Americans can explore their relationships with their companion animals through a new exhibit at the McKissick Museum at the University of South Carolina (Columbia).

On display through April 22, “Pets in America: The Story of Our Lives With Animals at Home” features more than 200 objects and photographs, including many rare items from public and private collections across the nation.

“Americans always have loved the company of animals, and this relationship has changed as our country and culture have changed,” said Lynn Robertson, director of McKissick Museum. “With the evolution of American society, we have seen people’s interest in and kindness to animals arise, a multibillion pet industry develop and practice of working animals disappear.”

The exhibit and companion Web site (www.petsinamerica.org) cover the history of pet-keeping, from working animals to pets with names; the history of Americans’ preferences for a variety of pets; pets as family members; the 19th century movement of kindness toward animals and the rise of humane organizations; the advent of veterinary medicine for small animals; the explosion of America’s multibillion pet industry; pets as symbols and celebrities; and the future of pet-keeping.

“[The exhibit] tells the story of our lives with pets and how these extraordinary creatures, as our companions and sources of interest, delight and beauty, enrich our lives,” Robertson said. “As American households get smaller and more people live alone, we can expect pets to play even greater significance in our lives.”

The exhibit will travel to five more locations in the next two years: June 4-Aug. 6 at the Indiana State Museum and Historic Site in Indianapolis; Aug. 13-Feb. 25, 2007, at the Public Museum of Grand Rapids in Grand Rapids, Mich.; April 1-Oct. 14, 2007, at the National Heritage Museum in Lexington, Mass.; Nov. 19, 2007-Jan. 28, 2008, at the Winterthur Museum and Gardens in Winterthur, Del.; and June 9-Sept. 8, 2008, the Chicago Historical Society in Chicago. [January 2006 PET AGE]