Each year, animal rights organizations launch a campaign of "stop giving puppies for Christmas". I've always taken the opposite opinion, that giving a puppy or kitten for Christmas is a wonderful idea, for both the animals and their intended recipients.

The only suggestion I have to make is that giving animals as gifts MUST NOT be a surprise gift. The recipient should have expressed their interest in assuming responsibility for a pet. There's nothing wrong in talking it over with the recipient before you buy the puppy.

Additionally, if you intend to give a puppy to your child for Child for Christmas, understand that YOU will end up taking care of that animal. You can't expect a child to feed, walk, train, and take a dog to the vet.

As far as animal rights groups goes, just think of the irony of their message, about banning the practice of puppies for Christmas...

• More dogs are euthanized than adopted out to families, shouldn't PETA, HSUS, and the ASPCA encourage more dog adoptions?



• Animal rights groups complain that many people don't understand the responsibilities that go along with dog ownership. Therefore, doesn't it make sense to let more people own dogs so that they can understand?



• Shelters continue to kill animals all year around; they don't stop during the month of December.



• Adopting a dog or puppy for Christmas is no different than any other time of the year. It's still a matter of being responsible.

If animal rights groups truly cared for the well being of animals, they'd do everything they can to get more animals into the hands of families. Why they would beg you not to give a puppy for Christmas shows that they don't care for the animals, they just care about their vegan ideology.

I will say one thing, get a puppy or dog from an animal shelter or animal rescue. Yes, you can find puppies there! Go to PetFinder.com to find locations near you.

If you want to buy from a breeder, then visit the breeder in person, and inspect their breeding facilities. Don't buy puppies from a newspaper or pet store, because you're more than likely putting money into the hands of puppy mills.

For once, I'd like to see all the pet writers acknowledge that adopting a puppy from a shelter or rescue makes a better Christmas gift than any toy or jewelry you can buy. Just make sure your recipient is prepared for the puppy.

Labels: Christmas

Pet Supplies Plus, the nation's third largest pet retail chain, published the result of a poll about it's shoppers' Christmas gift-giving habits for pets.

It asked its shoppers whether they liked giving gifts to their pets more than they liked gift giving for humans.

• 93% said it's more fun to shop for their pets than human relatives


• 95% said it's easier to find the right gifts for pets, versus humans


• 26% said they spend more on their pets than human relatives


• 78% said they include their pets in their holiday cards

I think that last one means whether or not they're pets "sign their names" on cards.

It kinda goes along with other studies showing that pets provide an element of stress-free relationship for their owners.

Labels: Christmas, Dog Ownership