Coming soon, January 2013, to a shelter/rescue near you:
Christmas puppies, kittens, bunnies, birds, rodents, reptiles, ponies, etc...
There's just something about the warm wiggly body of a puppy, the soft ears, the cold nose that makes many people think "Oh, hey, InsertNameHere would LOVE a puppy for Christmas!" How many little girls dream of waking up to a cute little pony with a big red bow around it's neck? This is quite possibly the dumbest holiday decision anyone can make, and not just for puppies, but for any animal: Giving pets as gifts.
Let us explore the issue now that Christmas is finally over and the pets have found their way under the tree, into the barn, into the cage, etc.
Where, in anyone's right mind, do they think that is okay to get an animal for someone as a holiday gift? This is not something that can just be tucked away into a closet, under the bed, or thrown away when it's usefulness or novelty has ran its course. This is a life that you are willingly or unwillingly thrusting upon someone else. Sure they may want an animal to enter their lives soon. They may want to get a pony for their children or they may want a new household puppy for the family but that does not mean that a family member or friend should run right out and just pick the first animal that is "sooo keeeooot" and drop it on their doorstep with a bow. Bam. Merry Christmas. Here's a life that you've now got to take care of, feed, water, house, train, and provide veterinary care for, for the next five (for rodents/rabbits), to fifteen-twenty (for dogs/cats), to thirty plus years (in the case of ponies/birds), like it or not.
Well, few people see it that way. The cold hard fact of the matter is, about 80% of animals given as gifts wind up as shelter pets awaiting death, as strays, as gifts for someone else, as objects to be sold, and so on. Only about 20% of pets given as gifts actually find a long-term home with those they were given to, and fewer still, a lifetime home.
The people who often get puppies for their children soon realize that the kids are not interested in the dog, want nothing to do with its care, and don't really care at all that it is around after the first few weeks. They don't want to walk it, feed it, train it, or pay any attention to it. So it falls to the parents. Then things change. The new cute puppy is not house-trained, it potties everywhere, it chews up everything, it jumps on everyone, it cries in the night from lack of attention, it doesn't know any commands, it escapes, it play-bites and rough-houses too hard, it sheds, it's dirty, the list goes on an on. So what happens next? The not-so- cute puppy has to go. Some people will try to find the puppy a new home by selling it, some by giving it away, and those that can't find a new home for it these ways or are just too lazy or want it gone as soon as possible do the next thing, a one way trip to the animal shelter to be dumped off. No more naughty puppy in the house. End of problem.
The same happens with the little girls who begged for the pony. Someone offers up a cheap pony and it's bought for the child. Of course on Christmas the child loves it. But soon after things change. Pony steps on the child's foot or bites when trying to nibble grain from the small hands. Accidentally knocks the child over or the child falls off while riding and is now afraid of the once coveted pony. Or, the other side. No one knew how expensive the pony would be. A barn or lean-to, blankets, halter, saddle, bridle, bits, farrier, etc. Hay is too expensive! We can't afford this! Or pony ends up with no manners because no one in the house has done any research or has any horse knowledge. And what's to happen to the pony when the small child outgrows it later on? Getting a bit ahead here with that, so the pony is too expensive, a quick sales ad or a trip to auction is a quick way to be rid of the unneeded expense.
And it happens over and over and over again. Every. Single. Year. With a myriad of different animals.
Shelters/pounds/rescues swell to overflowing in the early parts of the year with an influx of animals that were bought as Christmas gifts and after the novelty wore off or the animal is too expensive/unruly got dumped.
People need to stop and use their damn brains, if they have them, before buying a pet for someone as a gift. Dogs need food, water, grooming, training, veterinary care, exercise, attention. Cats need food, water, litter, veterinary care, attention, enrichment. Ponies need feed, water, tack, training, grooming, shelter, veterinary care, exercise, riding/use, farrier care, space. Birds need food, water, training, attention, UV light, companionship, proper caging. Rodents need food, water, attention, dental care, veterinary care, proper caging. Reptiles need food (90% of the time other animals like rodents/insects), water, handling, proper caging/lighting, etc. There is a lot of work involved in owning an animal. Every single day that animal needs looking after. When you're sick, depressed, angry, and so on that animal still looks to you to take care of it, inconvenient or not.
On top of it, people need to get it in their thick skulls that this is a LIFE, it is not an object. You can't just throw it in the trash when you're done with it. Many animals live more than a decade, some live two or three decades, a few live even longer. Expenses add up when you take the life of another creature into your hands. You are responsible for all that creature needs from the moment you acquire it until it's death, however many years later.
Animals are not for gifts, convenience, or for novelty... they are for life. Next time you think about getting someone a cute puppy or a feisty kitten as a present, just DON'T.
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