50 Secrets Pets Won't Tell You

I got this month's Readers Digest delivered to my Nook the other day. On the cover, an article about 50 secrets your pets won't tell you by Michelle Crouch.  It was an interesting article!

I won't share all 50 secrets here - some of which I already knew - but I will share a few that peaked my interest:

1.  You think my tail wagging is always an invitation for your to pet me more.  Wrong!  Italian researchers found that dogs wag their tails slightly to the right when they see something they like and to the left when they are confronted with something they want to back away from.

3.  Your favorite cat game to play with me involves a laser pointer.  The result:  I get really frustrated because I can't catch it, and I live for the hunt.  So if you're going to use a pointer, please sub in an actual toy at the end so I have something to catch and kill.  It makes the game worth it.

6.  Please don't rush me when I'm going to the bathroom - there's a reason dogs circle around before getting down to business:  We have an instinct to be aligned with the earth's magnetic field before we poop.  In fact, researchers watched 70 of us engage in 1,893 defecations over a two - year period just to figure this out.

19.  Please, please can I choose my own bed?  The most comfortable one will depend on how I sleep.  Let me try out a few in a pet store.  If I usually sleep with my legs sprawled out, I'll be more comfortable on a flat bed without sides bumpers.  But if I like to curl up, I'll probably love a bumper bed.

31.  Just because I'm purring doesn't mean I'm happy and content.  I also purr when I'm in pain or mortally afraid because it's a self soothing mechanism.

There you have just a few examples.  You should check out the full article at rd.com!