Fur-Kids Are A Lifetime Commitment. Unconditionally.

I've learned a lot of things since being a Dog Mom and since the launch of Bodacious Biscuit Love almost 4 years ago. One of those has been not to judge. Or, at the very least, try not to. Passing judgment and ridiculing pet parents, who probably should never be pet parents, doesn't solve a problem. It just adds to it. One of my mottoes is, "If you're not part of the solution, you're part of the problem."

But, like everyone else, I'm human. I get angry. Frustrated. I want to allow open season on my tongue. I pace. I've shed tears. Often times, I feel as if I'm being split in half.

The first half wants to be gentle and understanding when random people approach us and assume we're a rescue and want an easy route to re-homing their pup. Through word of mouth, and this blog, and my personal Facebook page, it's no big secret that all 5 of our kids, being 4 pups and a Guinea Pig, are rescues.

And, by rescue, I mean either adopted from a shelter or rescued from people who no longer wanted their fur-kid.

Sure, in my time of being a Dog Mom, and since Bodacious Biscuit Love launched, we have connections and resources and directions we can point people in. We're happy to assist. We've assisted with rescues, transport, pointing people in the right direction, making phone calls, etc. And, that's included a few cases when someone else has taken unwanted dogs or cats in and have needed assistance with food, supplies, or other stuff.

The other half, well, that's not so pretty.

I get frustrated. Too many people are wanting to re-home their pups for reasons I can't understand.

Relationships breaking up.

Loss of interest.

No longer having time to spend with the pup or take them out.

People not realizing just how expensive it is for vaccinations, spay/neuter, flea, tick, and heartworm preventative, etc.

The pup being too rough with the kids in the house.

Allergies.

The list goes on. And on. And on.

What it boils down to, most of the time, is people don't think before adopting a pup or buying a puppy. They don't take everything into consideration.

For example, lets say you're in a relationship with someone. You buy a puppy together. Months down the road, y'all break up.

Prior to buying the puppy, was there any thought put into what would happen to the pup if the 2 of you broke up?

Probably not.

It's not just about the demise of relationships. It's everything.

What irritates me the most are these pet parents assume it's an easy task to re-home their fur-kid.

The first thing they do is contact the people they know who are dog or cat lovers and have rescue kids of their own. Or ones who volunteer at shelters or do their own thing, like us.

The first question they ask is, "Do you want my dog or do you know anyone else who might be interested in my dog?"

Then, they go on about why they need to re-home their dog.

Most of the time, I shake my head and think, "You've got to be F-Bomb kidding me."

That's a big weight to carry. When I know someone has a fur-kid they don't want, I worry. I know what happens when fur-kids are not wanted and the re-homing process isn't immediate.

If you don't understand, let me explain how my brain translates this.

If you're the parent of a human child, imagine one day you're at the park with your human kids. They're playing. You're sitting on the bench watching them.

A random woman comes up to you, sits down and initiates a conversation.

"I notice that you have a few children of your own. Do you want my child or do you know anyone who might want my child? He's 2 1/2, in good health, I have all the records from his doctor, and I have some clothes and food for him."

After the initial shock and awe, the conversation continues...

"Why do you want to get rid of your child?"

"Well, my boyfriend and I broke up a month ago. I didn't know he'd be so time consuming and expensive. I can't do it on my own. I feel bad for keeping him in a crate all the time, but I just don't have the extra hours in the day to commit to him."

Think about how you'd react.

That's pretty much how I react when pet parents want to get rid of the babies for stupid reasons.

I've had to bite my tongue more times than I care to admit.

Don't get me wrong, we're honored that people feel safe enough to approach us and they know we're a valuable resource.

However, it breaks my heart that people are so quick to dispose of their pets.

They're a lifetime commitment.

Unconditionally.

I'm hoping that in my lifetime, more people will take that seriously.