Should Your Family Get a Pet?

Are your kids steadily wearing you down on the topic of getting a puppy? Are you convinced that a "low-maintenance" pet like a turtle or fish will be a happy compromise for everyone? Here are some important points to consider if you are thinking about getting a family pet.

Amy and Margaret discuss:

• Their soon-to-be-patented "pet decision matrix"
• Why smaller, "lower maintenance" pets are NOT less work than bigger ones
• How having a pet affects things like family travel, budget, and household labor

Here are links to some of the resources mentioned in the episode:

• Malinda Larkin for AVMA: "Pet population continues to increase while pet spending declines"
• Jacob Bogage for The Washington Post: "Americans Adopted Millions of Dogs During the Pandemic. Now What Do We Do With Them?"
•  Lisa Damour for NYT: "What Do Teenagers Need? Ask the Family Dog"
• View our pet decision matrix!

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What Fresh Hell is co-hosted by Margaret Ables and Amy Wilson.

mom friends, funny moms, parenting advice, parenting experts, parenting tips, mothers, families, parenting skills, parenting strategies, parenting styles, busy moms, self-help for moms, manage kid’s behavior, teenager, tween, child development, family activities, family fun, parent child relationship, decluttering, kid-friendly, invisible workload, default parent, family pet, family dog, family cat, pet care, getting a pet

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