DO NOT ADOPT AN ANIMAL IF....

[Anonymous]

I think the main issue is that the OP of THIS post assumes that the OP of the OTHER post is just pregnant and doesn't want to deal with her cats anymore, using vague allergies as an excuse, and trying to get justification. Then there is the group of people who think that she must have a really 'last resort' type of thing going on to want to rehome her cats of 12 years, and that she just didn't state that reason clearly in her post.

I think most people would agree that if this OP is right in her assumptions, that's pretty crappy. But frankly OP, you are pretty out on a limb with that. I hope you don't assume the worst in people all the time. Must be hard.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I think the main issue is that the OP of THIS post assumes that the OP of the OTHER post is just pregnant and doesn't want to deal with her cats anymore, using vague allergies as an excuse, and trying to get justification. Then there is the group of people who think that she must have a really 'last resort' type of thing going on to want to rehome her cats of 12 years, and that she just didn't state that reason clearly in her post.

I think most people would agree that if this OP is right in her assumptions, that's pretty crappy. But frankly OP, you are pretty out on a limb with that. I hope you don't assume the worst in people all the time. Must be hard.

OP here. Wow, four pages already. Lots of people feel strongly either way. For the record, the "pets are disposable" people really gross me out. But y'all knew that.

I said in my OP that I believe there are in fact times when rehoming is unavoidable. But I can't tell you how many people I know have had long term pets and rehome them either when they find out they are pregnant or right after. OP of the other thread was just one of many people. Honestly, I get these all the time on different listservs. On the one hand I hope people will continue to post rather than just throw their animals out, on the other hand it feels incredibly bad to read about all of these abandoned animals whose owners got something new and shiny and now forgot about them. The rambling poster above who described her mom getting two new kittens and rehoming the old ones who "didn't like the new cats" epitomizes one extreme. So sad. These animals deserve better! I never said that they have to EQUAL your children, but they neither should they be treated like a potted plant that you can just give away or throw away when it no longer suits your taste or decor. But a knee jerk ditching of your long-term pet, without a lot of effort toward resolving the problems (and I'm not just talking about the other OP, but all of you who say "oh, the dog doesn't like my baby" etc, but never bothered to get a trainer, or to make sure you introduced the dog correctly to the baby, or gave the dog extra walks despite being exhausted. You're who I'm talking about. I see at least a dozen emails a year from people on one listserv who want to give up their pets post baby, and often their reason is "we don't have the energy to give them the care they deserve." AT least they are honest, I guess, but it's just sad. People are really shitty.

[Anonymous]

OP - I agree with you.

[Anonymous]

Totally agree, OP. Thanks for posting.

[Anonymous]

[Anonymous]

You shouldn't change kitty litter if you are pregnant. Seriously.

[Anonymous]

People are so lame. I would sign over the deed of my house to my cats and simply move into a large (refrigerator-sized) box that I keep in my yard for such eventualities. I would go with my baby to live in a homeless shelter during the winter months... You have to be willing to commit to your pet.

[Anonymous]

Op I posted about my mom getting rid of the kittens for the older cats... not HHS one you quoted above in your post . I'm confused...How did I ramble on, unless you were referring to the other poster and mixed up posts. I was trying to be nice and agree with you but give an example of a tough situation. You don't need to be so judgemental. No one us perfect but most of us try and I thought my post would put into perspective a situation for ppl.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Animal adopter/owner/lover/ & daughter of humane society board member here. This is nonsense. So this is the scenario you are expecting: "OK, well, I might get married someday, and I might have a kid someday, and even though I'm not allergic, my kid COULD have allergies severe enough to cause them all sorts of significant long term health problems, so I should decide right now, in that scenario, will I be willing to sacrifice my child's health?. If not, I should not adopt animal."

If every unmarried/no kids adult went into pet adoption answering this question, there would be no pet adoption. Well, not none, but so much less. And your expectation that people can actually put themselves in this place in their future and understand all of their emotions and thoughts is just a 'little' unrealistic. Seriously.

And again, its not like that OP from the other post uttered the word euthanasia. She is trying to find a GOOD home for them. Get off your high horse.

I totally agree with this.

While I also agree that too many people adopt (or purchase) a pet without having really done their homework... some of the kindest hearted pet adopters I know take a more practical view. It's one thing to "ditch" your dog of 10 years because he has a minor health problem. But there are people out there (I've been one), who have taken a chance on an animal with KNOWN and serious health issues or behavioral issues -- hoping that with the right care/environment they can make the animal happy and have a good relationship. It doesn't always work. And if you are going to curse out those people who ultimately choose to re-home (or even euthanise) some of these animals, you are shooting off your big toe.

