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Do you know your pet's love language? A new survey reveals which one is the most popular.

The way to your pet's heart isn't always toys or treats.

cats, dogs, pets, love languages
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Cats and dogs are both man's vest friend.

We know our pets love us. Eternally. Enthusiastically. Unconditionally. But how do they know we love us?

Since renowned marriage counselor Gary Chapman, Ph.D. first coined the term in 2007, people have used the five love languages to better understand the different ways they give and receive love—either through physical touch, gifts, words of affirmation, quality time, or acts of service.

While love languages were first created as a tool for romantic relationships, they have since taken on a life of their own, extending to singles, children…and now, animals, apparently.

2,000 cat and dog owners were surveyed on behalf of Nulo pet food to find their furry friends preferred love language—and let’s just say it has nothing to do with giving gifts. Sorry, folks who love to dish out treats and toys.

That isn’t to say the way to a pet’s heart isn’t through their stomach. Pet parents reported being largely committed to offering high-quality meals (53%), with a focus on health and nutrition (47%), and incorporating diet variety (32%).

Quality time also ranked quite high at 27%. The next most popular pet love language is quality time which includes letting their four-legged friend sleep in their bed and bringing their pet along on trips. Although this last part has to be mostly coming from dog owners, right? Cause I know my cats would consider going on road trips with me as capital punishment.

dogs, love languages

They just wanna be with us all the time.

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But, without question, the reigning love language was physical touch. A whopping 83% of pet owners felt that petting their fur babies was the most effective way to express love. Another 62% endorsed hugging, and 55% were fans of kissing.

On an intuitive level, it makes sense. After all, animals use tactile communication with each other, why wouldn’t they do so with their human friends? And what pet owner among us couldn’t say that the message is very clear when they sweetly rub up against your leg or nuzzle up next to you?

What probably isn’t surprising is that 95% of the pet owners surveyed reported believing that their pet knows how much they love them because of how serious they took showing affection. Hey, it’s a tough job, but somebody’s gotta cuddle that puppy.

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Just give them all five love languages.

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Although, I must say, I am surprised that words of affirmation didn’t seem to make the list. We’ve all seen how a dog’s face absolutely lights up when being told they're a good boy or girl, right? Cats seem to love it too.

Either way, it’s fun to see how, no matter what kind of creature you're tending to, we all just wanna make sure our four legged companions have every bit of joy in life that they naturally bestow into ours.

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Enter this giveaway for a free, fun date! 🌊 💗

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Research shows why you should always pet your dog before leaving the house

via Pixabay

One of the most wonderful things about having a dog is how attached they become to their owners. I work from home and my Jack Russel terrier, Scout, lies next to me on his bed for most of the day. The only time he leaves my office is for a sip of water or to go outside and sun his belly on the porch.

That's why whenever I leave the house and can't take Scout with me, I wonder, "Does he miss me? Is he sad that he's alone?" Studies show that our dogs miss us the moment we leave the house and that feeling slowly intensifies until we are gone for about four hours and they have a "plateau of melancholy." That's why the longer you're away, the more excited your dog is when you return home.

The moment I pull up in my car Scout begins to howl like a wolf trying to contact someone who's miles away. It's like, "Dude, I'm 30 feet away. Give me a second to grab the groceries out of the trunk."

Researchers from the Universities of Pisa and Perugia, Italy have found that if you give your dog some affection before you leave the house they'll have less anxiety while you're away.

They conducted experiments with 10 dogs between the ages of one and 11 without attachment issues. The group was composed of seven mixed-breed dogs, one Labrador retriever, one Hovawart, and one Chihuahua.

Participants in the study walked their leashed dogs into a fenced area where they were greeted by a researcher who took their dog's heart rate. In the first test, after the owners walked their dogs into the area, they talked with a researcher for one minute then left without giving the dog any special attention.

In the second test, the dog owners petted the dog during their interaction with the researcher.

In both tests, the owners left the fenced area and hid far enough away so that the dog couldn't smell them.

After the owners left, the dogs looked for them for about three minutes on average. After the owners returned, the researchers measured the dogs' levels of the stress hormone cortisol as well as their heart rates.

The researchers found that whether the dogs were petted or not, their cortisol levels were unchanged. But their heart rate showed a marked decrease if the owners petted them before leaving. Researchers later watched videos of the dogs and found that the ones that were petted showed " behaviors indicative of calmness for a longer period while waiting for the owner's return."

