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THE CHRISTMAS PUPPY

16 replies

Just a little thought before buying a christmas puppy....

Beware it is long...

It seemed like such a good idea in the beginning. There I was, in my cage at the pet store with my brother and sister. I could tell by the crowds in the store everyday that Christmas was drawing near. My brother, sister, and I all hoped each morning that today would be the day we would go to a new home, one filled with loving, caring people.
First it was the Beagle in the cage next to us. I saw the excited gleam in his eye as his new family prepared to take him home. I hoped one day that I would feel the same excitement.

Then the cute little bunny from one aisle over was picked. When the ferret with the bad case of psoriasis found a new home, I began to think I would stay a pet store puppy forever! Finally, it happened.

I had seen the couple in the store the week before, talking about bringing home a Christmas puppy for their son Billy. You see, Billy was eight years old, and had been pestering his folks for a puppy for some time now. Although they were busy people, they had decided that a new puppy would make the ideal Christmas present for Billy.

The car ride home was exhilarating and terrifying at the same time. It seemed so cold outside, and I was very glad that Billy would keep me inside. I stayed at Billy’s aunt’s house until the night before Christmas, so as not to ruin the surprise. That night, Billy’s dad put me in a small, dark box with a couple of holes punched in the side for air. I could see through the holes the pretty green bow they had tied around my box. Finally, it came time fo Billy to open his presents.

There was a GI Joe figure, some new slippers, and a big truck or two. At last, I felt my box being picked up and heard Billy’s mom say, “OK, Billy, one more present. We saved the best for last”. I felt like I was going to turn inside out with anticipation, when suddenly the box was flooded with light and there was my new boy, Billy. He shrieked so loud when he saw me that it was a little bit scary! “A puppy, a puppy!”

The first few days with Billy were puppy heaven! He was out of school you see, and had lots of time to take care of me. We played all day, and I slept in his bed at night. Things just couldn’t have been better.

After a week or so, Billy’s mom took me to my new doctor. By then, Billy’s holiday vacation was over and he was back in school. The doctor told Mom all about how to keep me healthy and happy. Mom did seem a little distracted though, especially when the nurse from school called on her cell phone to say that Billy had a bloody nose.

I didn’t even mind the shot I had to get, because like the doctor told me it was better than getting sick! As Mom and I left, the doctor reminded us that I needed more than just one shot to be protected, and I should come back in a month for another check-up. I never saw the doctor again.

As time went by, I really started to grow! I suppose that I wasn’t quite as cute as before, because Billy and I didn’t spend as much time together. He seemed to have a lot of things to do beside take me for walks and fill my food bowl.

Billy and his friends sat in front of a strange box filled with moving pictures every afternoon, playing some game I suppose. Heck, I couldn’t even pronounce Nintendo, much less play those kind of games. I started to get confused about what my real name was.

At first, everyone called me Petey, which I thought was a great name. A funny thing started to happen when I got to be about six months old. Mom and Dad stopped calling me Petey, and started calling me “the dog”. I guess that was OK, I am a dog after all. A few weeks later though, they changed my name again. Now I was “that damn dog”. I wasn’t sure, but I didn’t think that was such a nice name.

Since my family didn’t have much time for me anymore, I had to think of things to do on my own. I liked to chew, and so I did! Remember that GI Joe Billy got for Christmas? Well somehow I managed to chew off his left leg, which Billy seemed mad about. After a couple more incidents like that, Billy’s dad decided I should live outside.

Well, spring had come, and the weather was nice so I figured, why not? I thought they would build me one of those nice doghouses like I had seen in the pet store. Maybe it would have carpeting and a soft blanket to sleep on. Well, they must have forgotten to build it, because I spent most of the time tied to a tree in the yard.

That was OK for awhile, but I began to get pretty bored. I found some nice soft dirt to dig in, but that made Mom mad. Something about flower bulbs and grass seed that I really didn’t understand. There was a dog next door tied to a tree in his yard, so we spent most of the day talking. For some reason, that made Dad mad too! I just couldn’t seem to do anything right. Finally, one day I heard Dad say to Mom, “I don’t care how you do it, just get rid of that damn dog!”

I figured Billy would convince them I should stay, but he didn’t much care one way or the other. Mom came outside and unhooked me from the chain. She put an old belt of Dad’s through my collar and we went out to the car. At first I thought it was time to go to the doctor’s for a checkup. Once we drove off though, we headed in the opposite direction. I could hear all the dogs talking inside the building as soon as we turned into the driveway. Mom and I went inside, and she handed the belt to the lady at the counter. Then she patted my head, and walked away, without me. The lady at the desk took me in the back and put me in a cage like the one I had in the pet store, only colder and dirtier. The room was filled with dogs, I even saw that cute Beagle I had known at the pet store.

That was five days ago. I guess that I must have a new home now, because a man came by this morning and put a red sticker on my cage door. Here comes the lady who feeds me, and she is carrying a thing to give shots with, just like my doctor did. As she walks me into another room, I see some of the friends I have made in this new place. Funny, they all seem to be asleep on the floor.

Oh well, the lady just told me not to worry, everything would be all right. She seems sad though, and I don’t really understand why. Maybe being a Christmas puppy wasn’t so great after all.

:´( sad but true
At “least” some dogs get the shot and that’s all.. others have to wander around starving, trying to get sth to eat... and watching out not to be hit by a car :´(

Having dogs and cats myself, I wonder what kind of cold-hearted people these are who can leave a dog/pet like this!!!!

