Cut the Coffee or Kill the Cat
Across most of the USA we hear the words “recession” and “home foreclosure”. Where has the money gone? Why are people dumping their pets and keeping their cell phones?
The Problems
The news is full of stories of people moving out, moving away, abandoning pets. Family members – lifetime commitments, also known as “pets” are being dumped. I am irate, as I had 4 cats and earned minimum wage while working part time and raising a daughter!
How can this be, how can a person not afford to feed or care for a pet? It costs less than a dollar a day, to care for a cat, a few dollars maybe or a dog. It costs people $3 in some places for a cup of coffee, many people have more than one coffee per day, and yet it is the faithful canine who gets dumped? Animal shelters are suddenly overrun with pets, good pets, ones that came from what looked like to be good homes. Most of these animals are being euthanized. Shelters do not have unlimited space or unlimited funds.
People load up on credit card debt. Buying things now with “no payments for 1 year” then may find they are slammed with massive payments that they cannot make simply because they wanted a new sofa a year earlier. They handle it by declaring bankruptcy and walk away from their responsibilities.
I was disgusted to read that people are electing to euthanize perfectly healthy horses, one of the most noble animals, simply because they cannot afford to care for them. A horse is not a “pet” people get on a whim, they require a lot of regular expense and should therefor accompany a person who is savvy in financial planning. Yet, there are places that recently started offering free euthanasia of horses for people who find they cannot afford to keep their animal, cannot afford the cost of euthanasia, and are avoiding exporting them to a slaughter house.
The Solutions
First of all, if you are close to being in financial jeopardy do not even consider getting a pet.
Act now, before you are in a financial bind. Do not spend money on things you cannot afford and do not need. Such things might be a cell phone, cable television, a daily newspaper, or a coffee to go. Remember is the NOW costs that will hurt your later needs.
Do not give money away to nobody. Every day millions of people give money away to nobody. This money is called “Interest”. In short if you buy things on credit, you pay more for them later, and are really throwing some of your money away.
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Published in: Personal Finance
Comments: 11 | Post a CommentPost a Comment
Darla Smith | Nov 23, 2008 | Reply
Interesting article. It’s awful how people treat pets. The dog we just got a few weeks ago is just like family and I could never see myself getting rid of her for any reason.
nobert soloria bermosa | Nov 23, 2008 | Reply
an eye-opener to many,i’m happy you brought this to our attention,thanks
PR Mace | Nov 23, 2008 | Reply
Interesting article.
Brenda Nelson | Nov 23, 2008 | Reply
I Have submitted for a fix – this article should not be in HUMOR – it is totally serious about a problem that is affecting pets and pet owners across much of the USA as they are plunged into a recession.
MissouriWoman | Nov 24, 2008 | Reply
Great article, I am trying to feed and care for many cats that are just left here where I live, I’ve found homes for a few of them but its getting harder and harder; I personally cannot feed them all as I too have my own pets to care for; 3 cats & 2 dogs but I also cannot stand to see a hungry animal. Great article! thank you!
Pender | Nov 24, 2008 | Reply
Cats are tastier than coffee.
Renton Thurston | Nov 24, 2008 | Reply
The number 1 reason dogs lose their homes is because of potty training failure. It’s also the number 1 problem that dog trainers are confronted in nation-wide. The re-occuring theme in all potty training failures is re-marking due to the inabilty of cleaners to lift and extract pheromones found in urine. If potty training problems persist with your pet please pickup GET SERiOUS at your local PetSmart. GET SERiOUS is commited to helping animals stay in their homes, and keeping carpets clean, and fresh!
Darrin & Josy | Nov 24, 2008 | Reply
Thank you so much for speaking the truth. It’s a sick fact, that people will get rid of their pets before thinking, of getting rid of unimportant personal items. Aren’t their pets worth more then their cellphones, morning cup of coffee,pack of cigarettes etc….?! Some people have no morals or true love for animals, inside of them. Those people should never be allowed to have pets, in the first place!
Brenda Nelson | Nov 24, 2008 | Reply
to Renton,
here is a link on how to housetrain a dog correctly
http://www.gomestic.com/Pets/How-to-Successfully-House-Train-a-Puppy.77864
it is debateable that failure to house train is the #1 reason dogs lose their homes – I worked in a shelter and this was certainly not the case. We had more dogs lose their homes because of OWNER failure – picking the wrong breed of dog, and leaving it on its own too much, thus resulting in a bored and destructive dog (because the wrong breed was often a Border Collie or smart breed).
failure to house train a dog is 95% of the time NOT the dogs fault – but often is an owner not being prepared ahead to know what to expect as far as the work involved.
clay Hurtubise | Nov 26, 2008 | Reply
Thanks for bringing up awareness of this issue.
Right now we have 4 dogs and one cat, all but one dog are rescue critters.
Thanks,
Clay
Launie and Melynda Sorrels | Nov 27, 2008 | Reply
Very good article. People should be aware of this. How sad. We have a cat and she’s part of the family. It’s hard to imagine that people can be so insensitive.