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Animal
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Picking
the perfect pet: By
Bethany McCormack Those sad eyes, that cold nose, the horrible breath—How can you say goodbye to him? He whimpers when you walk out the door and you feel like you’re abandoning your best friend.
Coming to college you leave behind your friends, your family and (sigh) your pets. You’ll make plenty of new friends, you’ll talk to your parents on the phone, but you’ll never replace the love of your pet. Residence halls allow fish as pets and that’s it. No hamsters, no turtles and definitely no cats or dogs. Fish might not be the most affectionate pets, but they are relatively simple to care for and take up little space. PETsMART employee Richard Vyce said Betta fish are the easiest fish to care for. “If you go to the grocery store and get distilled water, you can put the fish right in a bowl. Feed it twice a day and change the water when it looks cloudy,” he said. Vyce said you can also use tap water in the bowl if you add chemicals to remove chlorine and ammonia. Betta fish, also know as Siamese fighting fish, will live three years on average, he said. PETsMART sells Betta fish for $2.99 and kits are available that include everything you need for your fish, such as a bowl, food, detoxifier, rocks, gravel and a sponge. Students living off campus have more options when it comes to choosing a pet, however, there are still some limitations. Each apartment has its own pet policy, but most require a pet deposit and have restrictions on the size or type of pet allowed. For example, the policy at Stonegate Villas, 2501 Oak Hill Circle, requires a $400 deposit; $200 is nonrefundable. There is an additional $10 fee each month for dogs and aggressive breeds are not allowed. The policy at Park Ridge Apartments, 2501 Park Ridge Court, requires a $250 deposit and allows any animal up to 50 pounds. Check with an apartment for its specific policy. There are many other factors to consider when living in an apartment and getting a pet. Grete Brown, a junior psychology major, moved into an apartment this semester with two friends. Brown said she would love to have a pet, but one of her roommates is allergic to most animals so dogs or cats are out of consideration for her. Veterinarian Lura Klecka said it is important to realize there is a commitment involved with getting a pet. “A dog or a cat has the potential to live 15 to 20 years,” she said. “You have to look at that for the long term. It’s not an appliance you can trade in at the end of four years.” Klecka said cats are good animals for apartments because they do better than dogs in a confined space. “They tend not to be as destructive as puppies and they do better if they are left alone for extended amounts of time,” she said. She
also recommended smaller breeds of dogs for an apartment. Rabbits are also good animals for small spaces, Klecka said, because they can stay in a cage when the owner is away and they can be litter box trained. “If you spend time with them, they can be really loving,” she said. Maura Davies, SPCA media relations coordinator, said adoption provides a wide range of choices for people wanting a dog or cat than pet shops, and it is good for the animal. “We advise people coming here because our animals are strays or they were given up by families,” she said. “You know you are saving a life.” The SPCA, which has three locations in Dallas, takes in 20,000 cats and dogs a year, she said. “We have everything from puppies and kitties just weaned to a 15-year-old dog just adopted,” she said. Davies said the animals are spayed and neutered before they are available for adoption, and all are examined and tested for major diseases upon arrival at the facility. An adoption costs $129 for dogs and $89 for cats. The cost is less for animals that have been at the SPCA for more than 30 days, she said. People interested in adoption can come to the SPCA and spend time with the animals to find the right personality match, Davies said. Klacka said that when looking for a pet, it is important to spend time with it to determine its true personality, because first impressions can be misleading. “If you go to a litter of puppies and pick the one that comes right to you, it might actually be hyper-active,” she said. “The one that seems stand-offish might be more relaxed.” In addition to the SPCA, there are many other animal welfare organizations and shelters in the Metroplex. Vyce said PETsMART does not sell dogs or cats because they are overpopulated. However, animals brought in by various organizations are available for adoption. (Petfinder.com) provides lists of animal welfare organizations and also has a search engine that can locate a particular type of dog or cat. You can search for a specific breed, age, size or gender of dog or cat in your area or nationally. Area pet stores such as PETsMART and PETCO offer many choices of small inexpensive animals, ranging from gerbils to parakeets to hermit crabs. Grete Brown said she has not given up on the idea of getting a pet, even though she can’t get a dog or a cat. “I would love to have a pet, and I was thinking about getting hermit crabs,” she said. Brown said she had two hermit crabs for one semester when she lived in the dorms, although they were not allowed. Hermit crabs require little responsibility and are easy to care for, she said. “I enjoyed having other living things in the room when I was by myself,” she said. “It was a fun distraction to take them out and play with them. I’d let them walk around the room.” Bethany
McCormack |
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