We have tonz of cats home (they live outside the house) and that’s cuz neither my dad nor mum never dared to kill those little cute things when they r born! - neither can we sterilize (??) the cats cuz most of them won’t let you catch them ;)

We also have some dogs.. the times we have had a lot of puppies we have always looked for a nice home for them, to people we know and such. Furthermore, we always tell the people who took the dog that they can always bring it back if they feel they can’t keep it anymore.. instead of just throwing the dog away as if it was rubbish!

Yeah totally agree.... I have seen it, someone I kind of know bought home the cute puppy one xmas, that puppy is now 4 years old and spends 24/7 in the back garden in all weathers... never gets walked or any playtime from the children they have.... the best thing they leave it for weekends when they go away... the only attention it’s get is from me when I pass it a treat!!

:( poor dog

I really can’t understand violence and brutality of all kind, but even less to children and animals.

Like what they call “culture” and “art” here in Spain.. the bullfighting.. those bloody idiots killing a bull just to show off who is the “man”, oh yeah it is very easy to do that when the bull is drugged and hasn’t eaten for long, i would like to see the whole thing with a top-fit bull in front of them, would like to see who is the “man” then... I AM happy when the bull injures the torero, ooh yeah!

Good that all these people get what they deserve sooner or later.

@ally77: if they leave the dog for weekends then I suggest a call to the RSPCA is required

This is why I’m against giving animals as Christmas presents.

My friend who works at the post office says Easter’s mail is loaded with shipments of chicks peeping in cartons with airholes. People don’t really stop to think they become chickens in a short time. I’ve no idea what becomes of them. Now I’m thinking not good things.

And also, when I was growing up and my mother bred Siamese cats, people would get the kittens for a Christmas gift. I ended up with my first cat because a father was going to give his kid a kitten, but was told Siamese were mean. (I blame that bastard Walt Disney for starting that myth with Lady & the Tramp.) Thankfully I got to keep her. Who knows how she would have ended up otherwise. . .

People should have to have a licence to have a pet!

Damn my cats suffer from over love ;) they get random cuddles just for being cute ;) oh and they’ll all get xmas pressies.

oh yeah, people should pass a psyco test to be allowed to have children AND pets!!! I can’t just stand it to read and get to know about all this child /pet abuse, when I see a mother pulling a crying kid or even hitting him/her.. i would just go and slap her face.

My cat is sooo spoiled too :D He just has to “miaaau” once and I am there at his service :D

Poor chicks!!!

Once we rescued a small rabbit, she was injured and we kept her home till she could walk again.. she was sooo small and cute.. we named her Bunny during the 2-3 months we kept her.. she had a whole room for herself, which she damaged curtains.. sofa.. anything she could bite! :P.. until she was fine and was eating, then we left her free where we knew all the rabbits lived :P I guess some of the rabbits that are around the house come from her :P

EDIT: Thanks LittleS :D

Rescued

As for the whackin of the kid... well that’s another discussion

I once accidently de-faced a rabbit. Literally. With a push lawn mower. I was trying to get close to an old dead bush and I got it. It really freaked me out for months on end. I couldn’t even look at a ceramic rabbit without feeling horrifically guilty. I still feel awful about it and that was years and years ago. :(

Sorry for that story. It was very, very accidental though. If God’s a rabbit, I’m f*cked.

MiracleMan: :o(

I know. . .I’m truly sorry about it too.

Soooooo. . . I guess my bloody bunny story brought the thread to a screeching halt. . . m’kay. . .

i think that if a person can stoop so low as to hurt a defenceless animal just for fun should be put against a wall and shot full of fleas then left to scratch themselves to death

like i thought for a long time, i don‘t know if humans or animals are the most “intelligent“:
do you think a wolf kills a deer “just for the fun of
it“ or the cat kill his kitten just because it‘s tired of taking care of it? If being intelligent is being cruel or careless upon other living creatures or humans. I think we have nothing to get proud of...
and yes, in that case, humans are definitly more intelligent...

When you see all the poverty, all the destruction that humans have caused throuht the centuries, when you read every day all the bad news . When you think that they give prizes or medals to someone who does a good action and at the same time they give the same honors to someone who kills other humans in war... Humans are very paradoxal...

When you think of all the services animals have done for humans (think, for example, of the horses)
what or where human “civilisation‘would be?

I‘m not a religious freak or other of the same, because i‘m sure that if there was a god he wouldn‘t have left those creatures suffer. And if there‘s ever a paradise after death, i sure hope some animals have better places than lot of humans ‘cause they deserve it a lot more to have live their life with us...

...Just thinking: if God have made us at his image like the saying, then God must be a very trouble man...

I’ve had horses for the last 10 years - since I was 17 - and a couple of them have been ’rescue’ jobs. Neglect of any animal gets me so furious, but neglect of horses in particular really upsets me. If you neglect a cat, it can usually get out and fend for itself. A dog is not as lucky, but most dogs live with their owners...where horses can fall into the ’out of sight, out of mind’ category. You lock a horse in a paddock and leave it, and in most cases, they are totally reliant on humans, especially in Australia right now where we are in the middle of a long running severe drought.

They say that through the eye of the horse is the window to the soul...look into the eyes of a starving and neglected horse and you’ll understand why that saying is so true.

And RSCPA powers vary from state to state in Aus. In New South Wales, inspectors can forcibly remove an animal from an owner, sparing it the suffering of neglect. In Victoria, an animal has to be literally on deaths door before they can legally act/prosecute.

Grrr...one topic that gets me passionate. I’m not preaching, just saying I agree...there are advertising campains here at XMAS as well that remond people that a pet is for life, not just for Christmas.

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