Would you give up your pet if you were having a baby, moving, etc?

Canada
March 1, 2011 10:57am CST
I am seeing more and more, especially lately, people wanting to dump their pets simply because they are about to have a baby. I don't see why they would do that, I consider my pets to be family, I wouldn't dump a child because I was getting a dog, that would be wrong. What makes it right to dump a pet for that reason? Can anyone tell me this? Pets have been around for hundreds of years, how many owners gave them up because they wanted to start a human family? I grew up with cats, my parents never once thought about dumping their pets just because they had kids. My roommate said that he would dump a cat, in a heartbeat if he had kids, but obviously he doesn't like cats as he's told me several times in the past few months. It upsets me that people would do something like that. I read today and a couple of days ago, a joke posting by someone stating that they were going to rehome their children because they were getting a dog. I was going to post the ad here removing names, but the ad was flagged and removed. This shows the seriousness of the issue I bring up about dumping pets. Others say they're dumping their pets due to allergies. I say get over it. My husband has allergies to dander and fur, but we have 2 shedding dogs and a cat that sheds too. He deals with it, he's never once suggested getting rid of the pets even if his doctor has said so. For him, unless it's killing him, he refuses to give up his pets, and that makes sense to me. I wouldn't dream of giving up my pets, no matter what the circumstances were, they are my family and that's the way it will be until they pass on. I've read so many excuses by pet owners about why they're dumping their animals and it sickens me. Moving to a place that doesn't allow animals. Why would you move to such a place? If you had kids, would you move to a place that didn't allow them? Here, it's against the law to say no pets allowed, except under specific circumstances. And those have to be proven by the landlord/homeowner prior to a lease being signed. Simply saying that one is allergic is not enough. Having proof of this is needed. Also, when it comes to moving to a condo, it's up to the condo board members if pets are allowed, so if you want to move to a condo, you need to find out if it's pet friendly. I read a post last night from someone giving up their 120lb dog because they're moving to a condo. But they never said that pets weren't allowed they just claimed that it wasn't a good match for the dog. So, in that case, why are you moving to a condo where it would be too small for your dog? Doesn't it make sense to find somewhere that the dog would have plenty of room to move around? I had a baby and don't have time for my dog. You had the dog before you had the baby, why can't you make time for both of them? Besides, the baby isn't up 24/7, so you still have time for the dog during the baby's sleep time. That excuse was made by the previous owner of my current dog. Yet her baby wasn't a newborn, he was 7 months old. She already had time to get used to having a baby and work out schedules. Yet she didn't give up the 2 cats she had. Maybe because they were more independent? She hated having to get both the dog and the baby ready when the dog needed to go out. Then she only took him out for a short walk. It's no wonder that he was bored when he first came home with us. He loved going for walks and I took him on fairly long walks, but if I didn't have time for that, he certainly went out for frequent walks. He got to go to dog parks and socialize, even went to the beach. That's something she never did with him. My dog has gotten larger than I thought he would. Did you not research the breed type to find out the characteristics of the dog? If you had, you could have made a decision before bringing the dog home that he was going to be too big for your home. I saw that one last week, it was for a rottie cross. Most people know how big rotties can get. I even saw that excuse a few weeks ago for a great dane!! I mean, how can you not know that a great dane is not going to grow to be a huge dog? Years ago, when I faced living on the streets, I didn't want to give up my pets, I tried desperately to figure out a way to keep them with me, even if it meant that they were living in my van with me. That would have been interesting, numerous hamster cages and several cats. But the biggest concern would have been the temperature. It was getting close to winter, and it would have been cold. I wouldn't have slept much knowing that I had to keep us all warm, so I'd have to run the engine frequently to do so. It never came to that thankfully, but if it had, I would have tried to find them temporary homes just until I'd found a place to live. Unless a pet owner has died, I really see no excuse for dumping a pet, especially an older pet that has lived with you for their entire life. It's just not fair to them.
1 person likes this
10 responses
@puccagirl (7294)
• Israel
1 Mar 11
No, never. That is out of the question for me. My dogs are like family to me. But I actually heard recently that if you are pregnant and have a cat that poops inside, there is some kind of bacteria in cat poop that can really hurt the unborn baby. In such cases, I can understand if people try to get someone to take the cat for the rest of the pregnancy, because it is not really fair to risk the life of the baby either. But then the cat should be returned once the baby is born of course (I know someone who did this). This is really the only time I can understand people giving up their pets. Otherwise it makes no sense to me. But since I have dogs, and doubt that I will ever get a cat (I am more of a dog person), I will never have that issue. So the dogs stay for sure!
1 person likes this
@GardenGerty (157652)
• United States
1 Mar 11
Toxoplasmosis and even dogs carry it. A pregnant woman should either have someone else do the litter box or she should wear gloves and a mask. Generally if you have been around animals all of your life you will have already had it, and have some immunity to it (my vet says). In an adult the disease feels like a bad cold or the flu. My vet is a woman. She worked her whole pregnancy, and brought her babies to work with her every day. Their crib was behind the counter in the office. It was a real pleasure to watch her girls grow up, all three of them.
@junrapmian (2169)
• Philippines
2 Mar 11
No, I wouldn't do that. I have a dog-lover family and I don't think we can rehome our pet if a baby is coming in. Maybe I will just have to enclose the baby inside the nursery but never will I rehome or leashed or caged my pet dog.