I "adopted" (well, actually I PAID $750) for a racehorse who was about a month away from the meatman. He was a lovely animal, with a great attitude, and loads of potential -- except that his legs were a total mess from being overraced. He was lame when I bought him, and they were STILL racing him. I am an experienced horseperson. I took a chance on this guy, hoping that with some good vet care and some time off, I could fix his legs, retrain him, and either keep him for myself, or sell him to someone who would take good care of him. well, I couldn't fix him. 2 years and about $8-10K later, I reached that conclusion. So what now? He was still young, and otherwise in good health. Am I forced to keep him (and pay to board him to the tune of $200/month) for the next 25 years? And that would effectively prevent me from owning another horse? I reached the conclusion that I didn't owe him that. I really didn't owe him anything. I took a chance on him when no one else would have, and I was going to make darn sure he didn't end up crammed on a truck to the meatman while standing on a broken leg. Happily, the Thoroughbred Retirement Foundation took him off my hands and he is now living the good life at a big farm where he just hangs out and eats grass. TRF is a GREAT organization, but they don't have room for every horse. But if they hadn't taken him, euthanasia was a real option. It kills me to say that, and I don't know if I ever could have gone through with it, but the fact is, even if you think you find a (good) home for a horse like that, it is very likely that somewhere down the road he will be transferred around and end up in a REALLY horrible place -- and I didn't want that to happen to him. Sometimes a quick and painless death is a blessing. Having known 3-400 horses in my lifetime, I have known only 1-2 that were truly dangerous and MEAN. I would put an animal like that down in a heartbeat... it is the best thing for EVERYONE (horse included).

So, does that make me an ogre?

I think animal lovers like the OP who don't have a practical bone in their body do a really huge disservice to animals everywhere. But that is just my opinion.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Op I posted about my mom getting rid of the kittens for the older cats... not HHS one you quoted above in your post . I'm confused...How did I ramble on, unless you were referring to the other poster and mixed up posts. I was trying to be nice and agree with you but give an example of a tough situation. You don't need to be so judgemental. No one us perfect but most of us try and I thought my post would put into perspective a situation for ppl.

Reread your post -- there was an unclear pronoun reference and I too thought you meant your mom gave away the older cats, which would have been awful. But passing along the kittens was responsible. You can't guarantee that animals will be placed somewhere forever, as long as you do the best you can for them that is all you can do.

Another horseperson here, I have sold many and you can't guarantee they are going to have perfect homes forever. You find a good home that with good references and do the best you can at the time. At some point you have to let go if you are in that business. Dogs and cats are a little different in that they are not so much a commodity as a riding horse, but to me the same thing applies -- if you need to rehome an animal, I have no problem with that as long as you find an appropriate situation.

I guess where I differ from PP is that I doubt I would solicit homes on DCUM or over the Internet for my cat, God knows what hoarder would get a cat that way. If I couldn't keep a pair of 12 year old cats I would probably put them down, they are not good candidates for rehoming.

Euthanasia is not an evil word, folks. It is a peaceful passing that guarantees a pain-free future, which is more than I can say for passing an elderly cat along to someone you find on the Internet.

[Anonymous]

I'm not even going to bother reading 4 pages of back and forth on this. I gave up my cat when I got pregnant. Why? Because for whatever reason he decided to start peeing and pooping all over my furniture, rugs, bed. He wasn't a well cat to begin with so I had years of "trying" to make him better. When it became a choice of living in his fecies while pregnant and seriously endangering my baby, or giving him to someone else (or in my case taking him back where I adopted him from) it was a no brainer. This what you want, but my child will ALWAYS be more important.

[Anonymous]

I'd like to call the "meatman". Do you have a phone # for him?

[Anonymous]

my cat (free cat from a shelter) had a dislocated hip with a pending vet bill in the hundreds of dollars. Zero chance I was paying that - so I ignored it and after a few months the cat seemed to cure herself.

Your relationship to YOUR pets and your feelings for animals is not universal. Don't assume it is.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I'd like to call the "meatman". Do you have a phone # for him?

Why? Do you like horse meat?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I'd like to call the "meatman". Do you have a phone # for him?

You can find him at the New Holland auctions, he'll be the one buying everything no one else bids on. Or you can just buy direct from New Holland and slaughter it yourself.