SILER CITY — With the holidays rapidly approaching, one Chatham resident is urging residents to think carefully about gifting their loved ones a new, furry best friend.
Rev. Terry Dorsey — one of the founding members of Guardians of Angels (now Team GOA) — said as an animal activist in Chatham County, he warns his fellow Chathamites not to gift their family or friends a pet this holiday season, as a lot of them will most likely end up back at the shelter.
“I cringe when I think of Christmas because a lot of people are going to just get puppies and kittens, and they have no idea of the chewing and the pooing that goes on,” Dorsey said. “They don’t think that through unless they’ve had pets themselves.”
Those animals who often become the stars of viral Christmas present reveals are often surrendered to shelters after the holiday season. Shelters across the U.S. have reported that one in 10 animals surrendered in the first half of the year were “present pets,” which takes a toll on resources.
“Puppies and kittens are cute, but very often kids and families don’t know what the full mount of responsibility is,” Dorsey said. “So after a few weeks, they just take them to the shelter, and now, the shelters are pretty full already.”
Dorsey — who in the past has rescued dumped stray cats and had them spayed or neutered — said with the work he’s done, he has already seen an increase in abandoned animals leading up to the holiday season.
One of the reasons some people surrender their beloved pets is due to the costs of healthcare, specifically the cost of spaying or neutering an animal. Dorsey said the county has a solution to that — a low-cost spay/neuter voucher.
If the low-cost spay/neuter vouchers are still not enough for an individual to afford their pet, Dorsey said it’s best to return the animal to a shelter, instead of leaving the pet behind.
“Abandoning an animal is a Class B misdemeanor — it’s against the law to do it, but people are doing it all over the county, especially in Siler City,” Dorsey said. “Until towns work with the county to start addressing that issue, it’s going to continue to be one.”
He said when parents are considering giving their children a cat or dog this holiday season, they should consider offering to have a conversation about responsibility first.
“They can consider [placing] a card under the tree saying they’re going to go to the shelter and get a puppy, but first they’re going to talk about what that means, making sure that the kid is ready,” Dorsey said.
Pet ownership is one of the largest forms of responsibility for a child, according to Dorsey, so having a conversation about the chores that come with a pet is crucial before one is brought home.
“One thing is just to prepare kids for what pet ownership means, and then the other is to have a family go to the shelter, maybe even together to pick out an animal,” Dorsey said. “Make sure that the kid is ready because every kid says they’ll take care of them but never does so.”
Reporter Taylor Heeden can be reached at theeden@chathamnr.com.