“We don’t adopt out to military families.” That’s right. That is a blanket restriction from one of the rescues that pulls from our local shelter. Personally, I’m insulted. I am a military spouse with 5 awesome dogs, including pit bull, and a cat and know countless other military families that not only keep their pets through numerous moves and deployments but consider their pets to be a cherished member of the family. Yeah, I’ve heard the rationale --Oh, but the military families get deployed where civilians do not…some military bases do not allow pets... Blah, blah, blah. The issue isn’t their career; it lies with the individual. If the *individual* is committed to their pet, they will find a way to make it work through moves and deployments. If they’re not, they will surrender the pet --just like adopters in any other profession will do. One of the top reasons given for surrendering animals to a shelter is “moving”. So should we compile a list of the professions of all the people that surrender their pet because they are moving and add those professions to the restricted list as well? Because apparently it is the job that is the issue and not the adopter’s commitment, right? Or should there be a restriction that you must own your home…or that you have never moved. How about people that surrender their pets because they lost their jobs and can no longer afford their pets? We could add a restriction that only lottery winners can adopt or only those that have enough savings to provide for the pet should they lose their job. Ooooh - what about for pets that are surrendered if the owners die? Well, an age requirement and health assessment may work for that, right? How about this? How about instead of blanket restrictions, potential adopters are judged as individuals. You know, just like the pets themselves should be judged. -KP
Posted on: Mon, 30 Sep 2013 16:49:48 +0000
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