zooophagous:

atomicbionde:

this is your yearly reminder that animals are not toys. they are a huge commitment. even small pets like hamsters and fish can be expensive and require a lot of work. if you’re planning to get someone a pet as a gift this holiday season, please only do so if you’re 100% sure that they are willing and able to take responsibility for the well-being of a living thing, potentially for years or even decades.

I’ll ad a caveat of never buying anyone an animal as a surprise, unless they were already planning on adding it to their family.

Better gifts include a check to cover adoption fees/purchase price, or supplies for said animal so they have everything they need when they’re ready to get it themselves.

If you do get someone a pet as a gift and they didn’t ask you to, be prepared to care for that animal if it blows up in your face.

Get someone the supplies and a stuffed version of the pet, or a nice photo of the pet if it doesn’t come in stuffed version, and accompany it with a check/cash/gift card to get the actual animal. 

Also: if you get a pet for your children, be fully prepared to give that pet a good home, not just a non-lethal one, if your kids lose interest. 

And never, never, NEVER buy someone a fish and put it in their aquarium without asking! It might not be compatible- which means it could die or kill their existing fish. Plus, they’ll most likely want to quarantine it in case it’s carrying any diseases. Even if the pet store says it’s healthy.