This is Be Kind to Animals month.

The saying goes that every dog has its day. Well, each May, dogs, cats, rabbits, fish, birds, and any other kind of animal you can name, have an entire month devoted especially to them. Be Kind to Animals Month is a great reminder of how we should treat our furry, feathered, finned, and scaly friends this month and throughout the year.

The Be Kind to Animals movement was started in 1915 by the American Humane Society as a celebration of animals—both wild and tame. Whether it’s taking your dog out for a walk, spreading some bird feed outside, or making sure your pet has a clean, safe, place to sleep, caring for animals is our responsibility. From the very beginning, God gave humans authority over the earth and its inhabitants: “Be masters over the fish and birds and all the animals” (Genesis 1:28). That doesn’t mean we can do anything we want to God’s creatures. Rather, it means that we should care for God’s creation as he cares for us.

Here are 10 ways you can get involved in being kind to the animals in your life:

• Speak out for animals.
• Report animal cruelty whenever you see it.
• Adopt a pet from a shelter.
• Identify your pets with tags.
• Appreciate wildlife.
• Leave room in your yard for habitats for wildlife.
• Make a bird or bat house.
• Be a good role model for your friends in treating all animals with care.
• Volunteer at your local animal shelter.
• Keep on the lookout for stray or injured animals.
• Remember, whenever you show kindness to the critters God created, you also are pleasing him.

Good people take care of their animals, but wicked people are cruel to theirs. (Proverbs 12:10, Today’s English Version).

To Do

Spend an extra few minutes playing with your pet today. Or if you don’t own one, help a friend who does.

Also on this day . . .

1783—The first daily newspaper was published in America.

1848—W.G. Young patented the ice cream freezer.

From Betsy Schmitt and Dave Veerman, 365 Trivia Twist Devotions: An Almanac of Fun Facts and Spiritual Truth for Every Day of the Year (Cincinnati: Standard, 2005). Scripture quotations are from the New Living Translation unless otherwise noted.