National Pet Day 2025
Image Credit: Andrew Branch
National Pet Day is held on 11th April each year.
It's a special day for all animal lovers, as you celebrate your furry, feathery, finny and scaly friends!
What Is National Pet Day?
National Pet Day is an annual awareness event which was created by Colleen Paige. Originally founded to promote pet adoption and animal welfare, it has spread to become a worldwide celebration and appreciation of the important role that pets play in our lives.
They're our friends, our companions, they can even be our reason to get up in the moring - especially if they want a walk!
Why Are Pets So Important?
Humans have domesticated animals for thousands of years.
It is probable that dogs were first domesticated animals - they may have been kept as pets since Paleolithic times. These dogs were bred as working animals to aid hunting and foraging for food.
Cat were first domesticated as working animals too - mainly to keep rodents away from homes and more importantly food stores. Over time we came to love our animals rather than just regarding them as workers. In ancient Egypt for example, pets were regarded as family members,
The term "pet" first appeared in the 16th century, originally referring to a hand-raised lamb.
Today, pets are our friends, and the term pet has evolved to mean any animal that we keep for pleasure. They don't have to be cuddly and cute either!
Some of the more unusual animals which can be kept as pets include stick insects, snakes, goats, spiders or even an axolotl!
How Can I Celebrate National Pet Day?
It's easy!
Just show your pet some love. Feed your pet it's favourite dinner, give it that bit more attention and affection. Just show it how much you love it!
If you are thinking about getting a pet, consider adoption. There are thousands of lovely animals at your local shelters looking for someone who loves them.
If you are not in a position to have a pet at the moment, make a donation to your favourite animal charity.
National Pet Day Activities & Printables
Here are lots of pet-themed fun things to do, crafts to try and lots of printables for National Pet Day.
- Pet Animal Wordsearch
- Easy & Hard Dog Wordsearches
- Cat Printable Puzzles
- Cat Colouring Pictures
- Marley & Me Printables
- Fish Wordsearch
- Goldfish Colouring Picture
- Llama Wordsearch
Nature lovers can have masses of ourdoor fun at any time of year by organising their own nature scavenger hunt. A scavenger hunt is a great waay to make a walk into a learning experience, by making all the participants really observe the world around them.
Get out into nature and keep the kids occupied!