1 person likes this
@GardenGerty (157652)
• United States
1 Mar 11
Often how you treat pets is an example of how you treat people. I had a cat that developed behavior problems about where she went poop when my first husband was ill. He told me to get rid of her I had to explain to him that I do not get rid of sick pets and sick people. Many people believe that cats will "suck the breath out of the baby" and feel that they have to get rid of all indoor pets when they have a baby. There are also many instances of dogs mauling babies and small children. That tells me that the babies were not properly supervised around the dogs or vice versa. There are circumstances where animals do have to be rehomed, but that is still much more loving than abandoning them or taking them to a pound. Once I have chosen a pet, I am responsible for that animal. I am not getting any more animals. As the pets I have die, I will not replace them. My life will eventually not fit pets, but meanwhile they get food, medical care, laps and love.
• Canada
1 Mar 11
My roommate was talking about the baby's breath thing earlier, that was part of the reason why I started this discussion. However, when a baby comes into your life, and remember that you've had 9 months to plan for the arrival, you need to make sure that your pet will be ready for it too. I've often given advice to pet owners who want to rehome their pet because of a baby, and have told them to make sure the pet isn't allowed into the baby's room. There are plenty of suggestions that can be made to pet owners so they don't have to give up their pets.
@daeckardt (6237)
• United States
1 Mar 11
I can go along with all of that. We had to get rid of dogs when we made big moves to keep my dad happy. We had a St. Bernard that we had for six years. We had taken her on a month long family vacation in the summer and then my dad lost his job and we traded houses with a guy in Missouri (we were living in Alaska at the time) and we only took what we could fit in the van. There were five kids and two adults and my dad decided the dog couldn't go. We tried to give her away and she whined all night so we took her back. But the next day, my dad took her to the pound. I don't know if it was right or not, but I had no control over what he did. Thanks for sharing your opinion.
• Canada
1 Mar 11
Even though it was out of your control, it wasn't right for your dad to do that. I've seen many a child bawling their eyes out when their parents take their beloved pet to the pound. It's just not fair. At least if it's in your control, you can do something about it.
1 person likes this
• Canada
1 Mar 11
Lol :) Thankfully you were able to drop your dog with you SIL, that always helps knowing that you'll be able to get him back when the time is right. It's harder if you put your animal somewhere where you don't know how they'll be treated or even if you'll get them back.
@katsmeow1213 (28717)
• United States
1 Mar 11
I'm with you.. my pets are part of my family. It would take a lot for me to get rid of them. Even then, I'd do my best to find them a good home instead of just dumping them or leaving them behind.
• Canada
1 Mar 11
Exactly what a lot of people don't do. They don't get to know the people who would be taking in their pet. Happened with me when I took the animals in that I did. I'd be there for about 10-15 minutes getting the animal ready to go, but they never really got to know me, and they never contacted me again to see how the pet was doing, it was like they truly didn't care. I do wonder what my dog's previous owner will say when he passes on, he's 10 this month and wont be around forever.
• Virgin Islands (U.S.)
1 Mar 11
No. I would not leave my pet. When you whant a pet you have to make sure that you have conditions to create it. If you see that you will move or you will have a baby just wait till he comes then you see if you realy can sustain the pet. If not don't even try because they(animals) got feelings to.
• Canada
1 Mar 11
Pets are a lifetime commitment, I wish some people would figure that one out, but not all people do.
• Canada
31 Mar 11
I've had my cat for 9 years. Got him two days after I moved in here. I am not going to conceive a child if I think the child and the cat won't mix. I am not going to move into a place that will not take my cat. I am lucky that my husband loves cats, but if he didn't, we might not be married. I had the cat first!!!
@mermaidivy (15395)
• United States
1 Mar 11
I have heard this often... I think it is very sad that people think the pet is so cute so they buy them home and get rid of it because of servral reasons like the pet is getting too big, too annoying, owner needs to move etc, I think it is very very brutal to the pets... I will never do that, once I take the pet home, I have them forever as one of the family member, unfortunately, they don't live as long as we do, I wish they do, it is very sad when they have to leave us at some point in our life...
@eurekafemme (5877)
• Philippines
2 Mar 11
No, I will not dump a pet because I am going to have a child, nor i'll dump it because I wanted to moved in to a different place. I had a pet(she's in heaven now) but I never thought of dumping her when I found out that I was pregnant. Matter of fact, I love her even more because she made me so happy and relaxed which is also good for the baby inside my tummy. In considering of moving to a new home, husband and I will surely consider a place where pets are allowed, if not, then, we'll find another place. Unless, the pet will cause an allergy to my children, then and only then, I will have to let it go. Let it go to someone who can take care of it and love it as much as I do, but never, ever dump it.
@louievill (28851)
• Philippines
1 Mar 11
hi friend, I think a pet is a pet and is also a member of the family and of course a baby is my baby so I would give up neither, although I really cannot speak for the rest because I live in a private subdivision with a large yard, and I have a vacant lot to move pets in case they come into conflict with raising my kids. To date I have six dogs and a lot of other animals, but again I never lived on a tight space or a place where owners call shots on whether we could keep pets or not, really wish I could give a good suggestion, good luck friend