I'll get to that in a moment...
I'm opinionated.
And I'm a passionate person.
And when I feel my "freedoms" are being reduced or infringed upon, I get on the defensive all too easily. And "enemies" are formed. Word to the wise, I can be a nasty opponent. My mom learned the hard way tonight that if I've been offended, you better be on my side or get out of the way. :)
The local humane society is not my friend right now. Karen and I have done extensive research on dogs and have determined that now is a good time to own a puppy. We found one the fit our needs perfectly and I submitted an application to adopt.
My application was denied. Here is the response I received: David, we will not be able to help you find a new companion through our Society, because we do believe that animals should be an integrated part of the family and considered family members. Best of luck in finding just the right outdoor animal. Barbe
The application had become ridiculously long and detailed. I added humor where I could (i.e.: Do you own any other pets? I responded: No...unless you count spiders and an occasional mosquito.) And then the questions implied that we were raising a child with this adoption. So I stated: To be clear, I'm not a "dog lover." I believe dogs are animals...not human. I will treat the dog for what it is and will teach my children to respect and be kind to animals. But it will not be a member of the family...it will be a pet.
I suppose it was wishful thinking to assume there would be a normal person on the other end of the application process. But I should have considered reality. (And I'll refrain from name-calling.)
My response was sarcastic and factually accurate. I described the numbers of euthanized animals. And concluded my lengthy response with the following: Children become self-sufficient over time and eventually leave home. Pets never become self-sufficient and will never leave our home. For this reason, I will not define the dog as a member of our family...unless she helps with the laundry and helps clean the bathrooms. (Please note I'm trying to add a little humor.) Regardless of how we define the puppy's status within our family, we will treat her well and provide a good home.
It's unfortunate that good American families have lost their freedom to own pets. (If the word "own" is offensive, please replace it with the word "adopt.") I can only assume the puppy has signed a contract giving her rights to you. Otherwise, how could you have been given such authority?
I carboned the local news organizations with my response and submitted "story ideas" to the local networks.
Local Humane Society Denies 5 Children a Puppy.
I'm ruthless.
Good luck to our local humane society.
Oh ya...the whole text book thing. Text books, by nature, teach you what to think and how to think about the information you're reading. The same is true for any news outlet. My point is...go to the source. Go to the original documents and develop your own opinions. I'll share more in our next post.
8 comments:
Too true! I have the same ideas. We have a large puppy, who resides outside. We didn't have the same problem, as we didn't fill out any lengthy applications. Animals are for pets, not family members, but most people who work at humane societies have a hard time distinguishing the difference....to them, they are little children. Weird, in my opinion!
I have learned that when dealing with organizations like this one, you can not use any sarcasm whatsoever. They don't take kindly to that. I've even been to some of the adoption events and they do think of these puppies and dogs as more than just a puppy or dog. They must be the most uneducated people you can find. If they understood the use of animals they could never have this way of thinking.
Well good luck to you in your hunt for the perfect puppy. Btw, what are you looking for? I have searched in many other ways too and might be able to help. So let me know!!
If you're not a "dog-lover", then why are you getting a dog? Get a cat, or a guinea pig, or fish--they don't require as much work or attention. A dog is a loyal, loving animal that wants to be around humans. They are smart, sweet, and crave companionship. They truly can be "man's best friend", but not when you stick them in the backyard where they are often forgotten and neglected. Trust me, my friend, you are misguided and missing out!
I hear ya. We always had a dog growing up but we never considered it a member of our family. It was an inside dog and was very well trained but it was still a dog.
Application to adopt a pet? Who knew?!
I can't even stand how much I love this post.
and I LOVE that you cc'd the response (with the perfect headline) to the paper.
I SO want you to run for office.
I can't agree more with you David. When we were searching for a dog a couple of years ago we ran into the same problem. We love the dog to death that we ended up buying, but keeping her inside seems to actually be torture. She hated coming inside when she was just two months old, and now when we let her in (everyday) she just wanders around to make sure everything is still in place and wants to go back outside. I think she actually might be a little claustrophobic. You probably don't want a chiuhuahua to freeze or get stepped on outside, but any real dog needs room to run.
Way to go Dave! I hope the newspapers pick it up.
This post was a great relief for honest humor. You indeed needed to insert your funny comments just to keep sane when applying for an adoption of a dog. I hope the comments of Anonymous do not hinder your frankness on honest issues.
Hey Dave, this is your cousin Steph. This post is hilarious. I can't believe that they wouldn't let you get a dog. Scott and I are having a problem with our dog because when I got him he was inducted into the family and he is almost 3 and he has a hard time obeying, and I do believe it's the way he's been brought up. I commend you for wanting a dog as a pet and not a family member. With all of the dogs that are euthenized (sp?), it just boggles my mind that they wouldn't let a good family likes yours take one home.
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