Today's Status Symbol Purebred Dog is
Tomorrow's Overcrowded Shelter Problem
Making a decision to buy a
purebred puppy should be a decision to have a lifetime companion,
not a decision to have a status enhancement. There’s Armani, Dior
and Givenchy for that!
By Amanda St. John
Buying a purebred puppy is a commitment
for a dogs’ lifetime. When a person decides to share their life with
an animal, it is important to understand fully the plight of animals
today. Buying a purebred puppy for status, results in thousands of
dogs de jour, being euthanized in pounds.
The animal community is kicking in their heels on people who
objectify animals. A dog is euthanized every nine seconds in the US.
In 2004, 3 to 4 million lost and unwanted dogs and cats were
euthanized in American animal shelters, a rate of one animal every
nine seconds.
Many are buying a purebred puppy, not because of a love of a breed,
but because of a perception that owning a purebred conveys some
symbol of status on them. They want a designer dog, much like they
demand a designer purse or other fashionable commodity.
The 101 Dalmatians film created thousands of abandoned dogs when the
rage passed. Then came the "Taco Bell" or "Paris Hilton" dogs and an
ongoing status symbol is the "Pit Bull" which is considered to
convey machismo. Consequently many purebreds are showing up in the
pounds. Special breed rescue organizations are filled to capacity
and they cannot rescue all the breed dogs the pound is compelled to
euthanize.
According to Craig Brestrup, "Legions of people want to have 'pets'
at will, to behave responsibly or not toward those animals as it
pleases them, to turn them out or to shelters at will, to not feel
morally chastened for their dereliction, to have streets cleansed of
dead or wandering strays. Wanting to dispose of both their animal
and the moral onus for his or her fate." (Disposable Animals, Ending
the Tragedy of Throwaway Pets).
The public mood is beginning to turn against people who buy and
discard animals as commodities. The shelter “drop-off and run”
attitude is no longer palatable to the Pounds, Rescue Organizations
or Animal Volunteers. Los Angeles Animal Services are now advising
pet owners that they cannot guarantee that they will be able to find
another home and advise owners of other options.
MuttShack Animal Rescue says that “when people decide to buy a
purebred dog, it should be a decision based on the breed’s
characteristics, not the designer label.” In looking for a
particular breed MuttShack recommends the following:
1. Do research online: Read books on the breed, paying special
attention to how they will interact with your family and household.
2. Talk to Breed Rescue Centers about problems associated with their
breed and find out the key reasons why people decide to give up
their dogs. No one has more experience on the breed as the dedicated
volunteers and professionals who rescue the purebred dogs when their
"put to sleep" notices come up at the pounds.
3. Learn how a typical dog of your chosen breed behaves and whether
that is a fit for your lifestyle. Keep in mind how much room your
dog will have, how much exercise you plan on providing daily,
grooming needs, and the drool and hair and poop pick up factor.
4. Make sure everyone in your family is committed to interact with
the dog daily and build a relationship with the dog and then enforce
the quality of life for the pet based on healthy and constant social
interaction.
5. If your dog is going to be home alone during the day, consider
getting two dogs so that they can keep one another company.
6. Give your dog a lifetime guarantee. This means that if you move
you are committed to find a new apartment or home that allows dogs,
or if you move out of State that you will take your dog with you.
Never desert your dog. Moving, illness, animal behavior problems,
etc. can be solved. Experts and volunteers in every field can be
found online at the MuttShack Newsgroups.
7. Through the MuttShack site, you can view photographs of dogs at
the pounds in any particular zip code. Surprisingly twenty-five
percent of dogs, including puppies at the pounds are purebreds.
There are also Special Breed Rescue Organizations who frequently
rescue purebreds from the pounds on the day of their scheduled
euthanasia.
8. Puppies should be microchipped and ID tagged before you bring
them home.
9. Pounds are no places to find a new home for a pet. A pet owner,
who already knows his pet intimately, is the most qualified person
to screen guardians and find a family that will enjoy his pet.
Descriptions of animals in pounds are usually cursory, and since 56%
of dogs entering shelters are euthanized, an older dog, depressed
with a broken heart will easily be overlooked.
10. Buying a purebred puppy is easy but learning how to live with
one forever takes true commitment if you don’t want to become a part
of a "killing problem".”
About MuttShack:
MuttShack Foundation is a 501(c) 3 non-profit charity. MuttShack Foster and
Animal Rescue promotes the education and creation of foster homes
for abandoned and abused animals.
MuttShackers rescue animals from shelters, and from the streets,
rehabilitate and nurture them to health in homes (MuttShacks) and
find them quality, permanent new families.
By intervening and rescuing shelter animals about to be put to
sleep, MuttShack fostering stops the senseless killing of healthy
animals in overcrowded shelters.
Your $101 donation can help us save a life today. View slides of
animals on
MuttShack Lifeline
Donate by
credit card or electronic check.
Donate by Paypal.
Books to read:
* "Man Meets Dog" by Donald McCraig
* Lost and Found, Elizabeth Hess
* Disposable Animals, Craig Brestrup
* The Illustrated Veterinary Guide, Pinney
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