TIPS FOR NEW ADOPTERS
Many people give pets as gifts at Christmas. The Georgia Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals has some recommendations to help ensure a safe and merry Christmas for both the new pet and the new pet owner.
Every December, the Georgia SPCA sees an increase in the demand for puppies and kittens at our adoption center at 1175 Highway 23 in Suwanee. "When a new puppy or kitten is on the Christmas list, it's important to plan carefully for this special gift of a living creature," says Jane Stewart, Executive Director of the Georgia Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (Georgia SPCA www.GeorgiaSPCA.org.) Stewart offers the following tips if you are considering adopting a puppy or kitten for Christmas:
- If the puppy or kitten will be a gift for someone else, be sure that the pet is welcome by whomever will be ultimately responsible for caring for it.
- Choose a pet based on a realistic assessment of your family's lifestyle. Pets can be high energy or low key, can require lots of attention or not so much, and some are better suited to living with young children than others. Get advice from a veterinarian or animal shelter staff and choose wisely.
- Stewart recommends that people take their time when selecting a puppy or kitten. The holidays are hectic. Consider giving a gift certificate from a local shelter, attached to a stuffed dog or cat, with a promise that you will allow the gift recipient to pick out his or her own pet after the holidays are over.
- If your heart is set on seeing a puppy or kitten under the tree at Christmas, start visiting animal shelters a few weeks before Christmas. When you find the pet you want, give your pet and yourself an early Christmas gift and bring the pet into your home before Christmas to enjoy the holiday season with you.
- Plan ahead to ensure that the new pet will be fed, walked, pottied and otherwise cared for during this busy time and for the rest of its life. Remember that new pets, like young babies, need plenty of quiet time to rest and to adjust to their new surroundings and family, so be firm with children who want to spend every minute with their new puppy or kitten, and enforce frequent "time outs" to help the pet relax.
Holidays also present many health hazards to new pets. Christmas lights, holiday decorations and ornaments and Christmas trees themselves, ribbons, poinsettias, holiday candies and chocolates all pose a danger to pets if they are chewed or swallowed. Young children can seriously injure a puppy or kitten without meaning to, and can be injured themselves if the play gets too rough. All pets, and especially new pets, need to be supervised at all times, or safely confined.
Keep handy the name, location and phone number of your veterinarian and an emergency veterinary clinic in case you need advice or emergency help with your new pet over the holidays.
The Georgia SPCA is located in Suwanee, Georgia and is open 7 days a week for adoptions now until December 23. No adoptions will be processed on December 24. Visit www.GeorgiaSPCA.org or phone 678-765-2726 for more information.