Puppy Love

In the paper's recent pet supplement we ran answers from local elementary school children to the statement: "my pet is special because..."
The answers ranged from the adorable (my turtle is smart and has good eye sight) to the super adorable (he's the one I tell all my secrets to) to the super duper adorable (this is the pet that helped make my life complete ... knowing that she's there makes me feel safe).
If this sampling is accurate, the number one reason kids think their pet is adorable is because the pet is either cute or cuddly. There are a lot of cute and cuddly pets out there. If you can believe it, some are both cute and cuddly. There are also many pets that are special because they are: "lovable," "nice," "awesome," "cool," "very, very cute," "very cuddly," "really cuddly," "really, really cuddly," "smart," "fun," "gentle," "small," "hyper," "friendly," "brave," "strong," "soft," "fluffy," "adorable," "protective," "mellow," and even because they are "still around."
I was surprised to see that in addition to cute and cuddly, one of the most popular reasons for a pet being special to a child is because "she is mine."
Ownership of a pet is important to children: "I've always wanted my own personal pet," "he is my first dog," "they are mine and I love them."
Interesting revelation. As an adult, I own a lot of stuff. If you were to pick up some object in my house and ask me what was special about it I might answer that it was a gift and therefore reminds me of the giver or that it was made by one of my children or painted by a friend. I can't imagine any item to which I would respond, "because it's mine." And yet there it is, the difference between why things are important to children verses why they are important to adults. We may like things because they remind us of other things, kids like things because they simply are.

song: Puppy Love • artist: Donny Osmond