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Having Pets
It may start with a "he's so cute!"
but don't jump into owning your first pet
until you have carefully thought through
the implications. After all, having a pet
involves another's life -- even if it is
an animal.
To begin with, caring for a pet is a full
time obligation. Unlike children or animals
in the wild, you will need to look after
your pet from the first day you take ownership
until the day they die. That means, you'll
have to secure food from them (whether its
canned food for a dog or a live mouse for
a snake), provide it to them, provide a place
for them to live, see to their health, and,
depending on where you live, they type of
pet, and where your pet lives, you may need
to take them out for exercise and bathroom
breaks and clean up after them. Children
can care for pets, but a responsible adult
needs to oversee the care to ensure the child
is caring for the animal properly. Finally,
anytime you are going to be away, you'll
need to have someone else come by to perform
your duties for you.
That said, pets of all kinds can be a great
source of learning, companionship, and may
serve some practical purposes (such as a
guard dog). Some couples thinking about having
families have even started with a pet as
a trial run to having children (with the
thinking that if it doesn't work out, giving
the pet away has a lot fewer emotional and
legal hurdles).
Pets can be as small as ants in an ant farm
or fish in a fish tank and as large as horses.
Pets.come in all species, although some places
ban certain species of pets as being hazardous
to yourself, children, or the community at
large, or to protect the animal itself. In
general, the bigger a pet, the more they
eat, and thus the more to keep them.
So, before you bring home a pet because he's
"so cute," think through what type
of relationship you want, the effort it takes
to keep him, the change he will impose on
your life, and the cost to care for him.
Having a pet is a major commitment, so go
forward carefully.
Here are some additional tips on pets:
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