Despite their busy schedules, many Spurs players not only have pets to help them with the ups and downs of NBA life, but also miss them severely when the call of the road beckons.

Pets don’t care if their owners are in a shooting slump and they don’t care about max contracts.

Dog ownership in particular has been associated with many health benefits, including stress reduction and increased happiness.

For NBA players, who are under the microscope of the public eye and are constantly being judged on their latest performance and picked apart as though they were commodities instead of human beings, having a dog can be very attractive.

“They’re unconditional love. They greet you when you come home. They’re happy to see you, and they listen without trying to tell you how to do things,” said Bonnie Beaver, a veterinarian who is board certified in animal behavior, and a professor at Texas A&M in the college of veterinary medicine.

And it’s not just dogs. Cats and even snakes provide incomparable comfort for a variety of Spurs players.

For NBA athletes, who play 41 games on the road during the regular season and travel for weeks at a time, pets can provide a bit of normalcy amid their frenetic lifestyles.

“They’re a stable factor in a lifestyle,” Beaver said. “There’s a connection of being able to stroke the animal that actually lowers blood pressure as well as probably releasing oxytocin, which is a calming hormone. There are a lot of stress relievers in having that animal around.”

Here is a look at the animals some of the Spurs have chosen to bring into their homes and have by their sides.

Anderson loves German Shepherds

Kyle Anderson immediately felt a hole in his life when he moved to San Antonio.

After being selected by the Spurs as the 30th overall pick in the 2014 NBA draft, he moved into a home, but something just didn’t feel right.

“I’ve always had a dog, always since I was a baby,” Anderson said. “I’ve always had German Shepherds.”

Anderson immediately started searching for dogs to adopt.

He got his first German Shepherd, Steel, that Christmas, and got his second one, Nino, last year during the final game of the rodeo road trip in Houston.

The dogs, who are ages 2 and 1, respectively, made Anderson’s transition to a new city much easier.

Anderson, who is from New York, attended UCLA from 2012-2014 before joining the Spurs. When he came to San Antonio, he was the only rookie on a team that had just won a championship, and he acknowledged that he initially felt as though he was a “a red-headed step child” because he had not been a part of the team’s great run.

His dogs helped provide him some comfort.

“I would say my first dog made the adjustment a lot easier, having another living thing in the house,” Anderson said. “A dog’s love compares to no one. It was awesome to get him, and I always wanted two dogs so I just got another one.”

Anderson said that over the past few years, whenever times have gotten tough, his dogs’ love helped him cope with life’s up and downs.

“The love that they show you when you walk through the door every day is just crazy,” Anderson said. “Every time you walk through the door, they get so excited that you’re home. You could be having a bad day or a good day, but that love, it just does something to you every time.”

Anderson’s mother, who lives with him in his home in San Antonio, takes care of his dogs when the Spurs are on the road. Anderson doesn’t have to stress about their well-being while he’s traveling, and he gets to enjoy all of the benefits of receiving their love when he’s home.

He said nothing compares to seeing Steel and Nino following a long trip.

“You don’t get that feeling anywhere else,” he said. “They don’t care if you smell, who you are, if you had a bad day. They’re just happy to see you.”

Snake charmer

Danny Green wanted a pet when he was a junior at North Carolina. But he was single at the time, and he knew his crazy travel schedule wouldn’t allow him to care for a dog or a cat.

So he went in another direction.

Green got a red-tailed boa constrictor, which he named Jade. He eventually got another one during his rookie season with the Spurs in 2009, a male, which he named Lightning.

“I got a snake because it’s easier to handle, easier to manage,” Green said. “They’re low-maintenance pets.”

Jade became something of a superstar among Green’s friends in college.

He’d let everyone know when he was going to feed her, and his friends would come over and watch her eat a rodent. It was a fascinating and terrifying process that left everyone spellbound.

“At first, people were like, you’re crazy, she’s going to get out,” Green said. “But she was friendly, she was small at the time, so she wasn’t very dangerous or threatening. She’s bigger now, but she’s still very friendly.”

Jade is now eight feet long, Lightning is a bit smaller, but he’s a bit more standoffish.

“I handle her a lot more than I handle him,” Green said. “He’s not so friendly, he’s a little meaner. I was actually trying to get rid of him at some point, but I kept him for her to have company. I handle her a lot. He’s smaller, but he’s defensive when it comes to humans.”

Green said he only has to feed his snakes once every 90 days. He needs to make sure they have water, but beyond that, they are pretty self sufficient.

He joked that snakes aren’t the typical animals that people want to have for obvious reasons.

“You don’t cuddle or hang out with them,” Green said.

But he has been around snakes since he was a child because his uncle used to own them. And he’s always been mesmerized by them.

“It’s interesting the way they eat, interact, shed, it’s just different to see how they do things,” Green said. “Everyone is used to seeing cats and dogs, so it’s just interesting, especially the feeding part; there was always excitement for me.”

