child lost interest

woosey_2

Simalarly I own a beautiful 6 year old Pedigree Labrador who I re-homed from a stupid family at 8 months after the cute little andrex puppy turned into a strong naughty destructive ball of energy.

They had bought the dog as a present for their six year old, not exercised him or trained him and to try and get him to fit into their life they endlessly fed him treats.

Im glad i rehomed him as many a less stubborn person than me would of passed him on. Lots of training and tears later and hes lovely, although still willful he makes me laugh with his antics now.

Spudsey

I think a pet should be a family thing. I see far too many posts on places like freecycle asking for hutches for their children who want rabbits, the worst post I saw was someone who wanted to get a rabbit as their two year old wanted one like the one at nursery! Then a few months later you see the poor rabbits being advertised as the children have become bored of them.

However, my friends daughter had wanted a rabbit for years, and when she was nine and her brother six the family decided that they were old enough to be able to look after rabbits. With lots of advice from myself, they contacted a rescue centre and adopted two young rabbits. My partner built them a good run, and they are the most well looked after rabbits.

Though admittedly the younger child has become bored of them, though he still has to do his chores and clean them out every other weekend whilst my friend cleans/feeds them etc during the week as the children do not have time before school.

stayinganonymous

Whether the children lose interest or not the parents should be the main carer for the pets they have in their household.

I once saw an advert advertising two Pugs for sale because they bought them for their 6 year old child but the child would not look after them. Absolutely ridiculous, no one would expect a SIX year old child to take full responsibility for one puppy let alone two. Honestly I don't know what it is with some people, they must live in another world.

Laconic

If I may be a bit of a devil's advocate here: I think that rehoming an animal you know you're not able (or willing) to care for is far better than neglecting or abandoning. It takes a certain amount of courage and responsibility to admit that you've made a mistake and look to rectify it by finding the animal a better home. It's perfectly legal and legitimate to resolve the problem by having the animal killed, or by sending it to the dubious mercies of the shelter. It's illegal, but possible to just dump the animal too. So I give anyone looking to rehome a pet some credit, never mind how they got into that situation.

That said, if you pay the bills, the buck *has* to stop with you, so I share everyone's dismay in people who don't seem to realise this. There are occasional exceptions, like with an older, very motivated kid where things work out, but generally, if a parent doesn't want a particular animal in the first instance, no amount of pleading should sway him or her. It won't end well.

Katiehound

This is the very reason that some charities have education officers or education volunteers who go around schools and youth groups explaining that having a pet is a HUGE commitment- space, time , money and lifestyle.
Hopefully those children will realise what a pet really needs (even if the parent doesn't!!!)

Free talks available from Blue Cross for schools & youth groups:
http://www.bluecross.org.uk/1743/education.html

Dogs Trust also have talks
http://www.dogstrust.org.uk/az/e/education/educationofficers12.aspx