It is often heard that pets are able to develop a sense of responsibility and the need to care for another creature. But, perhaps, animals can teach not only children, but also adults. Here are a few things that animals can teach us without even knowing it.

A responsibility

Regardless of age, a person can remain irresponsible even with respect to himself, not to mention responsibility for others. For example, feeding and caring for your pet's health helps you better control your life as well.

Unconditional love

It may sound cynical, but it seems to me that love outside all conventions is very rare in people. However, you have no conditions with animals - they either love you or they don't. And yes, I do think animals are capable of love.

Confidence

Animals prove every time that they can help children with autism better than other people. Animals teach us that it is safe to trust, and they never fail when we begin to trust them in return.

Patience

Caring for an animal is a rehearsal for caring for a baby. If a pet does something annoying, for example, ruins furniture or wakes you up in the middle of the night, then it is pointless to get irritated or try to negotiate. You just need to stay calm and find a way of peaceful coexistence.

Entertainment

Have you ever thought that life had become a routine, or were you surrounded by problems so much that you forgot how to have fun? Try to throw a ball to a dog, or play with a rope with your cat and you will understand that you can get pleasure from little things. Without even knowing, animals bring variety to our monotonous life, forcing us to do such simple and funny things.

Nature

Considering that many of us live in cities, pets become almost the only representative of wildlife. By observing them, children learn a lot about their life, behavior and character.

Coping with loss

At some point in our lives, we all face the loss of loved ones. Of course, the death of an animal is not the same as the death of a person, but it gives us an example of how we can cope with the loss of someone who meant a lot to us. As for children, when they lose a pet, they will learn that death is part of the cyclical nature of life and, to a certain extent, will be ready when it happens, for example, with a grandfather.

Pets save us from loneliness and stress. And they can also teach us important lessons ... life - of course, provided that we observe them carefully and love them as they are.

Contrary to popular belief that single people tend to have pets, most cats and dogs live in families of at least three. As the main reason that prompted them to have pets, 26% of the surveyed owners of dogs, cats, rats and hamsters named love for animals, as well as the joy of having a faithful friend and taking care of him. The beneficial effect on the development of the child is also an important factor: it is cited as a key argument by 8% of pet owners. 19% insist on the exclusive "social role" of their favorites, saving their owners from loneliness. Another 34% found it difficult to give a concrete answer to the question, saying that they simply cannot imagine life without an animal in the house (according to the results of a survey conducted on the website www.psychologies.ru).

Love for animals or love for yourself?

“Over the past half century, the attitude towards pets in Russia, as well as throughout the world, has changed significantly,” says the president of the Vita Animal Rights Center. Irina Novozhilova... - If earlier dogs lived in a family mainly because they guarded the house, and cats protected from rodents, now they are perceived as full members of the family. The term "companion animals" has even appeared among veterinarians. Every year, the demand for the services of zoopsychologists increases, many books and specialized magazines are published: people want to understand what their pets feel and even think.

We take care of ourselves today in a completely different way than we used to: hairdressing salons, hotels and even studios for dogs and cats that appear in abundance around them make their life similar to ours. We are happy to play this game without thinking - is it all necessary for the animals themselves? Is this humanization good for them? “When the owner feeds the dog or cat with what he eats himself, dresses up in clothes and puts to bed, he kind of replaces his failed relationship with another person,” the zoopsychologist believes. Elena Fedorovich... “Forcing our dog or parrot to live an almost human life, we care not so much about his true desires as about our own needs, which for some reason we cannot satisfy,” continues Irina Novozhilova. "We are trying, for example, to make up for a lack of tenderness or a lack of self-confidence."

“Infinitely loyal dog”, “sensitive, delicate cat” - we use many language clichés when talking about our pets. “Discussing the smallest details of their life, character and habits often masks our narcissistic need to be the center of attention,” the psychoanalyst said. Anna Skavitina, - and often occurs in people who find it difficult to talk about themselves. "

Useful addition

We tend to exaggerate the psychotherapeutic ability of pets when we attribute to our pets a wonderful gift for healing our mental ailments. “Communicating with a dog or cat certainly helps us deal with situational stress and tension, but it doesn’t address the underlying psychological problems, - explains Elena Fedorovich. “Observing animals, we learn to understand without words, develop our intuition and observation - I think this is, in the first place, the positive effect of communicating with them”.

