If you wish to give the gift of a cat or dog for Christmas, give a gift coupon you make attached to a stuffed animal or an animal toy. Wait until after the holidays to get the new pet, and consider shelter or rescue animals FIRST.
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I absolutely agree about waiting until after the holidays. The shelters are overrun with pets that people surrender that they've gotten for holiday presents and either didn't really want or cannot handle.
Before giving any animal as a gift, please don't make it a surprise. Make sure the recipient is mentally, emotionally and financially able to take on the commitment of a pet. And, in most cases, shelters will insist that all members of the family are in agreement on taking on the pet and that the pet is permitted where you live/rent, taking into consideration landlord agreements and HOA restrictions.
Please remember that they are not accessories or any decision to be made on a whim. Taking on a pet should be done responsibly and with the knowledge that it is yours for the remainder of its natural life. If the recipient can't seriously commit to that wholeheartedly, a stuffed animal is a better option.
Below: my Christmas present from 2006, taken this year, and mine for life.
Great advice!
As I mentioned in a post here several years ago, I worked in an animal shelter for a while. One day a couple of ladies came in to get a kitten for their son and grandson. The kittens that the ladies were interested in weren't old enough to go home yet, so they were talked into getting a gift certificate. After Christmas, they came in with the son/grandson. He had no interest in the kittens which were now available. He did however like a flame-point Siamese. The Siamese were very unfriendly to everyone, except this man. It was love at first sight. The cat sat on his shoulder, rubbing his head again the human.
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