Family Pets - question for all Pet Talk people

[Pam]

Good thread! There was always a dog in the house when I was growing up. There was also the occasional bunny, baby chicks and even a couple of chameleons. We never had a cat, though. My mom grew up on a farm in Virginia and animals were a big part of her life, though she remembers her dogs as being mostly outside dogs. My dad used to talk about a little Doxy that he had as a child called Fritzi. I even have a picture of Fritzi to this day.

I think my generation takes much better care of our animals (more "well visits" for innoculations, etc. to the vets, and better food) than my parents' generation. My mom's dogs were all fed table scraps but lived good long lives.

[Louie and me]

My grandmother always had a dog. The first I remember was a black cocker spaniel called Pip. When Pip died she got a mutt called Rusty. My niece now has a cat called Maisie and my brother and sister in law just lost their springer spaniel Cody.
My parents, parents in law and sister were never "pet" people and while they tolorated our various dogs, they were not exactly enthusiastic. Too bad - they don't know what they missed.