Are you crazy?!
That is one question animal rescuers are asked all the time. I can tell you as an animals rescuer, yes, we must be. Here are a few reasons why.....
1. Every day we are bombarded with phone calls and emails. Some from fellow rescuers, some from concerned citizens, but many are from irresponsible pet owners. "My dog/cat has a litter of X number of babies and I just can't take care of them anymore. I still have 6 from her last litter, and 3 from the one before that."
Ummm.... Spay and Neuter your pets!!! With the low cost resources available it is possible, and far cheaper than trying to feed all these babies!! Yes, you can post them for free on Craigslist, and give them to complete strangers. That leads me reason number two!!
2. Every day we are bombarded with images of animals, pleas begging for justice, for the bait dog, the tortured dog, the abused dog. Many people with ill intentions search for your free puppy/kitten ad!! Due to the astounding number of irresponsible pet owners, there is never a shortage of "free to good home" pets. You don't know if it's a good home!! It's a stranger!! And no, not everyone getting a free dog/cat will bait, torture, or abuse them. I have had my share of free dogs over the years. Heck, I get them on a daily basis. But THEY ARE NEVER FREE!! They are expensive and cost money!! That's leads me to reason number three!!
3. If you cannot afford to feed them, provide basic preventative care, and get them emergency help if ever needed, DO NOT GET A PET!! Rescuers always have to come in and clean up the messes made by irresponsible pet owners!! That one litter you had to have out of Xena and Hercules is a cute one, yes!! But 5 out of those 8 puppies will likely end up in a shelter before they die. When that happens, depending on the breed and area you're in, 4 of those 5 shelter pups will likely be put to sleep at that shelter because there is no room!!
We subject ourselves to endless torture, heartache, anger, sadness, etc over, and over, and over again every single day. We feel things on a scale far larger than the average person. We carry the burden of every single abandoned, injured, tortured, abused animal on this great planet. In the end, no matter how hard we try, we cannot save them all. Many will die. The hardest part is knowing those deaths could've been prevented by a fairly simple surgical procedure!!
1. Every day we are bombarded with phone calls and emails. Some from fellow rescuers, some from concerned citizens, but many are from irresponsible pet owners. "My dog/cat has a litter of X number of babies and I just can't take care of them anymore. I still have 6 from her last litter, and 3 from the one before that."
Ummm.... Spay and Neuter your pets!!! With the low cost resources available it is possible, and far cheaper than trying to feed all these babies!! Yes, you can post them for free on Craigslist, and give them to complete strangers. That leads me reason number two!!
2. Every day we are bombarded with images of animals, pleas begging for justice, for the bait dog, the tortured dog, the abused dog. Many people with ill intentions search for your free puppy/kitten ad!! Due to the astounding number of irresponsible pet owners, there is never a shortage of "free to good home" pets. You don't know if it's a good home!! It's a stranger!! And no, not everyone getting a free dog/cat will bait, torture, or abuse them. I have had my share of free dogs over the years. Heck, I get them on a daily basis. But THEY ARE NEVER FREE!! They are expensive and cost money!! That's leads me to reason number three!!
3. If you cannot afford to feed them, provide basic preventative care, and get them emergency help if ever needed, DO NOT GET A PET!! Rescuers always have to come in and clean up the messes made by irresponsible pet owners!! That one litter you had to have out of Xena and Hercules is a cute one, yes!! But 5 out of those 8 puppies will likely end up in a shelter before they die. When that happens, depending on the breed and area you're in, 4 of those 5 shelter pups will likely be put to sleep at that shelter because there is no room!!
We subject ourselves to endless torture, heartache, anger, sadness, etc over, and over, and over again every single day. We feel things on a scale far larger than the average person. We carry the burden of every single abandoned, injured, tortured, abused animal on this great planet. In the end, no matter how hard we try, we cannot save them all. Many will die. The hardest part is knowing those deaths could've been prevented by a fairly simple surgical procedure!!