Are you looking for a way to keep memories of your pets?  Do you need practical ways to track your pets daily care?  Maybe you would like to keep your pet’s key information all in one place.  

Hello, it’s Alex (@TheJournalCorner) from the Archer and Olive ambassador team.  Today we are going to create some pages for a ‘Pet Journal.’  

Whether it’s a dog, cat, smaller or bigger pet, this blog post will take you through some ideas to manage the day to day tasks and longer term tracking that is needed when committing to an animal.

Remember you can also find a video of my steps at the end of this page if you prefer to watch.  I have also created a printable to help save time setting up similar pages in your own journal.

Supplies needed

I am going to use an A5 journal for these pages but they can be adapted to suit other size journals too.  You may want something smaller and more transportable so you can take out and about with your pet.  You can see what Archer & Olive journals are currently available here.  

In addition to a journal, some of the ideas I am sharing today will also need pens such as the acrylographs and a writing pen.  A ruler will also be useful.  I have also use coloured paper with a paper punch and some inks to add decoration.  The paper in the Archer & Olive journals is 160gsm so thick enough to cope well if using ink pads and this is a quick way to add decoration too.  I will also explain how I have used sticker paper as a way to add photos in my journal.

If you are looking to purchase anything from Archer & Olive, please use ‘Alex10’ to save 10%. This is an affiliate code, so it allows you to support creators like me too.

Title Page

Of course the title page of a journal about your pets should definitely include a photo of some cute animals!  I have used a mini printer but you could print onto sticker paper or add actual photographs.  I have titled my journal a ‘Pet Log’ as it will be more of a record of our pets over the years.

I chose neutral colours for the headers in this journal.  The acrylograph paint pens work really well to colour in lettering and cover over any pencil lines too.

Key Information and Favourites Page

It is always useful to have key information to hand about your pets, for example their date of birth or ID number.  So for the top half of this page I included key details about our dog.  You may need to create more than one page like this if you have several pets.  I like the fact that I can quickly recall his ID number if needed.  You could include details of the original breeder or parents here too.

The lower part of this page allows space to note down the things your individual pet loves.  This could be a way to note the type and brand of food they eat to easily remember.  You might also use it to keep a record of things you want to remember e.g. favourite toys and games you play.

To decorate this page I used an ink pad and paw print stencil to create a quick and easy border.

Yearly Pet Diary

The next page I created in my A5 Archer & Olive journal was a January to December timeline.  This can be used as an overview of a year with your pet in many different ways.  You may want to track a health issue to see if it improves or monitor recovery from surgery.  This diary would work well for memories too, place you have visited with your pet, a favourite walk of the month etc.

I first split the page into half horizontally and then drew 12 boxes, one for each month of the year.  Again I used the acrylograph paint pens to colour in my title and add monthly letters to each box.  

To decorate I used a paw print paper punch on kraft paper which worked well and was quick and easy to do.  If creating in a larger B5 or 8x8 journal you may have space to add photographs too.

Pet Tracker 

You may have created trackers for yourself in a bullet journal but have you used them to manage your pet’s care?

Over the course of a month or year there are many different things that could be required for your pet, e.g. visiting the groomers, regular medication, paying for insurance etc.  A tracker page will help you know when you last did something and ensure you don’t forget key parts of your pet’s care.

First I listed all the things that my pet needs on a monthly basis.  You may need to create more than one tracker page as different animals may have different requirements.

Using a ruler and pencil I drew a basic table allowing space to add the 12 months of the year across the top and the regular tasks vertically down the page.

Every time I complete one of the monthly tasks I can tick it off.  Some may not be necessary every month but this is still a useful way to track the key tasks required for my pet’s health.

In space at the bottom of the page I created a simple graph ready to track the weight of my pet.  This can be useful as weight loss is an important indicator of any health concerns but you can also use it as a way to check your pet is not gaining too much weight.

Daily care

Finally to go alongside the longer term tasks, a daily care list may be of use.  This allows you to check that the pet’s needs are being met each day.  Of course things happen that may mean its not always possible but it is good to have an ‘ideal’ day in mind.

I printed images of my pets onto sticker paper for this page.  This allows me to cut images to the size I want and they don’t bulk out my journal too much.

A timeline is optional but I find it particularly helpful if you have others or children who are taking on the responsibility of pet care for a day.

To decorate this page I again used acrylograph paint pens for the title, ink for a paw print and the paper punch to create a border with kraft paper behind.

Printable and Video

I hope you have found this article useful in helping you with ideas to manage the care of your pets.  

Please take a look at the printable below to save you time in your journal. 

Summary

I hope you have found these ideas useful and can think of a project to apply them to.

For more journal inspiration come and say hello @thejournalcorner. We always love to see your creations, so please tag @archerandolive or use #aoshare on Instagram.

The Archer & Olive blog has a lot of articles to help inspire your journaling. For more on pets including a training schedule take a look here and why not try adding some cat doodles to your pages!  For 20 tracker ideas that could be adapted to your pets take a look here.