Loving pet parents by no means uncommon

Perhaps you think you love your pets more than anyone on the planet has ever loved any critter ever — you dote on them, snuggle them, feed only the best foods, buy them the best toys, supply them posh accommodations... if it’s available, your fur-child has it.

A loved pet is pretty easy to spot.

They have neatly trimmed and styled fur, manicured toes, may be adorned by bows, fancy collars and occasionally cute little outfits. The house is littered with chewed toys, usually not far from a fluffy faux-fur bed that any right-minded human would envy.

Then there are the tell-tale dynamics.

When the humans get up and start to move about, the critters get excited because in their minds their people only go on the move to do things for them — snacks, food, bathroom breaks, playtime — in fact, everything in the house is about them. Routines are set around their needs and even vacations are planned, or skipped altogether depending on whether they can tag along.

And there is always something special just for them, especially on Valentine’s Day, the day set aside to show love to those who hold the most special places in the heart.

If you happen to be one of the aforementioned pet people, it may be interesting to know you are not alone, and in fact, probably don’t love your pet more than anyone else.

More than $750 million is expected to be spent just on pets this Valentine’s Day, based on estimates from a survey conducted by finder.com, a personal finance comparison website.

In a survey of 2,100 people, finder.com found that almost 30 percent planned to buy gifts for their dogs on the day of love and 17 percent for their cats — at an average of more than $20 respectively, according to a press release.

Those figures are a marked increase over $681 million in pet-Valentines Day spending in 2016, as estimated by the National Retail Federation.

A whopping 84 percent of pet owners also admit they show more affection to their critters than to their partners, according to another survey of 3,771 pet owners conducted by the pet camera maker Petcube.

Not only are pets at the center of their people’s hearts, they may just help in the human love department. According to Petcube, 76 percent of people find a romantic partner more attractive if they have a pet, 9 percent report they have broken up with someone over a pet and 25 percent have taken their pet on a date with them.

And yes, overtures of love to pets are apparently the norm with 91 percent of pet owners reporting they tell their pets they love them and 32 percent admitting they kiss their critters on the lips (presumably it was an anonymous survey, do make sure pets are dewormed prior to smooching).

As it turns out, as special as it may be to the individual, loving one’s pets appears to be a pretty un-unique experience — though it may be hard to convince the critters of that when the heart-shaped biscuits get handed out today.

Sharna Johnson is a writer who is always searching for ponies. You can reach her at: [email protected].