A Cuddly Surprise

Attitudes are changing in the animal community about giving pets as holiday gifts

By Sharon L. Peters
CTW Features

Recent studies show consumers are moving away from impulse buys with regard to one certain purchase – a pet.

The passing belief that bringing a new animal into the home during the holidays can be a bad idea because it’s almost always a last-minute impulse is changing, says Susan Britt, director of operations for the Animal Refuge League of Greater Portland, Portland, Maine.

“Five or six years ago we didn’t do holiday adoptions,” she says. “It was regarded as categorically a bad idea.”

But, she says, studies have shown that animals adopted during the holidays are no more likely to be returned to the shelter than animals adopted at any other time of year. Moreover, there’s no evidence that pets that come into the home in December are more likely to be hurt, lost or ignored than at any other time of the year.

Many shelters are becoming more lenient with regard to holiday adoptions but still take extra precautions to discourage impulse buys.

As for pet stores and most breeders, there’s no holiday reluctance. Indeed, most make provisions to have extra puppies and kittens on hand, hoping to entice potential buyers.

Proponents of holiday adoptions say the holidays can be the perfect time to bring a pet into the home because of vacation time. The gift of a pet to children can help them learn the importance of responsibility, some experts say.

If, however, a child is the recipient, parents should be aware that the responsibility of adopting a pet still rests with them.

“We tell parents who are bringing an animal home as a gift for the kids that an animal is a great way to teach a child love and responsibility, but the reality is that the parent will be the chief care-taker for that animal, and if she or he isn’t prepared for that, this might not be the right time for them to get an animal,” says Dayna Hanson, public relations specialist with the Dumb Friends League, Denver.

A parent may also need to take the child’s age into account in addition to accepting the time commitment.

“If the child in the family is under 5, we discourage the parents from getting a puppy or kitten” as that can be too risky to the animal,” says Paula Fasseas, executive director of PAWS Chicago, an animal adoption facility in the city’s Lincoln Park area.

Most experts don’t support the idea of a gift of an animal to a girlfriend or boyfriend, or even as a surprise for an older parent. “A pet owner must consider all the pros and cons and all the responsibility having an animal entails,” Hanson says. “When you give someone a surprise gift of a living thing, none of that kind of thinking has taken place.”

Few shelters would respond well to an 11th-hour arrival of a breathless customer. “But in reality, that almost never happens,” Britt says.

Some animal lovers suggest that rather than presenting a pet in a gift basket, you give the recipient a gift certificate to an adoption facility or breeder and allow the person to make his or her own selection when it’s convenient.

The Humane Society of the United States recommends waiting until after the holidays to talk about the various considerations that are part of bringing an animal home, and then deciding together on the right kind of pet for your child, your family or even just yourself.

What’s your question? Sharon Peters would like to hear about what’s on your mind when it comes to caring for, training and loving your pet. E-mail Sharon@Pets2008.com.

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