and you're listening to episode 17 of the Listening Time podcast.
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So in this episode, I'm going to talk about pets.
This is a popular topic.
I think a lot of you probably have pets and like to talk about your pets.
So this should be good.
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So, all right, let's get started.
Are your ears ready?
You know what time it is.
It's listening time.
Okay, so today we're going to talk about pets.
Pets are animals that you keep with you at your house.
So they're not wild animals, they're domesticated.
We use the word domesticated to talk about animals that have been trained to live with humans right.
They're not going to attack you or eat you.
They're friendly around humans.
So let's talk a little bit about some of the benefits, the advantages of having pets and some of the disadvantages of having pets.
First of all, I think the main benefit that people enjoy when they have a pet is the company of having this animal.
So this is more valid with animals like dogs and cats.
It might not be the same if you have a, I don't know, a bird or an iguana or something like that.
But for dogs and cats, they offer you companionship.
Companionship just means the act of being with someone else.
They're with you.
They live alongside you.
Usually they're friendly with you.
They're your companion.
So that's one of the main benefits of having pets, especially dogs, I think.
And another big benefit is that they force you to exercise regularly.
Again, this is talking primarily about dogs, but I think dogs are the most popular pet, so I'll use them as an example.
So when you have a dog, usually you have to take the dog out and walk the dog.
We use the verb walk to talk about putting your dog on the leash, that thing that you put around its neck and hold and you take him outside.
You walk the dog.
Okay, so when you walk the dog, you get exercise.
It forces you to be on your feet, walk, maybe even run, but it forces you to be active.
And so that's another benefit of having a dog in particular.
And one other benefit that having a pet gives is that it teaches children responsibility.
So in the US, for example, parents often buy their children some kind of pet to teach their children how to be responsible.
Right.
They have to take care of this other living creature.
They have to feed it and clean its environment and maybe play with it and give it water and all these different things.
So parents often use this to help children learn that they need to be responsible for other things and take care of other things and responsibilities.
So that's another advantage of pets.
So there are also disadvantages of having pets.
One of those disadvantages is that it takes time out of your day.
This could be a good thing, for example, if you really like walking your dog or I don't know feeding your pets or cleaning their cage.
If you really like these activities, then this isn't a big problem.
But for many of us this might be a disadvantage, because we have to take extra time out of our day to dedicate to this animal.
So that's one disadvantage.
Another disadvantage could be the space that the animal needs.
For example, if you're a dog owner, you know that dogs often need space, especially if you have a big dog.
If they don't have space to run around, then they can get very anxious or frustrated.
So this can limit you.
For example, if you want to buy an apartment or rent an apartment, but you have a dog and and that apartment doesn't have a lot of space, then you probably can't choose that option.
You have to choose a more expensive option with more space or with a backyard or an outdoor area.
So that could be a disadvantage as well.
And then one other disadvantage, one other con, as we say it, a con is the opposite of a pro.
A pro is an advantage and a con is a disadvantage.
So we say pros and cons.
One other con of having pets is that they can oftentimes disrupt your life.
The verb disrupt means to interfere or make changes to something in a way that wasn't planned.
So we call these interferences disruptions.
So, for example, maybe I'm working, I'm talking to a student and then the dog starts barking and disrupts my class.
In this case, this is a disruption.
It's some kind of interference that I didn't plan and I have to do something about it.
So this is an example of a disruption.
They can also disrupt your plans for like travel or things like that.
If you have many pets, it's hard to travel because you need to take care of these pets.
And so you might need to pay money or hire someone to watch your pets for you while you're gone.
And there's a lot that you need to think about, I think.
So let's talk about dogs in particular, and then we'll talk about cats.
We'll focus on these two animals.
So dogs are probably the most common type of pet.
I think in most countries, people like dogs in general.
And when people think of pets, they usually think of dogs first.
I know in some countries this might not be the case, but I'm speaking in general.
Here in the West, dogs are king.
So dogs are very popular pets for a number of reasons.
So let's talk about the pros and cons of owning a dog.
So the best thing about having a dog is that it can be like a friend sometimes.
Dogs are usually friendly.
They like being around humans.
As we say in English, dogs are man's best friend.
So we have that deep in our culture that dogs are friendly and are good companions to humans.
So if you come home from work, you open your door, your dog is always there, happy to see you.
They're super excited that you're home.
And this feels nice as the owner, right?
To have that attention from your animal.
So that's one big advantage.
Another pro is that dogs are fun.
You can actually play with them.
There are many types of activities and games that you can play with dogs.
And if you take them to the park or to a dog park, you can run around with them and Play fetch.
Fetch is the game where you throw the ball and the dog runs after it and brings it back to you.
This is called fetch in English.
So you can play fetch with them.
You can do many things with dogs.
They're really fun animals.
And dogs often play with each other.
So if you go to a dog park, the different dogs will play with one another.
And one other advantage of choosing a dog as a pet is that there's a huge variety of dogs.
So there's a different type of dog for different types of people.
Some people like small, easy dogs that don't take up a lot of space and you can just put them in your backpack.
They're super small.
Some people prefer those types of dogs and other people prefer big dogs that can guard your house and that are oftentimes smarter than small dogs.
So there are many types of dogs, many breeds of dogs, as we say.
A breed just means a type of dog.
