Animals are such agreeable friends—they ask no questions; they pass no criticisms.”
~ George Eliot ~
Black Beauty, The Elephant Whisperer, A Dog’s Way Home, Beethoven, Turner and Hooch, Lassie, Free Willy, and Flipper – each of these movies highlight a different perspective of why you should get a pet. They’ve captured in 3 hours or less, the transformation that occurs in children, families, and lives in the presence of an animal.
Evolution made it necessary for humans to domesticate animals, and ever since there have been arguments for and against this practice. I will try to give as much of a balanced view as possible and you can have the final say on your decision.
Every single time I have encountered pets and enquired about them, the owners always mention the need to get one for their child. The reasoning is the responsibility having a pet entails and the transformation witnessed. Having a 24X7 friend, confidant and bodyguard all rolled into one cuddly fur packed body is the icing. Ask a child why he/she wants a pet and you will hear versions of wanting a friend who never fights or disagrees or wanting a cuddle-bug all their own, or something they can use as bait to make human friends (you may also get variations based on the age and gender of your child). While none of the kids ever mention the duties and responsibilities associated with having a pet, the parents have a list of chores and expenses associated with having a pet. Let me briefly highlight the expenses you have to consider before bringing home your cuddle-buddy.
Diet:
This ranges from protein-rich meals you prepare at home from scratch (liver, chicken, mutton, egg)- boiled and mixed with some form of carbs and yogurt – to pre-prepped meals (Furchild, Drools wet food, Raw Stew) and/or also includes dry food like Drools, Purina, Royal Canin, and Pedigree – to name a few. The costs for these meals could make the average wage earner shudder in horror. Each meal is measured and balanced with the required proteins, vitamins, and minerals required by each pet based on breed and size and exercise levels. Portion sizes are recommended based on the weight, gender and size of your dog. Everyone from the local veterinarian to the assistants at the local pet shop will give you studied recommendations on the ‘what’ and ‘how’ of diet and nutrition for your pet.
This scenario is vastly different from the situation a couple of decades ago, when I had my pet Tara raised on a diet of steamed white rice and milk and the occasional treat of 1 egg when we could afford it. I did try Pedigree for the duration of the package, at Tara and Butch’s size, the 5 kilo pack lasted all of four days for two meals twice a day.
Today, or as recently as last August, I fed my sister’s dogs a diet of home made liver, chicken, mutton , egg, boiled and deboned with a handful of carb. Yogurt was added on days when either of them had a tummy upset. For carb they were fed steamed white rice. This was followed by a measure of dry food like Pedigree, Drools or Royal Canin post meal – in lieu of desert.
Unlike my dogs from a couple of decades ago, who were fed dinner when we got back home from work or when we got up every morning, these girls were fed as per the clock. 7 am every morning come rain or shine (it was raining as it was the monsoons) and 7 pm (even when there was nothing to do in the evenings).
The cost of chicken (Rs 1500 pw) or mutton (2200Rs per week) for three dogs. A 10 Kilo bag of dry feed, like Drools or Pedigree set us back by another 2000Rs and last us roughly 15 days. Add to this the supplements and de-wormers (approx Rs 1000pw). These costs are per week and in INR. Do convert based on your location.
These costs include shots or grooming when applicable and are merely mentioned to give you an updated estimate of expenses to expect when you get dogs home. Also remember, these costs are for big sized pets.
Exercise:
From centers organizing simple day camps for your pets to daycare centers that take the onus of training your loving pooches to active dog parks and play areas, dog care has come a long way. Pet shops today also have exclusive play areas, where you can take your pet in for socializing. Depending on what your requirements are, you can find an activity that you could participate in with your pet. For instance, there are a few pet cafes in the UAE that allow you to bring your dogs in for a snack. Or SkiDubai that organizes a ‘snow-day’ for your pets during the winter months. Or a pet friendly beach or hiking trails, or running paths that are pet friendly. This could also include pet day care facilities that have in-built swimming pools, where your dog is allowed to swim in the water or an indoor play area that your pet visits to socialize.
Dog walking and dog walkers are actually a thing. There are apps in most locations that list licensed dog-walkers who bill you per hour depending on the size of your dog and the kind of exercise it requires. Most cities will have walkers registered who will come in at scheduled times, to pick up and walk your pets, for a prefixed duration every single day. And for those that can walk and exercise their pets on their own, the pet stores have a whole lot of goodies to enable your efforts.
If you live in a metropolitan area, then you also have the option of pet-sitters. I am now referring to pets of today, who have no idea what it means to be left alone at home. I have left my dogs at home for the duration of the day and returned to find them just fine and eager to have me back. Today, pet parents are paranoid about leaving their pets alone even for a couple of hours. So, in come the pet-sitters, again, based on your location, its an option available on apps, where a whetted individual will come and spend the day in your house to ensure that your pet is not left alone to his devices. Pet-sitters usually charge based on the activities they are required to do for instance, if its just pet-sitting, or does it include clean-up after your pet, if it has an accident, or if it includes a walk or leash training or feeding.
I volunteer as a pet-sitter or rather a pet-carer on occasion. As a WFH employee, this volunteering option keeps me close to pets, and satisfies my neighbor when she has an emergency errand to run. I also walk her pet, and feed it for free.
