The “Water Cooler” is a feature on Claycord.com where we ask you a question or provide a topic, and you talk about it.
The “Water Cooler” will be up Monday-Friday in the noon hour.
Petco has a new Christmas commercial, which says “giving a small pet as a gift is easy.”
In your opinion, should pets ever be given as gifts?
Talk about it….
Probably not a great idea for young ones but I might bring one into our home soon.
Was thinking about it, but I heard California is soon going to ban all pets, pet supply stores etc. in an effort to combat climate change. I don’t want that feeling of carbon footprint guilt, so not buying a pet especially at Christmas time.
Don’t be daft.
No. Need to be earned. And parents gotta have the guts to get rid of the pet if child fails responsibility.
NO.
No, it’s a stupid idea, but then Petco is not the greatest pet store either. My sister and I were given a couple of pet chicks when we were about 6 and 7, we ended up killing them by overfeeding them.
Poor little birds.
Chickens?
Were you force feeding them or something? My g/f and I currently have 30+ chickens (all started as babies or hatched at her house), turkeys and guinea fowl. They won’t eat to the point that they die. I’d guess we’ve had 80-100 chickens come through, never seen one do that.
I do have a Leopard Gecko that I got from a friend after she got it for her kid. He quickly lost interest in him and he was fully neglected. She said that him and his friends would try to force feed it, so I’m not surprised by kids doing that type of stuff.
Back on to the original question. The parents should only buy a pet for their kid if they’re willing to assume full responsibility for it for the rest of its life once the kid loses interest.
Yes, but never as a surprise. Everything involving adoption of a pet has to be preceded by all parties understanding the responsibilities of caring for a pet, including medical and if a dog, training it to be a good citizen.
My sentiments exactly. And all parties need to understand that a pet is a lifetime commitment (the pet’s or the owner’s, whichever ends first). The idea that parents “gotta have the guts to get rid of the pet if child fails responsibility” is ridiculous and, in itself, shows a lack of responsibility.
Ditto
Absolutely not! If you think someone is ready for a pet, the best thing to do is give them a certificate to a local shelter so they can choose their own pet after the frenzy of the holidays.
No.
I found a golden retriever puppy running loose on a busy street one morning.
I called the number on her collar and a woman answered. She came to pick her up and was really in a bad mood. She was hung over, she said. Anyway, she said, Damn dog keeps getting out.
She said her dad gave it to her as a gift, and she didn’t want it.
I asked her if I could have it, and she said yes.
I already had a dog. But I called golden retriever rescue and they said. Yes, yes, yes we will take her and find her a great home. And they did.
Good for you and the puppy! What a blessing for a Golden Retriever puppy! 🙂 Thank you for being so kind and watching out for the sweet little friend.
In most cases, I think not. However, our daughters gave us a kitten for our 30th wedding anniversary and she is the sweetest cat ever. That was 18 1/2 years ago and we still enjoy her. She’s sitting about a foot away as I type this.
No, not as a gift for a child under 12,…and also, it’s an animal that is really wanted by the whole Family, since it will be a whole Family affair.
If they really want one. We started with fish at Christmas when my son was three. At nineteen, he is now an expert on aquariums and still loves the hobby. Buys his fish at Petco and the Aquarium store in Concord. My daughter got a parrot from Petco for fifth grade graduation. (She would rather have a bird than a phone) She is now in college and adores that bird. (and he adores her). We have had numerous cats, dogs, geckos (easy to care for) birds, fish, rabbits and guinea pigs. (smelly and noisy at night) It teaches kids responsibility, love and loss when a pet dies.
I think it’s a great idea…. as long as your kids want a pet, are over 18 and don’t live in your house anymore.
If you give young children pets, be prepared to become the pets guardian.
You WILL be feeding it. You WILL be the one (if applicable) who walks or exercises it. You WILL be the one who cleans up after it, as well as, pays for the Vet bills.
Buy your kids toys they play outdoors with and pretend ‘they’ ARE your pets!
It depends, I mean if you give one to a kid, you should be ready to take care of it yourself. But my wife knows I miss my dog that passed and I would love it if she got me a pup for Christmas.
This is the sort of decision that should be made by the parents, not a committee.
Bad idea, as pets become the responsibility of the adults. They require a lot more time and resources than just at night when you come home from work/school. Pets can be great for teaching responsibility but nowadays too many kids are slugs.
If it’s been discussed with your child and they are educated and prepared, then it makes for a memorable Christmas… but they probably won’t be in a box under the tree! Plus, it’s not just for the child, but the entire family. Everyone in the house needs to be on board and know exactly what the animal needs and should be willing to take care of it. But never give an animal as a surprise of course! But this should be obvious to everyone.
You don’t adopt children as Christmas gifts or birthday presents, same should go for pets. They are members of the family. The entire family needs to be prepared and committed to the responsibility.
Little Toe, you are so right!
Both of our dogs were given to our kids as Christmas gifts… our first one died of old age…loved by every family member till the day he passed… our other dog is 13 years old now and we still love her unconditionally… if the family is ready for the responsibility a pet can be a great gift
Never the surprise kind of gift, unless the giver actually wants the pet and understands the responsibility for it and are willing, able, and available to provide it with the proper home, care, attention, and everything it needs through its life when/if the kid can’t or won’t. I took advantage of “giving” pets to my child as an excuse to get a pet a few times, always hopeful the boy would put consistent effort into helping with care, but with underwhelming success. We did have lovely pets though, who were appreciated by all.
I haven’t seen the Petco commercial, but it sounds like a very irresponsible advert. Many people don’t understand the time, expense, and commitment pets require and will often dump the animals which is cruel and heartless and a terrible message to teach children.
Only if it’s for YOUR child and YOU know the consequences (i.e. YOU will be helping care for this pet!!).
This is not fair to the pets. Too much going on at Christmas for families and kids. The responsibility of pet ownership should not be happening on Christmas morning. Only at a time without any distractions,
Each family should make the decision as to if it’s right for them. No one’s opinion matters except the family who is taking on that responsibility.
The pets matter not the families. The timing is very bad for pets. Who cares what “families” think. This is not a good idea to get pets for Christmas.
NO!