Happy holidays! I do hope that you all are enjoying this time of year. Hopes are high and sprits are merry! I just want to give everyone some food for thought!
When shopping for holiday gifts PLEASE do not do what millions of well-wishers do. Get a pet! I, myself am guilty of getting a Christmas kitten. Last year, I was in much need of love from a cat and I gave it considerable thought and preparation. I was missing cats that had passed and I had gotten a Christmas kitten from the local SPCA. I recommend a lot of research and thought along with preparing the entire house at great length before getting an animal. Today, Buckbeak aka “Christmas kitten” is a much loved and wanted one year old and we all could not be happier for his arrival. Again, he was well prepared for!
Most returns and abandonments happen after the holiday season has ended. It seems so wonderful and sweet to get that puppy in the window. “Oh, how surprised everyone will be and how happy it will make our children”. People forget with a pet comes great responsibility. It is a lifelong commitment and that cute puppy or adorable kitten or fun little snake does not stay cute, adorable or fun for long. There are cages to keep clean, walks to take in all weather and attention and love to always be given. Once the cuteness wears off, the work begins and people forget that they are work. There are the expensive Vet. visits for shots, neutering, spaying etc... Come the New Year, animals get dropped off in shelters, abandoned on the road side when so often in winter’s harsh weather they die. As a wildlife rehabilitator and a foster for kittens, I get all sorts of phone calls regarding such ill-treated animals. It annually breaks my heart!
Now if a pet is wanted, needed, expected or at least prepared for then it is a wonderful thing. I beg you, please think long and hard before bringing an animal in your home on a whim! It seldom works out. Also, keep in mind to put away all lights, poinsettias, hollies and other tantalizing decorations, because they can cause all pets’ great harm!
Enjoy the holidays and Happy New year!
