New pets aren’t just for Christmas or for lockdown, but for life
I am urging people not to give animals as gifts this Christmas.
Christmas will be different this year, and after months of strict restrictions, many of us are itching for a distraction from daily life.
But buying a puppy or a kitten is not the cure to our restlessness.
Animals are living, thinking, feeling beings and a 15- to 20-year commitment.
They are not visiting entertainers or gifts that can easily be returned if they ‘don’t work out’.
In the first lockdown, Google searches for ‘buy a puppy’ skyrocketed by 166 per cent.
Then, when society reopened, many puppies ended up in animal shelters because the novelty had worn off.
Their guardians weren’t prepared to make the lifelong financial and emotional commitment that animals require.
Animal shelters predict high numbers of abandoned and neglected animals this Christmas as job losses and financial strain take their toll.
Even in a ‘normal’ year, the festive period is a notoriously bad time to bring an animal into your home, as time, money, patience, and attention are all in short supply.
If you’re certain that you’re prepared to care for an animal for life – including paying for routine and emergency veterinary care and providing house-training, food, toys, bedding, exercise, playtime, and everything else needed – make plans to adopt an animal from a shelter after Christmas.
Jennifer White Media Officer for People For The Ethical Treatment Of Animals