Pulver 1

Allison Pulver

Mrs. Cramer

Comp 1 Pd.8

15 May 2020

Man’s Best Friend

For thousands of years humans have domesticated animals and called them “pets”. There

are thousands of different pets on this planet that someone could own. From exotic pets to the

common household cat, there are thousands of different options out there. But what pet is the

best? Everyone has their preferences based on which animal they think is the cutest, but if one

would look at statistics, which one comes out on top? The answer to that question is dogs. The

following sources have reoccurring and similar ideas around the health benefits and teach life

skills that having a pet dog has.

One subject that the experts address are the health benefits that come with owning a dog.

There have been several studies done on how owning a dog causes better overall health. Studies

have shown that this is true. One study showed that owning a dog can decrease blood pressure

and lower stress levels significantly. They also stated “that older dog owners take 2,760 more

steps per day on average compared to non-owners, which amounted to an additional 23 daily

minutes of moderate exercise.” Another source stated that dogs improve cardiovascular health

and cause fewer heart attacks. These two sources have a similar idea that dogs cause an increase

in heath and have great health benefits. Overall, the text shows one reason why a pet dog is the

best pet to have, but there are still people who would disagree with this.
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Although dogs have great health benefits, some people disagree with the fact that dogs

are the best pet. Some believe that dogs are a bad pet because of how costly they can be. One

source addresses the issue that dogs must go to the vet which can be costly. This is true, but there

are ways to make sure the bill doesn’t get too high by making sure that the dog is healthy, so

there would be no unnecessary charges. Another sorce states that the cost of food and damage

costs can be extremely costly. While this is true in some ways, there are several ways to lower

prices and completely cut out some of the spending's. One way to save money is by buying food

in bulk. This is a great way to save money over time. Another way to save money is to train the

dog to not damage any of the stuff in the house, which would completely cut out the damage

costs. In all, these issues are not big ones because there are ways to prevent them or make them

smaller.

Another topic that experts address is that dogs teach life skills to people. An example of

this would be responsibility. When getting a pet, it's obviously a big responsibility, but some pets

require more work than others. The person must feed, exercise, and play with the dog on a daily

basis. This can be a good obsticle because this can make people become more responsible, which

is a life skill. Another life skill that dogs can teach is to be more empathetic. One source stated

that people that grow up with a dog as a pet are more empathetic towards animals and more

empathetic in general. These ideas are similar because they show that owning a dog improves

and teaches life skills. In all this is another way that shows that dogs are the best pet.

Although dogs teach life skills, some people still believe that dogs are the best pet

because dogs bark. Dogs are known for being loud sometimes and this can definitely be an issue

and annoying on top of that. This can cause noise complaints and could cause serious problems

in the neighborhood. This may be a problem at first, but this is not a problem that is unfixable.
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Dogs are easy to train, so with some training anyone could teach a dog to be quiet in no time.

Another way to avoid this problem is to get a dog breed that is generally quieter. By choosing to

get a certain breed of dog that would eliminate some costs and inconveniences such as grooming

costs and loud barking. The problem of dogs barking would no longer be a problem if these

precautions and trainings took place. This is another way that shows that dogs are the best pets.

Overall, the following sources have shown reoccurring and similar ideas around the

health benefits and teach life skills that having a pet dog has. From health benefits such as

reduced chances of heart attacks, to life lessons like responsibilities there are several different

benefits that come from owning a dog as a pet. There are several sides that was discussed, but in

the end, it showed that dogs are the best pets because of the different benefits they have.