According to various sources, the Obamas are looking into getting a rescue dog. Which is awesome. I'm just wondering why I had to go to the BBC to find that out as opposed to our own free press.
I suspect it has something to do with if the press says "Adopt a shelter dog!" then all those breeders will get angry. But hey, it'd at least be responsible for the press to say "Adopt a shelter dog!" if not only because it's been proven that when a specific breed is in the eye of the public, EVERYONE has to have one. It happens when presidents get pets (especially if their public rating numbers are high--so the Obamas getting a dog before getting to the White House is going to be MUCH more influencial than say Bush getting a dog right now), it happens when movies come out starring our furry friends (didn't Dalmatian demand double when 101 Dalmations came out?--the live action movie, not the cartoon), it even happens when there are news reports about specific breeds.
So, here's your public announcement for the day: If you're going to adopt a pet, please, please, please think about adopting a rescue. If you want a specific breed, good news! they have these things called 'breed specific rescues' which means you can get a pure bred pet that is a rescue.
And yes, I know what you're going to say--rescues are damaged goods. But there's no guarantee that the pure breed you're going to get is going to be any better than a rescue. As with all things that come from sexual reproduction, it's really all a crap shoot.
2 comments:
My family's large pets have always come to us; we've never had to go get one. The golden retreiver mix we had when I was small literally showed up on my parent's doorstep. Our cocker spaniel was running around a Holiday Inn on a trip to Wichita (severely malnourished). And our current pet, Cat, was hanging out by the ATM at our office.
I don't get people that buy pets. It seems wrong to pay for a life (I'm cool with shelter fees since they pay for medical stuff that would cost 3 times as much if you were paying for it yourself). I have bought small pets; mice and lots of fish, but they are so cheap most of the cost is wrapped up in their upkeep until you buy them.
Anyways, there are always a lot of lost and abandoned pets running around that need good homes!
I don't worry too much about our press I hear about it from a source in the states. I also heard that one of his daughters are highly allergic to dogs so they need to find on that doesn't shed.
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