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Animals @ Home // General Issues
Why
Animals Do Not Make Good Gifts
Animals, like us, require love and proper care to flourish.
Although people who give animals as gifts invariably have good
intentions, it is unfair to give an animal to anyone unless you are
absolutely certain that the person wants that particular animal as
a companion and is willing and able to give a lifetime of proper
care.
Think
Before Giving
Adding an animal companion to the family is an important decision.
It means making a permanent commitment to care for and spend time
with the animal and to provide for his or her lifelong care.
Why Animals Do Not Make Good Gifts
Before adopting, consider the time and money involved in proper
animal care. Will your loved one have the time and patience to
exercise and housetrain the animal? Is he or she prepared to pay
for food, accessories (such as toys, grooming supplies, leashes and
harnesses, and bedding), inoculations, and veterinary care,
including spaying or neutering, flea treatment, deworming, and
emergency care?
If a family decides to adopt an animal, every member of the family
should go to the local animal shelter together to choose the
animal, having already discussed the obligations and long-term
commitments involved. Please, never buy from breeders or pet
stores, and always practice your ABCs—animal
birth control. For every animal purchased
from a breeder or a pet shop, a potential home is taken away from a
homeless dog or a cat at a local animal shelter.
Children
May Not Be Ready
Small children may unintentionally harm animals, even breaking
their fragile bones or causing other fatal injuries, when they
think they are playing. Puppies, kittens, bunnies, chicks, baby
ducks, and other young animals are especially vulnerable.
We have heard too many stories about families in which the child
has lost interest in an animal, and the adult is forced to make the
difficult decision on the best way to "solve" the problem. Often
this means turning the animal over to a crowded shelter or pound
or—worse—passing the animal on to a series of homes, causing
trauma, psychological scarring, and behavioral problems.
Too
Few Happy Endings
Animal shelters are filled beyond capacity with homeless animals,
many of whom were former "pets" who, for one reason or another,
didn't fit into someone's lifestyle. No matter how much they would
like to, many people who receive animals as gifts find that they
are unable to make the lifelong commitment to care for their new
companion.
Sadly, many people end up turning animals they received as gifts
over to an overburdened humane society or animal-control agency
that is likely filled to capacity. In worst-case scenarios, some
people even abandon animals on the road or in the back yard when
they move away.
What
You Can Do
* Don't ever give an animal as a gift. If you have discussed the
idea with the prospective recipients and know that they have the
time, willingness, ability, and resources to properly care for an
animal and make that serious commitment, consider offering them a
gift certificate from the local animal shelter.
* If you
attend a fair, flea market, or other event at which animals are
being given away, educate those who are responsible.
If people are
offering free kittens or puppies, for example, explain the risks of giving animals to unknown
passersby—some people sell dogs and cats to laboratories or
dealers, and others abuse, neglect, or abandon them.
* Sign our pledge saying that you will never
buy an animal from a pet store or a breeder and that you will
always practice your ABCs (animal birth control) by spaying or
neutering your animal companions.
Donate Now You can improve the lives of dogs and cats suffering
from cruelty and neglect.
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