Tell us what your pets mean to you - for a chance to win a Fitbit Alta plus a copy of Finding Gobi. Now closed.

They mean the world and are part of the family. they have grown up with the kids! x

My pet means everything to me because she pulled my daughter out of depression and got her moving again. My daughter had had 3 knee operations and 2 spinal operations and a device fitted into her spine. She was depressed and didn't want to move of the sofa because it hurt. So I got her a newfoundland puppy and made it her responsibility to train it. That little puppy rescued my daughter. We added a rescue 6 year old newfoundland to our family who loves to cuddle and will cuddle up with my daughter on the settee if she is having a bad day. They got her walking and playing and she has greatly exceeded doctors expectations because of those dogs. Xx

As far as I'm concerned pets make a house a home. Struggling with serious mental illness they've been my crutches, my reason to get up in the morning, forced me out of the house and acted the family clown to make me smile. They give everyone unconditional love, don't judge and always come up with solutions to problems (albeit rather limited to "rub my tummy", "take us for a walk" and "lets have a game" but that's 3 more suggestions than mental health services!) Everywhere you look it seems people are making millions about selling 'mindfulness' and living in the present and what they are really saying is "be more dog". Currently one is watching tennis, one is on her back legs to get a good look at a baby blackbird on the bird table and the other is fast asleep in the shade, on her back, snoring away. Yep, we could learn a lot from animals!

I love my cats, Maisie (female) & Trigger (male) who were rescue cats. Maisie is very clingy and loves cuddles, whereas Trigger is exactly the opposite, he just wants to be fed and left alone (typical male!).

My cats Charlie and Megan mean the world to me, always there to soften the blow after a bad day.

Part of our family :)

Our dog is the heart of our family.
He always listens to our problems.
Will never judge or criticise.
Unites us for a walk whatever the weather
and loves us all unconditionally.
We could all learn a lot from them!

Our dog is the dog with the waggiest tail, but he saves his special moving his back like an 'S' tail wag when he sees us, and we love him dearly too!

We have three Siamese cats. One old lady and two 9 month old kittens (who were semi rescue as we bought them at 6 months) The kittens were bought to replace our 9 year old cat Cosmo who was killed last year while crossing a road to visit the children in a nursery (we hadn't known he was doing this but we did know that he was extremely sociable - car was going so fast in a 30mph zone outside a nursery and by a lollipop crossing the witness couldn't even take its number ); you're not supposed to have favourites but he was . We'd always said no cat could replace the big softy - and we were right, it needed two cats, each of whom have different elements of his large character. We called them Niles and Frasier which suits their characters perfectly.

They make the house a home. It's wonderful to see the kittens gambolling chasing each other across the garden. We'd missed seeing the white cats in the garden (the old cat didn't go out as much without her "brother") - so they've filled a hole.

It's taken 3 months but old cat is finally starting to accept the two younger ones (as seen in the photo) - although she still hisses at them if they encroach too much to show who is the top cat

The other photo is of our beloved Cosmo, taken a couple of weeks before he was killed. He'd taken to sitting in the planter (I'd run out of plants to fill it and then didn't have the heart to do so)

Pets are so lovely, they keep us company and teach children responsibility. Since our gerbils went, we have been without pets and they are dearly missed. (Waiting for details of my job transfer before hopefully getting a dog)

Our gorgeous llasa apso genuinely saved my life. I have struggled with depression most of my adult life and before having my daughter she was my reason to wake up in the morning. I honestly believe dogs should be given on prescription for depression! She makes me smile, cuddles up with me when I'm down, makes me leave the house and talk to people when we go for walks. She is one in a million!

And now she is a best friend to my daughter who is struggling with social and communication issues. She is her constant companion and will not leave her side when my daughter is ill or upset. She plays with her, cuddles her and my daughter learns about responsibility and friendship without the fear of being judged.

Sadly, she is 14 now and we know we will not have her forever. This breaks my heart. We will be bereft when she's gone

We have always had dogs in the family and equally all the family have loved the dogs. They give us a focus, great to get out and enjoy walking and they give unconditional love in return. They are the best friend to turn too whenever things go wrong as they love you just as much whatever.

Our little rescue terrier is a member of the family. He is incredibly loving, great company and much nicer to me than my teens!

We have two rescue Siamese; one is almost blind. They are brilliant with the boys and throw themselves at the kids when they walk through the door. They especially enjoy jumping into laps, farting then racing out the room.

When im down and feeling blue,
I hug my horse and when I do,
My spirits lift and I'm not so sad,
With my arms wrapped round my big strong lad,
He's always there to make me smile,
Having a pet is so worthwhile.
They pick you up when you feel blue and give you something worthwhile to do.
You can rely on them right to the end, because they will always be your friend.!

We have two cats and a dog I wouldn't be without any of them, the dog is my daughters best friend she has mild learning difficulties and after a bad day at school she's soon laughing with the dog, my cats are very loving although I am their servant 😻

My pets mean the world to me - we have two dogs, Shadow, a German Shepherd and Bono, a Black lab. In addition, we have 8 cats. We don't have a large house but we have also fostered dogs for the IRR (Irish Retriever Rescue).

