What pets can teach us about mental health

Sometimes my cat wakes me up at night by knocking something over. He stares at me knowingly, almost seeming to mock the fact that I am annoyed at him.

But I can’t do anything about it. If I yell at him, he may be startled, but it won’t stop him from doing it again tomorrow night, (and it will likely wake up my wife if she hasn’t already awoken.) He wants my attention - either to play, to get fed or perhaps just because he misses me when I’m sleeping and wants to spend time with me.

If I stop thinking of how annoyed I am, I can take the time to appreciate my furry little friend. I can also probably get back to sleep more rapidly.

Maybe we can all learn from our relationships with pets and other animals. They can’t talk, so we must be patient and try to figure out what they are trying to tell us. It behooves us to try to show each other the same patience we show our animal friends, even when we act in seemingly incomprehensible ways.