely with your pet around,” said Johari Samsuri, a Facebooking dog lover from Singapore. “And they appreciate you for whatever you give them. It really makes an amazing life experience.”
In addition to their unselfish companionship, unquestioned gratitude and unswerving devotion, many pet parents say low-maintenance upkeep is one of the best things about having a pet.
“They take care of themselves,” said Dawn Falkinburg, a dog and cat mommy from New Jersey who frequently posts her pet’s pics online. “A little food is all they need.”
Summer Brown said she most appreciates the fact that owning pets seems like a more liberating form of responsibility, especially for a couple with such an on-the-go lifestyle.
“You can leave them at home by themselves, and they don’t cry… very much,” Summer Brown said.
To get to know these pro-pet mommies and daddies more, also try:
Post by Veronica Anderson
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Veronica Anderson was once Veronica Park, and misses the notorious awesomeness of her former last name. Luckily, that’s the only thing she misses about single life. Her married life is awesome; her husband is awesome, and there is no doubt in her mind that her future children will also be…you guessed it: awesome. When not working on her novel of the week or catching up on ANTM, Vero’s probably avoiding housework by shopping for *necessary* items… like shoes. veronica.anderson@momswhoblog.com |
