Yesterday a person dropped this little dog off at the Noah’s Ark Animal Shelter. Her name is Princess Peach, we just call her Peaches.
The woman who dropped her off told the Executive Director, Laura Cohen, that Peaches is a stray. Oh, and that she is crate trained, has been spayed, and is good with kids and other animals. When pressed as to why she was surrendering this stray, the owner said that she was “too hyper.”
Peaches spent the night at my house last night. She snuggled into the side of our 14 year old as he watched TV and as we prepared to go to sleep, jumped into the crate we strategically placed next to our 85lb Lab, Merry’s bed. This morning, she went out into our yard, did her thing, hung with Merry, and proceeded to quietly hang with us while we ate our breakfast.
I was pretty peeved at this woman last night until I had coffee with Terry Baker today who got me to understand that there certainly are mitigating circumstances that people have that may lead to such behavior.
I still have to ask, “why” though. Why do people do this to animals. Animals that are supposed to be “pets”, a part of the family. Perhaps that is the real issue though, that many people don’t look at pets as a part of the family as animal lovers believe that they should. If they did, how could they possibly abandon them? If they did, and they had a bad circumstance, say the loss of a job that made them choose between feeding themselves or their dog, wouldn’t they just say that to the person receiving the animal at the shelter and perhaps even ask for forgiveness?
Ok, maybe I just don’t get it. But the way I look at it, our pets are our family and although they don’t eat people food or sleep in my bed, I would abandon them just as soon as I’d abandon one of my kids.
What do you think?
I'm glad you are giving Peaches a loving home. It's very sad that some people just don't get it. I agree with you but maybe the woman just felt really ashamed to tell the truth.
I've built a perception over the years that a lot of people make the decision to be a pet owner without thinking it through. They either don't plan or don't believe that owning a pet is actually a fair amount of work. It takes more than pouring food and water into two bowls once a day.
For example, how many of you have had a neighbor who works full time during the week yet decides to get a dog and then just leaves it out tied to a post or tree all day? The weekends come around, and that neighbor doesn't spend time with the dog, but rather continues to leave it outside all weekend while going shopping or on some other all day trip.
That same neighbor is frustrated that people complain that the dog is barking all day, or that it's so difficult to take the dog on a walk (because it's been tied up all day/week). And eventually is forced to pass that animal onto someone else or a shelter.
My daughter wants a dog, but I refuse to get one because I don't want to be that neighbor. Taking care of a dog is a lot of work and responsibility. And the fact that we have so many abandoned animals is the result of adults not thinking through what should be a big decision.
I think part of the problem is that animals are sold just like anything else you find on the shelf. Think how many times you've let that lettuce or milk go bad because it sat in the fridge too long. You made a mistake – you got a full gallon of milk even though you were going to be out of town for 3 days. You wanted a salad, but were too lazy to make it. So you throw those mistakes in the garbage or compost.
You bought that cute little puppy on the shelf at Petco, but didn't think through that it is going to grow into something much different if you don't spend the time to raise it properly. So you throw that mistake away at the local animal shelter.
What I find just as frustrating as the inability of some adults to think through the obvious responsibility of owning a live animal, is the way pets are sold. It should be as hard to get a pet as it is to get a driver's license.
What an adorable dog! I would take him if I didn't have two already.
No, of course I wouldn't do this to my child. But, if you can't handle having a dog, cat or kid please do get help or give them away!
True Dawn, I was obviously being overly dramatic. I do agree that a person can't handle a animal OR a kid, that all concerned would be better off giving them away. But even then, there is a right and wrong way of doing so. There's actually a great guide http://www.noahsark.org/adopt/beforeadopt.htm for people who are considering animal adoption.
Thank you ALL for your comments!
When my childless friends contemplate having kids, I suggest getting a dog first. If they can handle raising a dog, they've got an inkling of the work with child rearing. ^_^
Peaches is adorable – I wish I could adopt her but I can't even consider that – I spend at least 1-2 hours a day on my own pets! Love this new site! Kartika
I have seen the horrors of animals that were abused and left for death. I helped with a rescue for awhile but decided to leave because the rescue wasn’t very organized. One of my dogs is from that rescue. She was found around Wayland with a huge hole in her neck and a log chain. She began to have food and animal agression but I took her in and she is the sweetest dog and loves attention. (She also got picked up by the Farifield police a few times till she learned where home was.) I see both sides. The woman may have felt ashamed and felt like that was the only choice she had. I wish that more animals could be helped. Keep up the good work with the aniamls that pass through the animal shelter. I got a dog from Noah’s Ark about a year ago but she was stolen.
It's possible Beth, and I do appreciate the softer side to this. Being an animal lover, it's so hard to fathom ya know? In this case, I happen to know that this woman has a lot of other, um, animals in her house, so this particular instance is one of the "bad" ones. However, although I am a cynical NYer at heart, I do believe that there are some who ARE in bad circumstances and ARE ashamed to tell the truth. And I feel for those, I do.
Well put Will! Thanks so much for adding this, I couldn't agree more. Fortunately, there are many people who adopt who get this and we are so thankful for them. On the flipside however, there really is the attitude that these little lives are expendable and my gosh, what does that say about the people who took responsibility for them in the first place?
She IS adorable isn't she? Although we already have 3 cats and an 85lb Lab, I think we may end up taking her. She and my wife bonded immediately, in fact, when my wife brought her home (she was too scared to stay in the shelter) our 14 year old son – who hasn't even done this for his own dog – gave her a bath!
I would venture to say that there are distinct parallels between having pets and child rearing – both on the positive and negative side of the discussions. So good point!
Isn't she! I'm 99% sure we're going to adopt her. She and Laura bonded instantly. You should see her and our black lab Merry who is literally 10x her weight. It is hilarious. Thanks for your comments about the site, please spread the word to your friends!
So happy to hear you are keeping Peaches – I can't wait to see her! I'll put you on my facebook page! Kartika
Thanks!
Thanks for your thoughtful comment Sarah. It never ceases to amaze us what people will do to animals. And I do agree that this particular woman probably did just feel ashamed. I obviously used her to make a point, but there are surely many out there like that (ashamed) as well. Thanks for your kind words about Noah's Ark. Those folks do an incredible job with a small staff and really appreciate the efforts of people like you right back!