Why We Have Seasons

The changing seasons are a powerful force in our lives affecting all living things on Earth in profound ways. The changing seasons are a timed natural order of events resulting in a yearly cycle of change.  The seasons affect the foods we crave, the activities we engage in as well as the clothes we wear and the way we heat and cool ourselves.  The single largest influence on the economy is the changing seasons.  Agriculture changes, migratory birds are on the move, wild animals breed or settle down, we adjust the thermostats in our homes.....the list is endless.  Why should we think that our beloved family pets are not affected by these same significant changes as well?  They are.

Every year, once a year, all life on Earth experiences two extreme seasons - winter and summer. These extreme seasons are caused by the tilt of the Earth as we make our year long journey around the Sun. We have seasons because this tilt causes us to lean toward the Sun in spring and summer and away from it in fall and winter. In summer we lean toward the Sun and receive more light and warmth. In the winter the rays pass through the atmosphere at a greater slant bringing lower temperatures. If the Earth rotated on an axis perpendicular to the plane of the earth's orbit around the Sun, there would be no variation in day lengths or temperatures throughout the year, and we would not have seasons.