Virgo (August 23 to September 22)

You can identify Virgo pets by their extremely finicky behaviors and distaste for being dirty!



Appearance:

The Virgo animal has a lean build and a well-shaped, slightly pointed head. They show an early aversion to dirt and spend more time than other signs carefully grooming themselves. They're very uncomfortable when their things - or your things, for that matter - are chaotic.


Personality:

These picky animals are shy and careful about who they let near them. Even with other animals, they tend to sit back and wait until approached, at which point they'll look surprised and irritated, then get up and move away a few steps. They peek into a room before quietly entering it, inspecting and sniffing everything in their path before approaching you. They then keep a polite distance, even after they've determined that it's okay for you to be there. They don't like being handled by strangers and make their distaste known quickly. They can't tolerate rough handling, noisy environments, teasing and chaos. They respond better to organized environments and quiet adults. They're high strung and easily upset, so exercise some care when planning your pet's activities. They're overly affectionate but they will indulge a certain amount of contact as long as they've invited it. They need fresh air and a clean, organized environment to be happy and relaxed.


Playtime:

When they're young, Virgo pets often keep a polite distance from other animals and humans. They prefer investigating their environment to playing and will sometimes snap if you try to involve them in activities they don't want to participate in, especially rough or noisy games. They don't like being touched too frequently and will allow you only a certain amount of physical contact during a day. Still, these are active animals that get a particular thrill out of being in sight but out of reach. High places, like shelves, tops of furniture and windows, are their favorite places in the house. Regular exercise is important to them and they're very good about keeping themselves active and entertained. They don't need you or other pets to be happy and given a choice, many of them prefer solitude. Going off by themselves is their signal that they're being over stimulated and need silence.


Family:

The family of a Virgo pet should be small, organized and adult. As a rule, small children and other animals upset them and create a type of nervous tension that shows itself as irritability. They're finicky eaters who refuse to eat what they don't like. They prefer to eat when no one else is around, so the chances of them eating while you are in the kitchen is slim. It's also not a good idea to divide up the feeding chores among several members of the family - the fewer people handling their food, the better. These animals don't get along well with children beaus their tolerance level for shenanigans is extremely low and their irritability level is very high.


Discipline:

A firm word is usually enough to stop them from repeating an inappropriate action. They love to dismantle or pick things apart so giving them a toy specifically for that purpose will help keep them from destroying your things. A Virgo pet is more likely than other pets to show visible signs of stress. They don't like chaotic environments and will frequently exhibit undesirable and destructive behaviors when their routines and sensitivities are out of kilter. Aggressive behavior is unusual for them so before you discipline them, find out what is disturbing them.


Treat Time:

The best rewards for a Virgo pet are things to help them with their grooming, such as a long brushing session or chewy treats that help with dental care. They don't like perfume so stick with unscented, all natural products. Massages help to relax them and keep them friendly - but keep your touch light and confident. This is one animal who actually seems to enjoy being bathed and trimmed. They can have a good time going for a walk on nice days, but you'll have a real unhappy camper on your hands if you take them out on a rainy or messy day. Of course, when that does happen, they'll be busy for hours cleaning themselves off.