Pets in Perspective

If you’re reading this article, odds are you’re a besotted pet lover. Probably, Fido, Fifi and Porky have monogrammed food dishes, a chest full of toys and even designer clothes. Here’s the thing, though. While your beloved pet is living like royalty, six to eight million dogs and cats enter shelters every year with 50% to 75% of them being euthanized. Millions more erstwhile pets are living (or should I say barely surviving) on the streets.

Homeless Cat

photo courtesy ©2004 Alex Ringer, Israel

So let’s put things in perspective. Kitty is fed premium cat food with regular handouts of steak and tuna from your plate. She has dozens of catnip toys, plush pet beds in every room (even though she’s purrfectly content on the sheepskin rug in front of the fire or reclining on your down-filled comforter) and soft brushes for grooming. When you’re away from home you play special CDs (for which you paid $100) that are designed to keep Kitty mellow and happy. You even installed a 70-gallon fish tank in the living room wall with a viewing platform so that Kitty could have her own “kitty-TV” to watch. And now you’re thinking about getting a custom $300 kitty condo to replace the comparatively mediocre one that your feline is presently ignoring.

Now, take a look at the picture above. It really says it all! While Kitty has it all, this little cat is grateful for the comfort of an old towel and the relief of not having to forage for a few scraps of food or dodge the kicks and objects hurled at her every day. The awful truth, however, is that she’s one of the lucky ones – she’s found a safe haven in a shelter. There are millions more cats and dogs in desperate need of the basics of life, so here’s a suggestion…

How about taking the money for the new kitty condo and making a donation to your local animal rescue group? Seriously, Kitty will not feel deprived and you can feel really good about doing good for some desperately needy creatures.

Even better, perhaps Kitty would enjoy a companion. Consider saving a life and making another friend for life by adopting another pet. With a friend to play with Kitty wouldn’t need all those expensive playthings and the money you’d save would pay for the care of your new family member.

“Why should man expect his prayer for mercy to be heard by What is above him when he shows no mercy to what is under him?”  ~Pierre Troubetzkoy