Hi all
I do agree and ALWAYS speak to people about adopting a cat and kitten, but email works for me.. as it gets rid of the time wasters. This is the current blurb i give people (along with general adoption advice)... when they give the nearest hint of adopting a kitten at Christmas... it may not be everyones cup of tea, but if they are truly committed then they get back to me... It may be abit strong but there we are..and it does the trick for me..
THE CHRISTMAS MESSAGE WHY CHRISTMAS IS NOT ALWAYS A HAPPY ENDING FOR ANIMALS!
It may look adorable with a little ribbon round its neck, a beautiful soft bundle of fur underneath the Christmas tree, but giving someone a cat or kitten for Christmas is not such a good idea. Every year animal welfare charities are flooded with pets who were unwanted Christmas presents, or from people who had underestimated the burden of responsibility that comes with pet ownership.
Cats Protection labels the impulse to give cats as Christmas presents 'a recipe for disaster'. If you are considering giving a cat as a gift, Cats Protection offer the following reasons why you should change your mind:
Giving a cat as a surprise present is unfair on the recipient: having a cat is a serious decision and requires planning.
The Christmas season, full of noise and disruption, is the worst time to bring an animal into a new environment.
Even little kittens do not come cheaply. The recipient of a surprise cat may not have the financial resources to continue caring for it, or may lack the necessary equipment or knowledge to care for a new cat.
The surprised new owner may not want to have a cat, and both will suffer for it.
If you are determined to make the season festive feline-style, Cats Protection recommends giving cat-related gifts, such as scratching posts, catnip toys, or IOUs for things like pet insurance or vaccinations or even better by one of our fab Branch Calendars!!!!
Seeing that Christmas is the season of goodwill to humans and animals why not seriously consider taking on an older cat that may have been with us for some time but always gets over looked for the younger models. For us in rescue the benefits of taking on a mature feline far outweigh its supposedly age old issue of “Oh that one is too old” Can we really be a society where as soon as animal matures out of kittenhood we paint them all with the same brush and label them “Too old”…
After Christmas despite the barrage of media from rescues of “Don’t get a animal for Christmas” people still do and rescues suffer accordingly in the New year. The “oldies” get dumped because they are no fun any more and kittens prove to be too expensive, too messy and too hyperactive to keep. So why not do the sensible thing and come back to us in the New Year where we will all be bursting at the seams with cats and kittens that for one reason or another are dumped because people just didn’t care enough to think about the commitment of taking on an animal.
The other side of the coin is those people that genuinely need to rehome an animal over the Christmas period and after due to bereavement, family issues or a whole host of other problems cannot because every kitten we take in takes a place of a seemingly more needy case. And then don’t forget the stray that has no home, has no blankets to sleep on, has no food to eat and has no warm fire to sit by. Strays don’t get a choice of a happy ever after home because there is usually never any space in rescues to take them in.
However, as a branch of Cats Protection and no matter what the time of year we want to make sure our cats and kittens end up in loving forever homes sooner rather then later. So if you are planning a quiet couple of weeks at home on your own, or seek a feline for companionship, don’t have a pethorela of kiddies invading your home, or not having endless parties and every relative you ever new down for the Christmas holidays...... then please do get in touch to talk things through, because you could be the answer to one or two of our cats prays.
..................and finally although this is not just a seasonal issue....the Pet Shop trade does not really help to relay the Christmas message, as Pet Shop who are legally allowed to sell animals, will do at any time of the year. Pay your money and pick and kitten....Sounds dead simple right..
BUT THINK ABOUT IT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Why rescues dislike Petshops & all those Free Ad Websites
Kittens sold through pet shops are sometimes obtained from dubious backgrounds, often no more than 'kitten farms' where very little attention is paid to the health and welfare of the animal. Conditions of care in many pet shops are often far less than ideal and litters of kittens are often mixed so disease can spread, but you may not realise that until its all too late and you find yourself with a sickly kitten and a very expensive vets bill. Furthermore, you want get to see the "Mum" of the kittens, have no idea of their past history and no idea of any health issues that may be hereditary (heart mumors, deafness etc, etc).
The bottom line is that Pet Shops are run as a business for profit, therefore money is the main motivator. They will happily sell a kitten to anyone who pays their money, with no thought to whether that animal will end up in a suitable home, who realises the what the expenses are when they take it on (neuter, vaccinate etc). Some of those kittens may never of been to a vet to be health checked, its unusal for any of them to be vaccinated and some have more then their fare share of worms and fleas. There is no advice given out to new owners, no back up for problems, no "returns policy" , no help with neutering, nope you are on your own!
So some cute, fluffy kittens bought in pets shops grow up un-neutered, unvaccinated, un-cared for and find themselves eventually joining the two and a half million strays on the streets - often victims of hunger, cruelty and disease, because it just seemed to be a really good idea to "buy" a kitten on a Saturday afternoon just before the shop closes for the weekend!
And why not make it even easier... buy a cat or kitten of the internet!! Is this really such a good idea?
Every kitten bought through a petshop has then used up a home - and so somewhere in the country another healthy kitten could be put to sleep because there are not enough homes to go round and not enough rescue space available to foster them.
Even if you have the perfect home to offer - by buying from a Petshop, you are helping to perpetuate this thoughtless trade that only exists because people unwisely think Pet Shops are the best places to get a nice new kitten!
By rescuing, you are giving a home to an animal that really needs it, and not helping those who breed and sell for profit.
(PS some wording adapted from CP site)
