Then you comment that you want the cage too - so that "they can't
purchase another animal" to put into it later.  Who ARE you?

Dear Candid Camera,

You wanted to know who I am to have such harsh opinions about adopting
pets from individuals.  I worked online for six years for a pet related
chat and bulletin board website.  This is where, through much discussion
with different people who do rescue work, I came to the conclusion that
it was best if I intended to adopt an animal from an individual to
provide some other assurance to the owner that the animal would be well
cared for that did not involve money.  There were simply too many people
who did go through a series of pets they could not or would not care for
properly and did not understand why some of us kept telling them that
their pets were not to be changed like the latest fad for the next one
that came along.  I've heard every excuse under the sun for why animals
must be found a new home.

But I'm sure you would rather just hear about only the animals I have
personally adopted, not the woes of the world.  So, I was Buddy's mom.
Buddy was a basset hound/lab mix.  He got caught up in a dispute between
a couple of my neighbors.  Neighbor A had a baby and gave the dog to
neighbor B.  Neighbor B's landlord told them to get rid of the dog.
Neighbor A told them it was their problem now.  Long story short, Buddy
wound up being dumped out on a busy road by neighbor B who told his kids
Buddy would find his own new home.  Buddy made it as far as our back
fence when neighbor B's kids showed up absolutely frantic that he not
come home because their daddy might do him some greater harm.  My husband
and I realized that as responsible adults we had to do the right thing
for the dog and kids, so he lived with us.  Six months later neighbor A
got a new puppy.

I'm also Chewy's mom.  Chewy is a cockatiel.  He's insane.  His previous
owner gave him to me because she couldn't stand that her young children
kept poking him with a fork through the cage when she wasn't looking.
Chewy loves to be held and have his head scratched, but every now and
then he has what seems to be flashbacks and lashes out viciously.  Then
he looks up innocently and begs to have his head scratched again.

I was Imp and Speedy's mom.  They were two little dwarf hamsters.  Their
owners got rid of them because their children refused to care for them
properly.  When I got them they were on a corn cob bedding that was
glued to the bottom of the cage with black mold.  Way to teach kids
responsibility.

I am Moony's mom.  Moony is a hedgehog who's owner decided to move in
with her boyfriend.  His apartment doesn't allow pets so she wound up
asking random people in the college cafeteria if they wanted some of
her various pets and my son brought home her number.

And your comment about "paying for someone else's mistakes"?  Where the
hell did THAT come from?  Are you like TRYING to get people flaming at
you?  Those "mistakes", as you so righteously called them, are ferrets.
Not 'mistakes'.

The mistakes I'm speaking of are not the animals themselves, but the lack
of research and preparation by the owner to give the animals a proper
forever home.  It's important to be sure before you get an animal that
it will fit in with your lifestyle, your family, and your future plans.
Everyone makes mistakes in life, and it's wonderful that there are
adopters and rescues to help the animals, but it's still wrong to expect
that on top of helping you make things right for the animals that people
will also give you money.

But then you make a comment about adopting from a local shelter and
stating that "at least you know the money is going for a good reason",
kinda takes the wind right outta your sails there.  How do you know what
they are going to do with the money and what makes you think that they
money the owner gets, ISN'T going for a good reason?

I know what the money goes for at my local ferret shelter because I stay
involved with them as much as I possibly can.  I've been to the fund
raisers where money was specificly being raised for vet bills and read
the newsletters where the shelter costs in food and medications was laid
out for the club membership, so that we could understand exactly where
our yearly dues and donations were going.

Try to be a little less harsh on people.  You never know when YOU'LL be
put into a position where YOU may have to sell, surrender, adopt out,
whatever YOUR fuzzies.

When you get old and grey like me, you realize that bad things happen
and rough times come along and you put money away in a rainy day fund
to take care of these things.  If I should happen to die tomorrow or go
bankrupt, provisions have been made for my children's and pet's continued
care.  To be blunt, I would be more likely to chop off my own right hand
than to sell one of my pets for grocery money.

Veda
[Posted in FML issue 5262]