All of our animals have their story. They were all rescued at some
point or another. Dave brought 5 cats into my home and I came with a
dog. Dave can tell you the stories of the Cat-kids, but I'll share
the dog's and the rabbits....
The rabbits are easy: they came from the shelter. All of them were
fat and sassy, except little Thumper, who was a bit neglected when we
got her. One of them was "too much trouble". One was a pet-store
surrender. I didn't bother getting the back-stories on the rest, but
for one reason or another, they stopped being the cute little
Easter-present and became a responsibility. Rabbit are hardly any
trouble. They eat a handful of pellets and fresh vegetables. They
can eat grass out of the yard. We buy hay for $4/bale that lasts
months. We change the hay out every other day. We let them run
around and play with each other and the cats and even the dog.
They're better than cable to keep us entertained.
My Daisy Dawg was pregnant when she was found. Someone decided that
rather than to spay their pet, they allowed her to get pregnant and
that she'd be better off on her own, feeding herself while puppies
were forming inside of her. An angel found her and took care of her
and her puppies. Her pups were taken from her and given to
(hopefully) good homes and the angel's uncle took Daisy in.
Unfortunately, one of his dogs disliked her and was attacking her, and
that's when I got her. She was so bony and sad-looking. She had
almost no socialization. She craved attention, but didn't know how to
get it, so she would bite. A lot. It took a lot of work to get her
to be the sweet dog she is today. She is about 20 pounds over-weight
and thinks she's a cat. The only stress in her life is avoiding baths
and manicures.
The reason I shared these stories is because it just breaks my heart
to see animals being neglected. You don't have to go to PETA's
website to see it, it probably happens in your own neighborhood.
Today, I saw my (I hope I get this straight) my ex-husband's mother's
boyfriend strike his dog several times because she was barking at me.
That's what dogs do! They bark at strangers! If you don't know this,
then maybe you're not cut out to be a dog-owner. I wanted to take the
leash away and put the poor dog in my car. I see dogs in yards with
no shelter or way to warm up this winter. I go to the animal shelter
and it is full of animals who are victims. I can't save them all.
But I do ask that IF you're going to buy your child a puppy for
Christmas, get a shelter puppy. If you are going to buy your child a
rabbit for Easter, get a shelter rabbit. If you're going to get your
cat another cat to play with, get a shelter cat. Please don't support
breeders or puppy mills or pet stores. There are too many great pets
being put to sleep every day to encourage more breeding.
And at the risk of sounding too Bob Barker-ish; have your pet spayed
or neutered. And give them a hug right now for me.
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