Next time I'm ready to leave the house and Scout follows me to the front door after saying, "Sorry bud, you can't go with me on this trip," I'll kneel down and give him a little extra love and attention.

Maybe that way he won't howl like the house is on fire when I pull up in my car after a trip to the grocery store.

This article originally appeared four years ago.

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Joy

Adorable Golden Retriever absolutely loses it when he runs into his vet at a bar

No one has ever been this excited to see their doctor.

@cosmo_andtheoddparents/TikTok

He wuvs his vet.

Not every dog might jump with joy after seeing their vet out in public. But for Cosmo the Golden Retriever, it was practically Christmas all over again when he spotted his own vet, Dr. Jones, at a brewery.

In an adorable clip posted to TikTok, we see Cosmo in pure, unadulterated bliss as he snuggles with an equally happy Dr. Jones, who, considering he’s still in his scrubs, might have just gotten out of work to grab a quick pint.

Watch:

@cosmo_andtheoddparents When you run into your vet in public #goldenretrieversoftiktok #vetlife #animallovers #petparents #goldenretriever #goldenretrievers #doglife #dogmom #dailyfluff #charlestondogs #doglover #charlestondog #brewerydog ♬ original sound - Cosmo

Ugh, the cuteness is too much to handle! People in the comments could barely contain their secondhand joy.

“He looked over like, “Mom, do you see who this is?” one person wrote, while another said, “What in the Hallmark movie? Adorable!!”

One person even joked, “Did we all check the vet’s hand for a wedding ring? (Said as a married woman. Looking out for you all, or something.)”

According to Hannah Dweikat, Cosmo’s owner, the two actually share quite a history. She tells Upworthy that when Cosmo was but a wee pup, he “gave a scare” after eating a Sago Palm seed, which are highly toxic to dogs, from a plant in their backyard, which of course resulted in him being rushed to the animal hospital and staying there over the weekend.

While that’s every pet owner’s worst nightmare, and certainly a scary situation for the poor fur baby, Dweikat says that “the calm and patient demeanor” of Dr. Jones and his staff put Cosmo at ease. And because of this, “Cosmo has always loved going to see his friends—especially because they give him lots of treats and snuggles.”

Cosmo and Dr. Jones’ buddyship has also blossomed thanks to proximity, as Dweikat only lives down the street from the clinic. “Which means we get to see Dr. Jones and his staff out in public at times and Cosmo takes every chance he can get to say hi,” she explains. This time, however, she was able to capture it all on video. Yay for us!

What makes a good vet?

While not every vet, however gifted, will be able to elicit this type of reaction from their patients, having a calming presence like Dr. Jones is certainly a good sign for pet owners to be on the lookout for when shopping around for their own vet. But that’s not the only quality a good vet needs. According to Saint Matthews University, a vet also needs to have high stamina (both physically and mentally), as well as an ability to tolerate unpleasant situations (you can’t faint at the sight of blood or vomit), a high level of emotional intelligence (maybe all doctors should possess this skill, but especially those who work with animals), adaptability, a sense of enthusiasm, and finally, excellent communication skills.

Dr. Jones seems to have these attributes in spades, and his patients clearly love him for it. None so much as Cosmo, obviously.

By the way, if you’re in need of even more content featuring this precious pup, you can follow Cosmo on both TikTok and Instagram.

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Popular

Millennial dad of 3 shuts down boomer parents for their 'ridiculous' holiday expectations

"Why is it that every time I have to make the effort for you, yet you can't do the most basic thing for me?”

via Canva/Photos

A Millennial dad has had it with his boomer dad's expectations.

A TikTok video posted by @carrerasfam is going viral, with over 300,000 views, because so many millennial parents can relate. In the video, a husband politely but firmly tells his “practically retired” baby boomer dad that he’s not taking his 3 young kids on a 400-mile drive to their house for the holidays.

Carerras Fam is a popular TikTok page about “all things postpartum and mamahood.” The husband opens the conversation with his dad by explaining all the inconveniences of taking 3 young kids on a long road trip. “I know you want us to drive down for the holidays, but it's kinda ridiculous that you want me to pack my 3 kids with their portable beds with my clothes, their clothes, the formula, everything that goes on with raising 3 kids and having them feel comfortable. Drive down for over four hours just so that we could spend some time in your house?” the husband says.

