Even though emotional support animals come with the purpose of offering their owners therapeutic benefits, looking after them can be at times exhausting and stressful. No matter how trying your pet can get, they will always love you and you will always love them. Here are 7 ways you can show your ESA how much you love them and how much you care:

1. Exercise with Them: Exercising with your pet is a great way for the both of you to get in shape. In addition to burning calories, you will also get an opportunity to connect with your good friend. Regular exercise is a crucial part of keeping your ESA healthy, and without which they can gain extra pounds and more prone to illnesses.

2. Feed Them Sufficiently: Feeding your pet all the good stuff is another way to show them care and affection. However, you should be extra careful when selecting the type of treats or food for your breed of animal. Check online, go to pet stores and check with your vet to receive information about the recommended types of treats and foods.

3. Take Them for Frequent Checkups: Frequent visits to the vet are not only ideal for your pet, but also for your wallet. Identifying an illness early, such as urinary tract infections and food allergies, can help avoid or cure these problems before they worsen or become extremely costly to manage. Homeopathic remedies can be used for treating and preventing these type of illnesses for the general health of your pet.

4. Give Them Proper Attention And Affection: Even though this is true for cats and dogs, remember that birds and fish also require constant love and dedication to thrive. Like human beings, animals are also social creatures, which is why you need to take time out and spend it with your ESAs so they can get their much-needed physical and mental stimulation. You can do this by:

• Giving your ESA plenty of room, because the bigger your pet is, the more room he/she will need
• Buying play sets and toys for your ESA to use together.
• Giving them the occasional treat after good behavior to encourage it and solidify good habits.

5. Grooming Your Pet: Regular grooming is a good way to care for your emotional support animal. The basics of grooming include:

• Trimming the nails to prevent problems when walking
• Bathing to reduce itching and make them more comfortable
• Brushing their teeth to prevent bad breath
• Brushing their hair to prevent hair loss

6. Provide Positive Reinforcement: Whenever your ESA poops in the wrong place or behaves badly, treat them nicely instead of punishing or yelling at them for the good things they achieved. Positively reinforcing your pet’s behavior helps them to learn quickly and behave themselves in the future.

7. Ear & Eye Care: Pets, particularly dogs and cats, are prone to ear mites and infection. Both afflictions are treatable and steps can be taken to cut down on the number of times your pet suffers from ear problems. The best pet ear care an owner can provide is to keep your pet’s ears clean and dry, and give the ears a quick inspection during daily grooming sessions.

Similarly, eye problems are also common in ESAs, so look out for symptoms such as redness, watery or swelling eyes. It could be a minor issue or something serious, which is why you need to inspect your pet’s eyes daily and keep the surrounding fur clean.