Please Do NOT Give A Pet as a Gift...

My cousin Sarah just brought up the fact that she is seeing a lot of advertisements trying to get people to purchase animals for another person as a Holiday gift. Both of us beg you NOT to do so.  A lot of people out there buy gifts for friends and acquaintances, and for those they would like to impress favorably.  The majority of people, and kids, in the world today want to choose their own pet. Kittens, puppies, baby bunnies, etc. all look cute and act cute when they are young, but they also entail a lot of work and money.  If you think someone would like a pet added to the family, first ask.  Second, propose to pay the adoption fee for any critter the giftee would like from any Humane Society, Rescue Group, or any animal aid society.  There are thousands of wonderful animals languishing in shelters around the world, and/or being euthanized on a daily basis because someone could no longer care for the, or no longer wanted them.  Many pets that are given as Holiday gifts - for Thanksgiving, Hanukkah, Christmas, or Kwanzaa - end up at the animal shelter, on death row, for one reason or another.  And the reasons given are as numerous as the drops of water in all the oceans - someone in the household is allergic; food and/or veterinary care is too expensive; the new pet doesn't get along with older, established pets; the new owner says the new pet "just wasn't what he/she wanted;"  the puppy chews on things; the kitten climbs the curtains;  (I can continue ad infinitum) ....
Brand new pets are cute and cuddly and will usually be greeted with "ooohs" and "aaahs" of immediate appreciation.  Then reality sets in.  There are annual shots, spaying and neutering, training, licensing, food, kitty litter, toys, and all sorts of other expenses that raise their head.  If the new owner is conscientious, there is also the matter of time - one needs to bond with the new pet, and have the attachment grow.  With today's lifestyle, a lot of that is impossible.
Please, whatever you give as a Holiday gift, do NOT give a living creature.  Please ask the recipient prior to giving; and please adopt an animal from a shelter or rescue.  Don't be the cause of more suffering for the pets of our world!