Dear Potential Pet Owners,

Imagine a world where all animals alike, from cats to dogs, roam in the streets of our neighbourhoods, starving and struggling to survive. As painful as that may sound to some people, we sadly live in a world where this exact crisis is going on. And the worst of it all, people seem to ignore this harsh reality and overlook it as something little and insignificant. Are families of cats and dogs in the streets something minor? Is the probability of seeing an animals lie limp right in front of your doorstep something minor? I didn’t think so, but some people doesn’t seem to care at all! I am writing this letter to potential pet owners from kids, families, and even the pet critics, near and far, to adopt a pet for yourself or for a loved one. When animals roam in the streets, it not only affects the animal’s, but the neighbourhood as well. So far, there are facilities, such as ‘’P.A.W.S.’’ that take strays in and up for adoption. But when a neighbourhood has vast populations of animals in their streets, it becomes a serious problem for the residents that live there. And the facility ‘’P.A.W.S.’’ cannot take in every stray they see. So what solution is there? Well, my solution to this problem is quite simple. I propose that people who want to own a pet to consider taking them from the streets instead of buying them. Also to influence this proposal, all clinics form all parts of the world could/should give free spay/neutering session. They are then given free toys for their pet and free conditioning or products to control potential flea outbreak that may occur. And volunteers or people who are studying to work as a vet could work in these facilities to increase their knowledge and skill in their carrier’s.

This is the best option so far. In my neighbourhood, I’d see an abundance of pets, mainly cats, every day from when I leave to school, going to the store, or just playing or going outside. For me, it's very heartbreaking to see this, especially when you see a young kitten living in these conditions. I had my eye on one particular feline that is only a kitten and its coat is orange in color and its a female. Not much people know about this, but the chances of having a male orange tabby is 80/20 and I’d just got lucky. And now 3 days later, she lives in my house with food and a comfortable place to sleep. Removing her out the streets will decrease populations of cats in the neighbourhood and I get to take care of my feline friend. But today, many people are biased about buying a pet instead of adopting it. For example, some stereotypes that many people might say about adopting a pet is that they might carry rabies or a disease. However, the chances of a stray having these cases are relatively low. In fact, the chance of a stray carrying, let's say, rabies is only about 7.6% and the chances for them to carry a disease or sickness is 57%. 57% isn’t too good, but this percentage can be easily reduced by having clinics to do free services on your pet of choice, like I suggested. People who buy pets from stores might also think that the pets there are healthy, well nourished and will not have any diseases. However, pet stores, like Petco, does the exact opposite. People complain and document the conditions of the animals in Petco. For example on youtube, a guy recorded one of the employees throwing out dead and alive lizards in the dumpsters. In fact, it was once even on the news at one point, but some didn’t seem to care that much. But that's not all.
         

For example, the Petco website shows you the conditions of the animals that Petco gets their pets from for consumers, like you, to buy. Even when the animals are shipped to their stores and stored in their enclosures, their lives are just asworse. Many people have seen animals, like lizards packed in glass containers, feces around the enclosures, and little to no water for them to consume. This is just cruel! This brutality to these animals is just depressing and it shouldn't even be legal!  I know this happens there because everyday, I would wait for the bus by going in the stores and seeing the pets. And every single time I went there, I would always see the same depressing things, from the malnourished and abused animals to dead animals in their enclosures. But in adoption facilities, this kind of stuff doesn’t happen. Sure, the animals there might be kept in cages, but the cages will always have walls, food ,water, some sort of soft and warm bedding and they wouldn’t be crammed against each other like canned food in a grocery market. And depending on the facility, the price to purchase a pet would be significantly less than stores like Petco. This is why pet owners should adopt instead of buying pets from stores. When you’re buying a pet from their stores, you’re supporting everything that happens to these animals.

So to potential pet owners out there, you should really consider getting your pet from these adoption facilities because it not only allows you to get a healthy pet, but it also decreases animals from neighbourhoods. And if my proposal was implemented, then it will decrease the abuse from stores like Petco and put them out of business. Because to be honest, I  don't think I can handle another animal in the streets any longer.

Newton's ‘’Third Law of Motion’’ explains that every action has a reaction. When you buy from stores like Petco, they will keep supplying you, the consumers, with ‘’healthy’’ animals for you to buy. But when you adopt from facilities, such as P.A.W.S, then your helping neighbourhoods, the animals, and you're also helping the animals that were abused and put on display. Your adoption will go a long way to help these animals in the long run. Take the animals out of the streets!

Sincerely,

Amir M.