... because they "don't have time" or "can't give them enough love".
Okay. I get it. You feel bad. You think you're doing what's best for the pet. Or maybe you're just trying to ease your own guilt.
But you really need to think about what you're really doing. Dig a little deeper. Look at the consequences of your decision.
Okay, if you give your pet up to a kill shelter, there's a 60+% chance that it will be euthanized. Killed. Because you "didn't have time".
If you give your pet up to a no-kill shelter, then with today's overcrowding, there's a relatively good chance that it will live for a really long time in the shelter. Do you really think they'll get "enough love" in that kind of situation? Really?
And if you go to the trouble of finding a good home on your own for this pet, then did you stop to think about the other pets that really, actually do need homes that are being displaced because instead of adopting them, someone is taking in your dog? Animals that have been truly neglected, even abused, abandoned, starving... and you're going to deny them a loving home so that someone else can take in your supposedly beloved pet just to ease your guilt?!?
Grrrrrrrrrrrr! This kind of thinking just really gets me going.
I get it. I really do. The thought has crossed my mind regarding our own pets. It really has. And is there a chance that someone might provide a better home for them? Oh, I'm sure there is. But what are the chances that my dogs, my cat, would end up with that minute percentage of pet owners? Who could love my babies more than I? Not good. I can (and do) give them more than adequate shelter, food, water, room to run, toys, and loving.
All I'm asking, is that before you give up your supposedly beloved pets for any reason, that you really look into it, dig deeper, look at the consequences, and figure out if it's really what is best for your family.
1 comment:
I have lived with this situation first hand, so I understand your point of view. OF course, our situation was a little different. We took in two dogs almost 2 years ago from Doug's cousin who was planning on taking them to a kill shelter because they did not have the money to take care of them anymore. It was breaking my heart and we were wanting a friend for Honey, but when DOug decided to take them in, it was very sudden and shocking. We took good care of them for nearly a year. It was hard because Honey and the other female dog did not get along from the start. They ended up hating eachother so much that we had to keep them separated at all times. We couldn't even let them out in the yard at all together, because Charlie would bit and maul Honey to the point that we really believed that eventually it would end in one of the dogs, and probably our baby we raised from a pup, would end up dead. The last straw was the day that Charlie growled so fiercely at Grace, because she had Honey's scent on her, that we were afraid of what she could eventually do to Grace. We researched all the possiblities and found a no kill shelter that we believed would take good care of them(and we had to pay quite a bit of money for them to take them, but it was worth it because we were promised that they would be taken very good care of). I do not agree with taking a pet to a kill shelter, but in some instances, where it becomes dangerous for family members(human and canine and feline, alike) it might just be necessary.
I do agree with you however, if it is just beause the pet is in the way, or just misbehaves sometimes, that is WRONG! I have 3 cats, a yellow lab(all inside!), a 2 1/2 year old, and a 4 month old! Life gets crazy sometimes, and when I am trying to get ready for church and I have pet hair all over, and I am so annoyed, there are times that I think it would be easier to just have no animals, but when it came down to brass tacks, I could never give away one of my babies! They are mine... and you are right, no one would take care of them better than me. :)
One last thing... what really ticks me off is when you see someone get rid of a pet because of the annoyance, or they are in the way, then 6 months later they have a new puppy or pet! What is with that? Anyway... thanks for sharing!
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