An open letter to pet parents. | Teen Ink

An open letter to pet parents.

May 8, 2024
By Anonymous

Dearest pet-seeking individuals, 


Did you know that each year 8 to 12 million shelter dogs and cats are euthanized because there aren’t enough homes for them? This is a sad truth for many of us to learn. This has inspired me to ask you to look to adopt a pet as opposed to buying or purchasing one. Adopting a shelter pet is always better than buying a pet because you get to save a life, whenever somebody like you buys a pet, you are denying a home to a shelter animal. The dogs and cats living in shelters have often been found or rescued off the streets and require a loving home like yours. Not only could you give them a loving home, but welcoming a shelter pet into your life would make room in the shelter for the next rescue.

We’ve all been in the same situation, you want a dog or a cat, a fluffy companion to snuggle with and love. You start looking online for pets for sale and suddenly you see it, the most perfect puppy for you, and then you see it. The listed price. Buying a puppy can often run you a thousand dollars or more. “That’s crazy!” You think to yourself, “I’ll never be able to own the dog of my dreams.” However, there is a solution for you! Adopting a pet is often only around $150! Adopting a shelter pet will save you tons of money and you will still take home a pet to love and care for. Shelters often cover vaccinations and microchipping for you, which takes care of all the hassle.

Have you ever heard of a puppy mill? I remember the first time I did. Hearing about the horrors of mass breeding just proves my point. Puppy and kitten mills, ignore the care of the pets and only focus on making more of them, hitting a quota, making money, and repeating the cycle. However, you mustn’t fear, there is a solution! Adopting an adorable loving dog or cat from a shelter will discourage the practice of mass breeding. As long as you aren’t putting money in their pockets, you can help the cause.

Some people like yourself, may need to be made aware that they are supporting a puppy or kitten mill, this is because many pet stores source their animals from breeding facilities and you would never know. They do this because it is a cheap option to get stock fast. However, this is not right, as they don’t consider the health issues that occur in pets bred in these places. Many victims of puppy mills do not live long and have heart problems and diseases due to the unhygienic norms of the facilities. So while it is the easier option sometimes, this is wrong and it only hurts animals.

To conclude, adopting a pet will save a life, save you money, and save the world from mass breeding facilities. I hope that this letter provides you with the facts you need to know to adopt the pet of your dreams, and I wish you the best in your furbaby journey!


The author's comments:

I am 15 years old, I wrote this letter as an assignment and decided to publish it. It's a topic that I did research on and care about and I think it brings attention to facts about puppy breeding that aren't often talked about.


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