Today after my intro micro exam, I visited Pets Paradise at Box Hill. They have several new dogs for sale, there were two puppies there getting all the attention, they kinda looked like English sheepdogs but they are not, but they are definitely a long-haired breed.
Anyway I was watching the puppies play around and being very active as it was nearly their dinner time when I overheard two Asian international students talking about the puppies. One of them wanted to buy one because it was "so cute". The other one said how it will be quite expensive, not to mention stinky. The first girl then said, "A kennel is all it needs, I will just put the kennel in the backyard and so it won't be so smelly."
At this point I was getting worried. Surely they are not going to leave the dog in the backyard all the time?
I listened to them for a little longer and found that neither of them like to pick up doggie dos or cleaning the mess. One of them was like, "but it will make so much mess, I don't want to pick up their waste."
I wanted to yell at them "What did you expect? It's a dog! Not a toy!"
Boy, these two young women present a spectacular example of people who buy pets on impulse. Usually they know very little about the animals, let alone how to care for it. So a kennel is enough for a dog?! I would love to be the pet shop owner telling them a dog needs much more than shelter; grooming equipment, good quality dog food, walking accessories, flea and worm treatments, vet care and most importantly, plenty of love and attention. If those two girls are not too keen on picking up doggies dos, then I suspect they won't like to wash or groom the dog either. To make matters worse (if they do buy the puppy), it is a long-haired breed, meaning it will require much more grooming attention.
I left the pet shop just as they went to ask the shop owner for the price. I sincerely hope the price will scare them off.
Unfortunately this situation happens every day and everywhere. In most cases, the animals end up unwanted, in the shelter.
SIGH, when will people learn?
1 comment:
i know what you mean... ppl can be so naive and ignorant... and heartless.
before i got mika, parents made sure i understood what it meant to be a pet owner... i had to read everything about dogs and tell them all about it... and also had to make sure i can look after pet fishes... lol like 200 of them... and keep them alive for at least a year.
i managed to keep most of them alive for three :)
it's so good to see you always taking care of rex :) he's really lucky to have an owner like you!
~mash
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