Health:
A couple of decades ago, pet care was still in its infancy and healthcare for pets was restricted to the anti-rabies shot for dogs, cats and rabbits. Breeders required boosters and stamina enhancing medications which was prescribed privately.
Equestrian animals had a different routine and care as did domesticated bovines. Feathered pets included pigeons, roosters or hens and peacocks if you really could afford them. You usually had a local veterinarian visit you once a month or once a quarter, depending on the kind of animals you took care of for a general check-up and administration of the usual Anti-Rabies shots or the occasional de-worming tablets.
Today, animal husbandry has evolved to the extent of housing and caring for even the most exotic species. Tiger King is the most famous example. Veterinarians very rarely make house calls and in the event that the option is offered, the cost of each visit is rather steep making you rethink that SOS call in the middle of the night. Visiting the local veterinarian is not a cheaper option either. Anti-rabies, distemper, and parvo vaccine are just a few of the shots, your pet can get. And this is merely for the mongrels you may have had the luck to pick up. Bring in a pure breed and add the costs of damages caused due to inbreeding and genetics and watch those numbers crawl up. Even if you are a discerning buyer, you cannot predict how good or bad your pet’s organs are, or what their dominant DNA would include. Deworming, mite infestations, allergies, and digestive issues, are just a few of the scenarios vets see on a daily basis. Accidents involving vehicles or machinery, accidental drowning, and choking on discarded waste, are the realities of the veterinarian ER practice. Cancer, kidney failure or heart ailments are no longer restricted to humans. Veterinarians are discovering that domesticated pets like dogs and cats are just as susceptible.
Space:
I remember a time when my pet used to lie down under my couch on the balcony or a kennel near the gate on washed sheets that had been used previously to cover cotton mattresses. Or on gunny bags that had been used to store grains. Their bedding was clean but spartan. Rain or shine, they were fine running wild under the awnings of our yard.
If I were to house a pet in this method today, I would probably be shamed on social media by a well-meaning neighbor or in extreme cases penalized by law. The norm today includes the purchase of exclusive dis-mantalable kennels, crates that can be transported, and pet couches, that are created with a plush microfiber cloth that is hypoallergenic to be gentle on your pet’s coat. Harnesses, collars, coats, clothes, raincoats, socks, and shoes or booties, are just a few of the things you can pick up at the local pet store today. None of these are cheap or made of material that will last too long. They are not malleable enough to be loaded and run in your regular wash cycle in your washing machine and hence may require to be replaced on a regular basis.
Even adoption agencies are particular about the houses they send their abandoned pets too. Its a dog’s world today. Literally! Medium to big dogs will only be sent to homes with yards, small dogs will be sent only to homes where they will be raised on their own, and with a promise that they will always have someone to take care of them. 24X7. The questionnaires filled for each adoption almost makes the process that much more tedious making the market ripe for purchase of easily accessible breeds from sometimes unscrupulous breeders.
Grooming:
The pet-grooming industry is a whopping $11Bn big and continues to grow exponentially. This should give you an inkling of what’s in store when you walk into the groomer. From colored hair to colored nails to acupressure for their paws, paw massages, hair styling, and setting – pets today seem to have it all. Nothing is too much for your favorite pooch. Everything is doable and affordable.
Weekend meet-ups at the groomer are the latest weekend activity indulged in by most pet parents. Socializing with pets is the latest club everyone wants to be at. Mobile or on-call grooming vans haven’t yet made an entry, but once they do, I can see how this tiny industry will just fly off into a different sphere.
Looking at each of these points, it seems more like a spreadsheet of recurring expenses. But it is important to consider each point carefully before you actually decide to bring home a pet. While I am not proposing that you be as obsessive as the other pet parents around you, I expect you to weigh your options and expenses practically and ensure that you don’t abandon your pet because of these cost factors. The correct way to bring home a pet in my view would be what is usually referred to as a ‘foster-fail’. When you decide you want to get home a pet, but are not too aware of size or diet or breed, opt to foster. Bring home a foster pet, and care for it. This will give you an inkling of what to expect. If you fall in love with your foster pet, then you will be provided with the option to adopt, however, if this fails, you always give the pet up to a more suitable parent. This will also ensure that you are able to gauge the responsibility that this task involves and identify allergens that you may develop at a later stage.
What do pets bring to us, that make them so alluring in spite of the expenses? Unconditional love.
Having another living being to converse with 24X7 is probably cheaper than paying for therapy by the hour. Add to this, most often, pets do not talk back or walk away or refuse a cuddle or ignore you. What you really have invested in or are investing in is a mute, ever-ready, enthusiastic 24X7 buddy who understands your every whim and follows in your every footstep.
Irrespective of who you are, what you look like or how you behave, or how you treat them, pets are loyal. They ensure you learn a sense of responsibility and ownership. They teach you to be amenable, enable you to make friends faster, and even help calm you down when you get worked up. Some transformations happen overnight, while some could take a long while to be visible externally. And it is to witness these miraculous transformations that parents go to any length to bring home pets, so they can be a part of the miracle that changed their life.
An animal’s eyes have the power to speak a great language.”
~ Martin Buber ~
ABOUT ME
I am a postgraduate in Social Communications Media, with a bachelor’s in Psychology English Literature and Journalism. I have updated social psychology, Digital Marketing, Product Marketing, Storytelling, UI, and UX design certifications. I bring a decade of consistent learning in the field of communications. If you have a story that you think I could help with, let’s talk.
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