The phenomenon of the "domestic animal" developed along with the desire of man to conquer nature. “Since ancient times, people have had a dual attitude towards animals: on the one hand, many of them are a constant object of hunting, on the other, human society is interested in replenishing their population, and therefore, it is necessary to establish relations with them, and to atone for their guilt before them. , - says the anthropologist Artem Kozmin... - That is why today, as in ancient times, good hunters "talk" with those who should become their prey; in many tribes that live by hunting, the bones of a killed and eaten animal are buried with honors ... Perhaps our love for domestic animals partly continues the tradition. Surrounding cats, dogs, horses with care and attention, we unconsciously atone for the mass murder of cows, pigs and sheep. " In other words, attachment to domestic animals allows a person to absolve himself of the guilt for the extermination of animals, whose meat we daily eat, in whose fur and skin we dress.

“In communicating with pets, they are attracted by their uncritical attitude towards us,” believes Elena Fedorovich, “unconditional emotional acceptance and attentiveness to our actions and emotional states. Many of the skills that we acquire by living next to them help to communicate with others and understand ourselves deeper. " Animals do not literally cure us, but they teach us to accept and give our love, not to be afraid to express our feelings. In other words, our relationship with pets does not replace or imitate human relationships - they only serve as a useful and enriching addition to them.

In addition to objective reasons "against" (allergies or living conditions), the need to accustom the animal to order, to take it to the veterinarian, etc. is also called. At the same time, we do not think that a cat or a dog can teach us important things, without which it is impossible to imagine a happy life!

1. Kindness

Remember the words: "Because, because everyone is more important and dear, kindness is the most trusting and stricter in this world." When you have a small kitten in your arms, it is almost impossible to remain indifferent. We soften, we want to stroke him, and kind tender feelings awaken in our souls. The kitten clings to us, hums. At such moments, something wakes up in the soul of even harsh men, let alone children.

2. Sincerity

The animal does not know how to lie, dodge, hide its attitude. Everything it feels is reflected in appearance: in a look, in a pose. If you offended him, for example, yelled, you will immediately see fear or grief. And show affection or call with a benevolent intonation - and now they are looking at you with hope, delight, adoration. We, people, often hide what we feel, put on "masks", prefer to restrain our emotional impulses. We should definitely learn the ability to be sincere from animals!

3. Friendship

"A dog is a faithful friend" is a hackneyed phrase, but it is. She, in contrast to the "Homo sapiens", will not betray or abandon, will not go over to another owner. It is important for animals that you, his beloved household members, are close by.

4. Responsibility

We are responsible for those we have tamed - remember? We learn to take care of those who need it, to be attentive. Of course, sometimes laziness takes over: we are too lazy to go out with the dog for a walk, change the filler in the cat's tray, put food in a bowl ... But the understanding that no one else will do this, and if we do not, then the animal will feel bad , makes us switch the focus of attention from our affairs to our smaller brothers.

Cats and dogs are the most advanced animals we have at home. They are teachers the highest category, because "training" takes place without a single word. Only behavior, only actions, only views and, of course, feelings. Our pets make us and our children better.

5. Correct daily routine

Watch your cat or dog. Everything is clear in their daily routine: food, toilet, washing, sleeping, playing. They do everything in detail, slowly, enjoying the process. If an animal wants to sleep, it sleeps. If he wants to eat, he eats. We want to sleep, but we do not sleep, because things have not been redone yet, we want to eat, but we do not eat - we need to keep an eye on the figure. But what if at least some "should" be changed to "want"? Is it really impossible? Pay attention not only to your affairs and concerns, but also to your needs.

