To Use Pet Strollers or Not?
The Debate – To Use A Pet Stroller or Not?
In this day and age of living in excess will no facet of our lives be left untouched? When did it become chic to stroll around the park (a place for active dogs and people to play fetch, Frisbee, and chase squirrels) with your dog in a PET STROLLERS? What happened to the days of jogging with your pet next to you to keep you both young and trim? Could a dog stroller really be healthy for your pet? What are people thinking?
I must say I was very skeptical about the idea of a pet stroller the first time I saw one. I thought the owners must be lazy and couldn’t possibly be in touch with the physical needs of their four-legged friend! I would shake my head in disbelief, until I started looking at just who was strolling along in their pet strollers with their owners in tow.
In trying to keep an opened mind about pet strollers I decided I would talk with people and get their perspective on why a pet stroller was just what they needed. The first lady told me that her little dog loved to go on walks through the park but his little legs got tired after about 20 minutes and he just couldn’t keep up with her pace. Happy Trails Pet Stroller for him so she could continue on her quest for better health.
The next person I spoke to was pushing a rather large dog in the Expedition Pet Stroller. I couldn’t believe the size of this dog stroller or the dog for that matter. Could pet strollers really be necessary for a large dog? This person had an older dog who once ruled the park running from end to end playing fetch and feeling the cool breeze in his fur. Now his owner would stroll with him through the park in his dog stroller because he had bad hips that made it impossible for him in his old age to walk such distances. You could tell he really enjoyed the trips even though he could not run amongst the pups. Pet strollers where a life saver for this good ole dog!
Day two of observation…along comes a lady with a pink pet stroller and two cats! So I just have to stop her and ask what she is thinking. She stated that her cats love to be outside but could never be safe - Now she says the cats can go outside int their pet stroller without the fear of being chased or scared off by a dog in the neighborhood. They love it she reported.
Then there was the man jogging with a jogging pet stroller! I came along side of him just as he was beginning his cool down! Thank goodness for me! He said his dog liked to be out in the fresh air but definitely couldn’t go the long distances he would run each day. So, he got the dog stroller and would run with the dog and then he would plop down in the jogging pet stroller while his owner would finish his run. His dog jogger had a cool feature where the large front wheel was stationery so it did not wobble while he was running! Pet strollers are getting more useful by the minute at least from the perspective of the people I spoke to.
Okay, so pet strollers are not always used as a luxury item even though the pet strollers that I viewed all featured “parent trays” to hold drinks and keys and had large storage baskets for toy and some even had covers to keep the rain or cold air out of the pet stroller. I have found people that find pet strollers most useful to take their pets, both dogs and cats alike to the vet, animal shows, through the airport, even the journey to get to the park to play. I have found some pet strollers that even feature a removable pet carrier that can be strapped into your car’s seat! But mostly people are just concerned with getting out and being active with their pets while still providing a refuge for them when they need to rest but their owners are still on the go! So, I guess to each his own – every pet owner I met understood the need for their pet to get physical exercise and was just trying to provide more outdoor time for their beloved pet with the use a pet strollers this was easily obtained for them!