@carrerasfam

Sorry it’s just so much work. But you’re welcome to visit us #millennial #millennials #parents #parenting #parentsontiktok #boomers #millennials

It’s obviously inconvenient for the couple to pack up their kids and drive 4 hours, but it’s also unsafe because the house is not baby-proof. "I'm gonna have to run around, make sure that they don't break any of your stuff, and which you will take care of them,” the husband continues using sarcastic air quotes.

The dad brings up another great point: His parents are in good health, so why don’t they drive to their house? “You could visit. You don't have little kids,” the dad continues. “You don't have anything going on.

"Why is it that every time I have to make the effort for you, yet you can't do the most basic thing for me?”

It’s clear from the phone call the dad understands that traveling with the kids and staying in a house that isn’t correctly set up for young kids will make the holiday a struggle. Instead of making memories, they’ll most likely be running around bent over trying to save their kids from breaking something or hanging out at Target buying electrical socket plugs and a bottle brush because they left theirs at home.



The video struck a chord with many millennial parents.

“First holiday with a kid… parents are confused why I won’t drive 9 hours with a 3mnth old for Christmas,” too_many_catz writes. “The ‘not baby proofed’ part hit my soullllllll. It’s so stressful having to chase your kids around and ask to close doors, move pictures, block stairs, etc. And nobody takes you seriously!" OhHeyItsIndy added.

It’s also expensive for young families to travel. “Add to it they want us to spend money on gas, airfare, etc. when we live paycheck to paycheck and rent while they own homes and live comfortably off a pension,” another user wrote.

This one hit hard: “They always act like you're asking the world of them, yet they will willingly go on any other vacation that they choose,” Mackenzie Byrne wrote.

TX Travel Chick may have hit the nail on the head with her explanation for why boomer parents expect their children to road trip it to their house for the holidays. “Because we are used to following their orders!!! REVOLT,” she wrote.

Ultimately, it would be interesting to learn why boomer parents want to inconvenience their kids when it would be much easier for them to take a trip to see them, especially if they can afford a hotel. One wonders if they are being entitled or if they’ve forgotten how hard it is to travel with young kids.

This article originally appeared last year.

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Animals & Wildlife

The real reason birds are taking over parking lots all over the country

What in the Alfred Hitchcock is going on here?!

Unsplash & acameronhuff/Flickr

I can't remember the last time I went to a store—say a Target, Walmart, or a big chain grocery store—and didn't encounter roving gangs of birds in the parking lot. Sometimes it's only a few pigeons picking at crumbs and discarded sandwiches, and sometimes it's hundreds of seagulls fanning out like you might sometimes see them on the beach. Sometimes it's even geese, who are notoriously the meanest of the bunch. I've always been curious about why birds love parking lots so much, but never gave it a lot of thought.

Then I realized this is a phenomenon that has been happening all over the country for years. Not just gatherings of birds, but in some cases literal takeovers! Stories out of Texas and Louisiana show crows and grackles invading large parking lots by the thousands, making for amazing viral social media moments.

What in the Alfred Hitchcock is going on here? I wish I could ask the birds what's so appealing about asphalt parking lots? Well, I can't; but I can consult with bird experts.

a black duck on a snowy sidewalk A duck. acameronhuff/Flickr

There are four main reasons birds gather in large numbers in parking lots. First? They look like bodies of water.

I've always thought it was weird that waterbirds like seagulls, ducks, geese, and grebes are so common in parking lots.

The Audobon Society (bigtime bird folks) writes, "To a bird flying at night, [parking lots] resembles bodies of water, especially if their surfaces are wet. Even more so if made to glisten by artificial light." Even during the day, it's easy to see how a big patch of asphalt could look like a lake or pond to a flying bird. It makes sense that they'd want to land there and check it out.

Did you know that some waterbirds like certain kinds of grebes, loons, and swifts have trouble taking off from land due to the composition of their bodies? That means the presence of these confounding-looking parking lots can, sadly, cause some waterbirds to get stranded.

Second: They are open and safe from predators.

Being out in the open when you're a small, vulnerable bird seems like a bad idea, but it might actually be brilliant.

"Most of the bird species mentioned (e.g. Canada geese, seagulls, grackles) tend to find safety in numbers, and in parking lots, as well as open fields, it is easier for the group to be aware of predators, since there are not a lot of places to hide," says Dr. Allison Sacerdote-Velat, Curator of Biology and Herpetology and VP of Conservation Research at the Peggy Notebaert Nature Museum.

That helps explain not just birds' presence in parking lots, but their sometimes extremely large numbers! In a big group, they can help lookout for one another.

