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By: Thalia Smith
By: Thalia Smith
During this world wide pandemic people have been focused on staying away from people- but apparently not away from animals. The numbers of animals, dogs and cats especially, that have been adopted in the past about 6 months are tremoundus. According to The Washington Post, “Shelters, nonprofit rescues, private breeders, and pet stores- all reported more consumer demand than there were dogs and puppies to fill it. Some rescues were reporting dozens of applications for individual dogs. Some breeders were reporting waiting lists well into 2021.“ There are many online opportunities for people interested in animal adoption to see the pets over zoom or other calls.
People have so much time on their hands, no where to travel and essentially no plans- so people assume it’s the best time to adopt a pet. A new survey from TD Ameritrade finds that 33% of Americans have considered fostering or adopting a furry friend now that social distancing is the norm. TD Ameritrade’s survey was conducted online between April and May. Approximately 3.2 million shelter animals are adopted each year (1.6 million dogs and 1.6 million cats) and that number is going sky high for this year's record charts.
As you may already know- cats and especially dogs, and many other pets need lots of attention. People say that COVID-19 is the best time to adopt a pet but professionals are questioning that. The experts are saying that whenever this pandemic is over and you have to return to something similar to our old lifestyle, you may have to go back to school or work. If you adopt a young animal during coronavirus times you might be setting them up for failure. Whenever it’s over, you can’t spend as much time with them as you did before. These trained professionals are saying your new pet may have a hard time adjusting and by spending so much time with your pet now you might be setting them up for things like separation anxiety issues. These people are not however saying that you shouldn’t adopt a pet during this pandemic but just advise that you set aside an hour or so of “alone time” where you don’t interact with your new pet at all so that they can learn to be independent. All in all researchers say if you're considering getting a pet during this quarantine, it’s a great idea- and millions of people are thinking along the same lines!
https://www.washingtonpost.com/nation/2020/08/12/adoptions-dogs-coronavirus/ https://www.cnbc.com/2020/08/10/many-americans-have-adopted-pets-amid-covid-19-but-beware-the-costs.html
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