We have never been without at least one cat and, as soon as my husband and I bought our first house, we got a dog - Barney, a Golden Retriever. Every one of our dogs and most of our cats have been rescued - there are so many beautiful creatures in need of a loving home, that we choose to rehome, rather than line a breeders pockets by choosing to pay for a puppy.

Our animals are our life - we have four children and they all adore our animals - the cats and dogs are all allowed to sleep in our bedroom and the dogs like to snuggle up on the sofa or share our bed.

The only thing we don't love is when their lives come to an end. We have had two cats killed on the road and last year we had to have one of our dogs put to sleep. It's horrible when that time comes but we firmly believe that when a family member has given us years of love and loyalty, the only way to repay this is by doing the right thing by them. When the time comes, I have to be with them until the end - they trust my husband and I and we make sure the last thing they are aware of is the sound of our voices, whispering love and praise in their ears and the feel of our hands as we give them a final rub and fuss.

Personally, i believe animals give back so much more than we give them. It is good for children to own pets, both in terms of learning how to treat them kindly and take responsibility for them and also to help overcome any fears.

My heart breaks every time we lose a much loved family member. But a testament to each pet is that we take on another to love, as we think that helps their legacy live on.

our 4 cats and dog are family members - we love them and include them in everything during our daily life

Our dog is a part of the family, he has made us much more outdoorsy, even in this awful weather! He's very cuddly and loving and he's my DS's best mate which is so heartwarming.

MipHound really does mean the world to me. I've always had pets (cats, dogs, hamsters,mice, rabbit and my brother had fish and water snails!) and they are just a part of me. I'm a shy introvert and I've always got on better with animals than humans! A few years ago the last of my dogs died and I simply couldn't afford to get another. Finally I got a job that could pay for one, that allowed insurance and food and vet bills etc. The job didn't work but I had MipHound by that point.

When we went to meet MipHound (I took my mum with me to keep my feet on my ground) his immediate greeting was to give me a huge hug. I fell in love instantly but fortunately the sensible part of me agreed that he was perfect. I still feel that - naughty but perfect. He has wonderful manners and you can put your dinner down in front of him but he won't touch it. He's a lot of work - he would barely go outside for the first week. I spent a lot of time sitting with him outside the front door before he had the confidence to go for walks. He didn't like water and still doesn't but he no longer lets it stop him doing anything he wants to. He also doesn't always let me calling him stop him from going where he wants!

I am a different person with MipHound. Within days people were saying they could see it. I'm lighter, life is pretty awful but he makes me smile. He knows how to get as laugh out of me. He's a typical male when it comes to me crying though - runs straight off! Taking him out everyday makes me get exercise but what he does for me is so much more than that. He trusts me absolutely. If I say something is non scary he accepts it except the evil hairdryer. He knows that I will keep him safe and well. He's had a good few accidents in his little life and he just comes and sits next to me knowing I will make it alright. How can you not feel love at that?

I am very unlikely to ever have children so yes, a fair bit of the love that would have gone to them goes to him instead. But he is always treated as a dog not as child. And it has been a delight to have seen him become more of a dog over the time I have been lucky enough to have him. I am genuinely proud of the dog he is, of the way strangers coo over him and the local kids all run up to him knowing his sweet nature. And I get to take him home.

Life is crap but with him I'm pretty damn lucky.

our dog is family, he's one of my babies and as much trouble as the kids.

Our cat and dog are part of our family, they show us unconditional love all the time and even, occasionally love each other too. Rufus is our 5 year old cocker and Tilly our 12 year old cat. We love them so much and enjoy making their lives as rich as we possible can, they will be such a short part of our lives but we are their whole life. Rufus loves spending his time we us as we do him, he is so crafty and amusing, he thinks we don't realise how he hovers around when we are cooking as he knows how clumsy we are and a treat will be arriving shortly. It's so sweet to seem him licking his lips after a great meal, raw mince being his favorite and he loves to chase bubbles in the garden - and of course socks on, trainers or a hoody are international signs of 'walkies' his happiest part of the day. Tilly can take us or leave us but as she has gotten older will sit with us for a while and allow us to rub her head, we are truly honored as she is not a people cat, as much as we would love her to be. They make our house feel like a home and our lives happier and healthier too, our family wouldn't be complete without them.

We got guinea pigs for our autistic son Tommy. And it's amazing to see the calming effect they have on Tom.

My cat is like an extra member of the family. She is a rescue cat and typically quite aggressive when she is unexpectedly or unwantedly touched. But she has been an absolute angel with DD since she was born. She understood DD was a human kitten and brought her food, tried to teach her to hunt, warded other cats away to keep her safe, etc.

My dog means the world to me. He's always there for me after a bad day - to nuzzle my face and cuddle with me. He always puts a smile on my face

My cat is also amazing, cuddling up to me and purring her wee heart out 💕
Just don't know where I'd be without my pets