Parents considering buying an animal for Christmas must be aware that they themselves bear full responsibility for the pet. Having a companion animal means not only additional costs, but above all the need to care for it and devote free time to it—every day.
There is no shortage of offers of live gifts for Christmas, especially online. Irresponsible breeders advertise animals on the internet as if they were objects: they tempt buyers with a promotional price and descriptions designed to encourage a purchase, such as “The perfect puppy for a gift” or “Puppies ready for collection.”
– It is reassuring that internet users’ awareness is gradually changing, and descriptions of animal sale offers increasingly contain information stating that a dog is not a toy. Moreover, a law prohibiting the sale of animals without pedigrees comes into force at the beginning of the new year, which will help curb the activities of pseudo-breeders – says Przemysław Klemczak from Tablica.pl.
A puppy bought on impulse during the pre-Christmas rush, which was meant to be a wonderful gift, ends up at best in a shelter and, at worst, is abandoned on a motorway or in the forest.
– People who give dogs to our shelter explain their decision in various ways—some say that their dog is too noisy, while others say that it behaves badly. Sometimes I get the impression that when they decided to buy a dog, they did not realize that from that moment on they would be caring for a living creature – says Izabela Baranowska from the Ciapkowo shelter in Gdynia.
A sensible conversation with loved ones about a new friend can help avoid misfortune for both the animal and its owner, who depend on each other for more than a dozen years.
(information: Agata Majchrzak /ii)