Do you remember how things were before you became a pet parent? Having your companion animals has made these the best years of your life and you just cannot imagine your life without them, right? Okay, maybe that’s a little dramatic, but true for some people. You learn new things when you adopt a furry, feathery or scaly pet, like where their favorite place to hid treats is, that shedding fur sticks to everything, and that patience is a virtue.

Something happens when you have a companion animal in your life. You start developing strange and unexplainable traits that are 100 percent attributed to the hypnotic cuteness of pets and their brainwashing abilities.

In celebration of February being Responsible Pet Guardian Month, here is a list of ten fascinating traits of truly loving companion animal guardians.

1. You appear to be a little crazy

You have given your pet his or her very own voice to “speak” with that sounds a bit like a cartoon character. Now you two can have conversations! To non-animal guardians, this is a bizarre phenomenon they absolutely do not understand.

2. You’re great at sharing space

Making your dog get off your spot on the couch is not an option — he looks super comfortable and you always feel bad for making him move. Same thing with the people bed. If the dog, cat or pig is already in place, wedge your way into any open sleep spot.

3. You look like your dog or cat in a photo and it’s not on purpose

Ever get that erie feeling when you realize a picture you just took with your dog (or cat) was not posed? Is it that you’re starting to look like your dog or is your dog starting to look like you? Probably nothing to worry about — you both just happened to be making the EXACT same facial expression at exactly the same time. Not creepy at all.

4. You always talk about your “kids”

When friends start talking about their kids, you relate back with talks of your furry kids! Awesome. And on social media you’ve posted something like, “Meet the newest addition to our family!” with a picture of a newly rescued guinea pig. Comments under the post say how much he looks like you and “Congratulations!” These people are also pet parents and totally get you.

5. Your fashion sense is fabulous

Putting a tie or bow on your dog or cat is completely normal, and when you see a little baby sweater at the mall you announce, “That would look so cute on my doggie!”

6. You take the day off to care for the ill

Your animal companion is sick or just had surgery so you call in sick to work because, well, you don’t feel good now because they don’t feel good. Logical to loving animal guardians? Absolutely!

7. You always have an out

You never get stuck at boring dinner parties. To get out of this situation you simply announce that you have to get going because your dog probably needs to go outside. Trapped at a family function where you feel like stabbing someone? You know what to do: 1) Head for the door, 2) Don’t stop moving, 3) If questioned about your early departure say, “It’s been a while and Bailey is probably holding in a number two. I should get back home,” and then poof! You’re free!

8. You have a Facebook photo album labeled “My Family” 

This album is mostly full of your animal family members. Got human family members? They will NOT be in this album unless they are just as cute or cool as your furry baby.

9. You constantly share photos on social media of your “kids”

Your furry companion does something funny or embarrassing and you can’t help but to upload a picture to Facebook immediately. Or, maybe you look like a crazy cat person since the number of cat posts you share equals to that of your friends posting about their human children.

10. You spend more money on stuff for your little guy or girl than on yourself

So what if you could have really used that bottle of wine. Your budget is twenty dollars, but you have to get that cute dog or cat toy you just saw. Actually, let’s not get too crazy here. Get the toy AND select a different bottle of wine, one that eats up the remainder of the twenty after the price of that doggie or kitty-must-have toy.

Image source: ejchang / Flickr