Why Adopting A Pet Can Be A Long Term Committment…
Every year our Little Pawners, Maryssa and Makenna Mahaney beg for a pet on their birthday and at Christmas. My twin sister, Cindy Daniel “comes up with all the reasons she refuses to get one” everytime this issue pops up.
Last night Makenna wrote a three page letter to my sister and I detailing why she wanted a dog and also her plan to care for a new pet- I found strong points in the letter that Cindy sent me via text and called her to discuss them.
In fact, my dog Foxy Wortham was originally a pet for the twins but Beagles are active dogs and he managed to “whip through” pillows and shoes at a fairly alarming rate so my sister called me and asked if we would take him in.
Walking Foxy every morning at my apartment was an escapade in futility especially if it was raining! He would stand there and look at me waiting to go back inside and use my carpets for “his business.”
My husband had an easier schedule since he was self employed and spent hours attempting to train Foxy to go outside but, like me, he encountered problems with rain and snow and a hard headed Beagle.
Caring for a dog or cat is an expensive and lengthy endeavor for pet owners. There’s the vet bills, medication, food and toys along with the huge investment of your time bathing your pet, playing with your pet and even training your pet. Many dogs live 10-15 years with some even longer.
Planning to go on a vacation? What about your pet? Sure you can leave them at the vet for a hefty fee and the one time we did, my husband continued to view the video feed of our miserable dog acting depressed at Pet’s West which made our “vacation” miserable! He spent so much time feeling guilty about Foxy being homesick that we couldn’t have any carefree fun while in Florida.
Up until two months ago, her other daughter Leigh Ann and her new baby Madyson also lived with Cindy which made her home aka The DanielDivaDiggs very tight quarters and was the basis of her blog “Five Females Fighting.”
Dogs are like children- you need to be prepared to clean up after them, care for them and spend a large portion of your life committed to their well being. Dogs and even cats are not for busy families on the go.
My sister has had parrots, bunnies, hamsters, cats, dogs, ducks and lizards at the DanielDivaDiggs and while being the only person who cooks, cleans, washes clothes and does everything else to run the household, has a valid point. After all, it won’t be the children taking care of the pet, it will be her.
For over 12 years, Cindy took care of two dogs- Duke and Puppa. Other than her husband being home on leave from Camp Anaconda, it was Cindy and I who took them to the vet and to the groomer. Cindy cared for those dogs along with her burgeoning household for enough years to realize the responsibility of being a pet owner.
My sons retainers were regularly destroyed and the “accidents” from our previous apartments moved with us.
Of course, dogs can be fun and being joy to your life but, they can also bring stress and since I walk Foxy three times a day and sometimes four- you can imagine my horror when I find another “mess.”
We no longer have an acre and pool for Foxy’s pleasure since “moving to the city” and the condo life means walking him everyday.
I called my sister to remind her of this and reinforced her decision to keep a pet free home since I know she’s already overwhelmed raising the GrandTwins and running her household on her own.
Will the DanielDivaDiggs ever have another pet? Perhaps but it will be when her husband retires to help shoulder the responsibility…
Wendy M Wortham