Well-lit parking lots are also a safe place for birds to hang out at night. Crows, for example, are a common food source for owls—a predator with notoriously excellent night vision. Crows don't operate as well at night so they sometimes descend on parking lots with bright artificial lights for better visibility and protection.


Three: They're full of free food.

Oh, do we humans love to litter in parking lots! They seem to make an excellent place to toss half a hot dog, a gristly chicken nugget, or dump out our toddler's snack bowl.

That makes parking lots relative buffets for birds who like to scavenge for food. It's a lot easier to wait for humans to drop something than it is to go hunting around for insects and seeds. Parking lots, though, just so happen to have a lot of that kind of food too—most big box parking lots have trees, shrubs, and bushes around the periphery which gives cover and access to natural food sources for birds.

Parking lots also collect puddles which can be used as a water source or a way to grab a quick bath.

gif of a flock of birds flying over scientists Schitts Creek Attack GIF by CBCGiphy

Four: Their usual habitats are disappearing thanks to humanity and climate change

Probably the saddest reason that birds love to gather in parking lots is that they often don't have another choice.

"Habitats such as mudflats, plains, and old fields would provide a similar resource," as parking lots, according to Sacerdote-Velat, but those natural ecosystems are getting harder and harder to come by. If you live in an urban or suburban area (with plenty of parking lots) you've probably seen rapid expansion that's cleared out fields and trees to make room for more development. This habitat destruction has been a major factor in the overall bird population in the United States declining by almost 3 billion since 1970—a staggering, heartbreaking number.

Some people get annoyed or even frightened by large numbers of birds in parking lots. To be fair, grackles—big-time parking lot birds—can be fairly aggressive, as can geese. It's not fun navigating your way around a flock of stubborn and feisty birds when you're just trying to grab a shopping cart and run your errands!

But remember, they're just looking for a safe space to not get eaten by an owl. It's not their fault all the open fields and mudflats are gone—it's ours. The least we can do is respectfully share the back half of our Walmart parking lots with them. Just don't feed them old French fries or even bird seed. They're crafty foragers, these parking lot birds, and they'll do just fine with a couple hundred of their brethren helping them keep a lookout.

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Health

Bra company CEO wants his male employees to know what it’s like to have large breasts

Their boss mandates it.

via PrimaDonna/YouTube

The male employees of PrimaDonna try on their "breasts."

Let's face it, it's a lot easier to be a man than a woman. Although men die four years earlier than women, they get to live without the extra burdens of menstrual cramps, lower pay, the pain of childbirth, heightened threat of violence, and, on the benign but annoying side, the feeling of a bra strap digging into their backs.

But now, the CEO of a bra company is making the men who work for him experience what it's like to wear a bra and have large breasts so they can understand what many women go through every day.

One day a year, PrimaDonna CEO Ignace Van Doorselaere makes his male employees wear simulated E-cup-sized breasts for an entire work day. "There is only one way for a man to realize what an E-cup feels like, and that is having an E-cup," Van Doorselaere says.

In order to simulate the feeling of carrying around E-cup-sized breasts, the men wear weights hung around their necks. "Let's be honest, an E-Cup can weigh up to 1 or 1.5 kilograms (2.2 to 3.5 lbs) per breast," Van Doorselaere says. "This is a lot. It hurts your neck. It hurts your back. Imagine you are that woman. Carry those breasts for an entire day. That's why you need good support. Good support is important. Everybody at PrimaDonna knows that now."

BodyWell Healthcare notes that not having a supportive bra can do a lot of damage to all women, but especially those with larger breasts. Just some of the issues are those already outlined by Doorselaere: neck pain, shoulder pain, headaches, back tension, poor posture and hunching, and breast and chest pain.

Because breasts are mainly made up of mammary glands and soft tissue with support structures like Cooper's Ligaments around them, they need a lot of exterior support as well. Just due to natural movement throughout the day like exercise, walking, jogging, commuting, etc, breasts are subject to a lot of movement that can be damaging to the soft tissue and stretch out the ligaments. These problems can lead to pain, sagging, and loss of skin elasticity.

Wearing a good bra, then, comes with a lot of benefits for all women. A properly-fitted and supportive bra can prevent sagging, enhance natural shape, offer support and weight distribution for the breasts, provide comfort, and even boost confidence.

Looks like these men are learning the truth about breast pain and the need for support goes a long way.


This article originally appeared eight years ago.

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