Davonte Reese wanted a dog, but his parents didn’t think he was capable of taking care of one. Then they heard about a company that rents pets. Davonte’s parents were glad the pet rental company gave them the chance to rent a Dalmatian for a day. Renting a Dalmatian helped them realize that Davonte was ready to own a dog. His parents then took Davonte to an animal shelter and adopted a mixed-breed dog named Lucky.

Some people say renting a dog should be illegal. They believe rental businesses are harmful to dogs. People who are against pet rentals give several reasons to support their position. To be happy, they say, a dog needs ongoing contact with one person. In addition, a dog likes to know its home. Dogs and people evolved together, so dogs depend on their human “family.” They have some social skills that are like those of humans. People domesticated dogs to be socially compatible and live with humans. Therefore, they say, people have a special responsibility to ensure that dogs have stable homes, and each dog has a special right to a permanent home with ongoing companionship. Also, they say, who will want rental dogs when they are sick or old?

Marlena Cervantes disagrees with the notion that pet rental is bad for dogs. She has a pet rental business. She buys mostly purebred dogs and then rents them for a fee. A dog can spend time with a different family every day of the week. Whereas people who own dogs may leave them home alone, Marlena says people who rent dogs give the animals lots of attention. Also, families like Davonte’s can use pet rentals to make an informed decision about whether to own a dog or not. As a result, fewer dogs may end up in shelters since families are more prepared to care for an animal.

Some states may make it against the law to rent pets. If you were going to write to a member of your state assembly about this issue, what would you say? Should it be illegal to rent a pet?