So there are different breeds of dogs.
But some of the disadvantages of owning a dog include the barking.
So barking refers to the sound that dogs make, right?
When they're excited or angry or whatever, dogs bark a lot.
Some dogs bark more than other dogs.
But in general, if you're a dog owner, you have to deal with barking.
It's just a fact of life.
And it can disturb your neighbors and other people around you.
If you have a sleeping baby, a barking dog is not good.
So that's one con.
Another con is that you have to pick up after your dog.
We use the phrase pick up after your dog to talk about...
What happens when your dog goes to the bathroom?
So you can't just leave the product there.
You have to pick it up afterwards.
So I think everyone hates doing this, but if you're a dog owner and you're responsible, you have to do this.
You have to pick up after your dog, as we say.
And one other disadvantage is that you have to train dogs.
If you don't train your dog, your dog will not behave well.
It will be a very poorly behaving dog.
It will behave in a very bad way and cause problems and bark and jump on people.
And it just won't be good.
So it's always good to train dogs when they're young so that they develop good habits later on.
Now let's talk a little bit about cats.
So the advantages of having cats are a little bit different.
For example, cats are independent.
So this could be an advantage because you don't need to always spend time with them.
You don't need to dedicate as much effort or energy into into your cat like you do when you have a dog.
That's one advantage.
Another advantage is that cats are low maintenance in general.
This is similar to what I just said, but more than just being independent, they also don't require as much cleaning, as much training and those types of things, because they're different animals than dogs.
They behave differently.
They're not as dirty.
They don't cause as many problems.
They're low maintenance, as we say in English.
When we say that something is low maintenance, we just mean that it doesn't require a lot of your effort attention money energy, those things.
So cats are low maintenance animals.
And I think I also just mentioned they're clean compared to dogs.
Dogs make huge messes and you have to pick up after them.
With cats, I think it's easier.
I've never had a cat before, but cat owners tell me that cats are easier to clean and you don't have to do as much cleaning with them.
So some of the cons of having cats include the fact that they're not as friendly as dogs.
So if you're interested in having a pet that is a companion to you and You can play with all the time and pet.
We also use the word pet as a verb.
And we use it when we're talking about rubbing an animal with your hand.
So when you see a dog, you often pet that dog.
You touch it with your hand and you run your hand around. along its fur.
You are petting the dog.
So dogs are fun to pet, but oftentimes cats don't want to be pet.
So they're not quite as affectionate as dogs.
When something is affectionate, that means that it wants to be close to you and show you love.
So cats don't do this as much as dogs.
And another disadvantage of having cats is that many people are allergic to cats, myself included.
So I'm allergic to cats and I have problems with my eyes and my breathing every time I'm around a cat.
So many people have this same problem and so it can cause some problems if you want to invite people to your house because you might not know that that guest has a cat allergy.
They're allergic to cats and so it's not going to be a good time for them at your house.
So what are some of the other types of pets that people have besides cats and dogs?
Some people have birds like parrots and parakeets and things like that.
Other people have reptiles like snakes and turtles and iguanas.
Some people have fish, goldfish or fighting fish or... many different kinds.
And then there are also animals like rabbits or hamsters.
So I think that these animals are less common, but still many people enjoy them as pets because they usually require less effort, they're more low maintenance and it's less of a commitment.
Right.
When you buy a dog or you adopt a dog, this is a huge commitment.
Right.
But when you buy a fish, for example, this doesn't really require too much effort on your part.
So one last thing that I should mention is the way that people treat animals in different countries.
And this goes more for dogs than for other animals probably.
So in different countries, people treat dogs differently.
For example, in most countries around the world, People probably view dogs as dogs, animals.
They're not human.
They are very different.
And there's a big separation between dogs and people.
And there are many stray dogs.
A stray dog means that the dog doesn't have an owner.
It's just in the street.
This is called a stray dog.
So in many countries you see stray dogs everywhere and people don't really pay much attention to them.
But in countries like the U.S., people love dogs.
So people treat dogs very, very well.
You almost never see stray dogs everywhere.
If someone sees a stray dog, they'll immediately go up to it and see if it has a collar.
This is the necklace that dogs wear.
This is called a collar.
And they'll see if there's a phone number on the collar so they can call the owner and return the dog.
People don't like to see dogs in the street.
They feel very bad when they see them like this.
And in general, people often treat their dogs almost like children, right?
They treat their dogs as if they were kids.
I know many people like this.
I'm definitely not like this.
I'm not a big animal person in general, and I'm not a big dog person in general.
But I know many people like this, and...
Sometimes, when they're talking about their dog, it sounds like they're talking about their son or their daughter.
It's kind of funny.
So that's just something I wanted to mention.
If you're not used to that and you go to a country like the US, You'll be pretty surprised to hear how people talk about their animals, their dogs, and how they treat their dogs.
They often take them with them everywhere, to every restaurant and store, and they take them with them everywhere as if they were their son or daughter.
So let's stop there.
I hope you enjoyed this episode.
And hopefully this was good practice for your ears.
Remember to sign up for our $1 listening practice seminars at polyglossa.com.
And remember to give this podcast a like, a rating, a review, and share it with anyone else who might find it useful.
Thank you for listening to this episode and I hope you'll come back for episode 18 of the Listening Time podcast.