Ginobilis expand their family

Manu Ginobili and his wife, Marianela, were taking a walk on the streets of Argentina near his mother-in-law’s home in 2009 when a four-legged creature approached them.

The dog put on a show for the Spurs’ superstar.

He started rolling on his back and asking for a belly rub. Ginobili and his wife obliged. When they continued walking, the dog started following them.

After a short talk, the stray dog became part of Ginobili’s family, a true rags to riches story for the pup, who they named Ciru.

“Back then we didn’t have kids and we didn’t have a pet, and we looked at each other, and discussed it for five minutes, and said, ‘Let’s do it,’” Ginobili said. “Now we’ve been together for 7½ years.”

Ginobili said that after taking Ciru home, both he and his wife instantly had a regret. They wished they had adopted a dog sooner.

“We both love dogs, and we both grew up with dogs, so we didn’t know why we didn’t do it earlier,” Ginobili said. “We thought that since we travel so much, and spend so much time in Argentina, that it was going to be hard.”

Since then, a lot has happened to the Ginobili family.

They now have three children. Twin boys Dante and Nicola were born in 2010. Four years later, Luca, their third son, was born.

The Ginobilis also adopted a cat before Luca was born. The cat’s name is Apia. Ginobili said the cat was his wife’s idea.

“The kids love him and it’s fine,” Ginobili said.

Ginobili acknowledged that Ciru, a mutt who is about 10 years old, gets a bit less attention with all of the other additions to their household.

They used to bring Ciru to Argentina during the NBA break over the summer, but now with three young children to look after, they board him during their extended leaves.

“As always, before the kids it’s one thing, but sadly they give their room to the kids,” Ginobili said.

Ginobili said even though circumstances have changed, and their lives have gotten much busier, he and his wife still have a deep love and appreciation for their pets.

“Their love, their looks, and their unconditional love is incredible,” Ginobili said.

Bertans’ bulldog

Davis Bertans and his wife can amuse themselves for hours by watching their dog play outside.

The 2½-year-old French Bulldog mix spins in circles until he’s so tired that he passes out in the grass.

“He snores a lot,” Bertans said, laughing.

Bertans got his dog, Rocky, when he was playing overseas in Spain. He and his wife went to a pet store in Bilbao, in the northern part of the country, and adopted him when he was just a few months old.

“We just wanted a French bulldog because if you live in an apartment or a house, it’s the perfect size, not too small and not too big,” Bertans said. “Actually I wanted a pug, but nobody else likes pugs.”

Bertans and his wife ended up ordering a DNA test for Rocky to learn about the exact origins of their beloved pet.

“They ship you a package and just swab his saliva and get the results,” he said. “He’s 87 percent French Bulldogwith a little bit of Boston Terrier mixed in.”

Bertans said he and his wife love hanging out with Rocky, but he’s presented them with a few challenges recently.

He barks incessantly when the phone or doorbell rings.

During the Rodeo road trip, Bertans left Rocky with a trainer in San Antonio to try and teach him to react more calmly in those situations. While the process is ongoing, Bertans said overall Rocky brings the household a lot of laughter and joy.

Bertans said he usually doesn’t miss Rocky too much while he’s on the road because he’s busy and he has lots of distractions.

But before he returned home to San Antonio following a recent trip, he had a sense of dread. Bertans was going to come home to an empty house.

His wife was in Latvia visiting her family, and Rocky was scheduled to be with the trainer. .

He knew he was going to miss Rocky a lot.

“Now I’m going to be all by myself,” Bertans said. “So that’s when I’m going to feel it.”

Blue provides safety

Dewayne Dedmon adopted his dog, Blue, when he was playing for the Orlando Magic in 2015.

Blue is a Rottweiler, a breed that is known for being great guard dogs in addition to great companions.

Dedmon recently put Blue through protection training classes so he would learn the appropriate commands to keep his home safe.

“I don’t know what they do, but if you say a couple of things, he turns on for you,” Dedmon said.

Dedmon said he really appreciates having the extra safety that Blue gives him.

“You never know,” Dedmon said. “Somebody comes into your house that you’re not expecting, you’ve got a dog there.”

Dedmon, who grew up in Lancaster, California, and was acquired by the Spurs in July after stints with Golden State, Philadelphia and Orlando, said even though Blue can be intimidating to intruders, he’s unbelievably sweet to him and his girlfriend.

“Oh man, he’s always there for me,” Dedmon said. “Anytime, no matter how you feel, he’s always there for you. That’s my guy, you know.”

Blue will be 2 years old in November, and Dedmon said that he’s an extremely energetic dog who loves swimming in his pool.

“He plays, he’s a puppy still,” Dedmon said. “He still plays and has fun. He’s alert, too.”

Dedmon’s girlfriend takes care of Blue when he’s on the road.

That provides him peace of mind that Blue is OK. But it doesn’t do much to ease his longing for his dog.

He said that being apart from Blue is one of his greatest challenges on the road.

“I definitely miss him,” Dedmon said. “You’re gone for so long. I love my little man.”

mrohlin@express-news.net

Twitter: @melissarohlin