6. Healthy way life

Do you have a dog? You need to walk (and preferably several times a day)! Fresh air, active movement, or at least walking - all this is now with you. As a result, you start the day with physical activity and end it the same way. Nowadays, many lead a sedentary lifestyle (sometimes from childhood!). The appearance of a dog in the house will make you quit bad habits and become a more active person. Well, after a walk with your faithful friend, you feel not only an increase in physical strength, but also a surge of good mood.

7. Sensitivity

Did you come home from work irritated and angry, or maybe sad and tired? Animals feel everything. They can either step aside so as not to get in the way under your feet while you are not in the mood, or come to the rescue by coming up and huddling in support. Sometimes you think: "But really, everyone understands, they just can't say." We often show indifference to our neighbors, not noticing their state and mood, we react more to the signals of our own stomach than to the emotional signals of a child or spouse. Let's learn sensitivity from dogs!

8. The joy of simple things

From early childhood, we always want something: a glass of juice, a candy, a car, new shoes, a game console, a computer, a fancy foreign car, a mansion ... Of course, wanting is not harmful, but sometimes we want obvious excesses. Animals enjoy the simplest things: food, your affectionate look or gesture, the opportunity to go for a walk. How little, it turns out, is needed for happiness!

9. Selfless love

Animals accept our friendship and give unselfish love in return, simply because we are (by the way, just like children). We come home, they meet us, showing love with all their appearance. Seething emotions are expressed by screeching and pleading eyes. We are loved for "just like that." And why do we people love each other?

So I embarked on the path of cooperation (I'm not afraid of this word) with creatures of other biological species, and noticed that they can greatly enrich us. Of course, if we ourselves are ready to learn. They have their own language, their own feelings, their own view of the world and even their own ideology. And for different types these parameters are different (cats, birds, dogs, rabbits, rats, horses - each teaches something different). I realized that there are two conditions that allow you to learn something. The first is not to consider yourself the crown of nature, otherwise you will remain the crown. And the second is to want the most direct and trivial result, for example, a training diploma or victory in a competition. For a long time I was engaged in national types of training with dogs. Without this, the animal will adapt to you so masterfully that you simply will not notice anything, and you will not have to work on yourself.

But before talking about the features of different individual species, I want to talk about the main and the general. It was on the example of animals that I understood a very important (in my opinion) thing - the right of a loved one to be different.

They talk and write about this so much. Understanding the other by your model is very natural, but there is a trap.
When a mother teaches a child to empathize, she says: Put yourself in his place! If so? And it is right.
But then, having already become adults, we are shocked that a loved one does not share our tastes, views, hobbies in everything. Especially for your own child, the right to be yourself is difficult to recognize. I read about this many times as the root of the problems, and I myself came across it.

With animals, the fact that they are different is not disputed - this is obvious. We understand that they have a different diet, physiology. What is beautiful for us is destructive for them, and vice versa. Nobody now treats dogs with sugar, for example. On the other hand, for mine, any digestive upset is relieved with a piece of raw meat. These are obvious examples, but there are many less obvious ones, and all of this is insanely exciting, it can be studied endlessly.

For example, we learn that it is not as scary for a dog to go blind as to lose its sense of smell, and for a rat to lose its whiskers.
Rats feel the vibrations of the air in the room with their whiskers and are shocked by the TV - as it is, there is movement on the screen, but there are no air vibrations.
The dog practically does not get tired when jogging, but it is difficult for her to walk with a step - not the right pace.
A squirrel feels much more confident when looking down at a person.
Etc. The list of facts is endless.

But the main thing is that by studying this, you begin to transfer your approach - interest and respect - to people as well. You understand that people, including those closest to you, also have the right to be different, in a variety of things that you don't even know about at first. Moreover, this is not a tragedy at all, not a reason for quarrels, but on the contrary, something wonderful that can make you together stronger and more effective. What is beyond the power of one of you, the other will gladly be able to.

If the Community is not against it, it would be interesting to know who noticed this phenomenon, used it, and on what examples.
Thank you for the attention!