Is a Puppy a Bad Gift?

Yes. Here is why you should never give a puppy as a gift. 

With the Holidays quickly approaching, I feel this is a great time to talk about this. There are a lot of reasons why puppies should not be given as gifts. It may sound like a nice gesture but there is a reason shelters get overrun in the first couple months of the year and I’m here to explain it. 

Financial Obligation

Having a dog is a huge financial commitment. Not only is food and gear expensive but vet bills can be crippling. Someone who cannot afford an unexpected, large vet bill is probably not ready to get a dog. And, the worst part is, when people can’t afford vet bills the dog is the one that suffers because they either don’t get the treatment they need or they get dumped at a shelter and their whole life is turned upside down. By gifting a dog, you are committing someone to paying for that animal and their needs for potentially 13+ years. 

Training Commitment 

Training a dog is not easy and it either takes a lot of time, or a lot of money. If the person you gifted that dog to doesn’t have those things, the dog is going to cause a lot of problems and will likely be a source of stress for its owner. You don’t want to gift someone stress, do you?

Daily Routine 

Having a dog changes the way people live. Dogs require structure and care. They have to be let outside to use the bathroom and be fed every day. When you get a dog, you can no longer be gone for 15 hours or just crash at a friend's place or leave for the weekend without planning ahead. Dogs have needs that oftentimes alter your daily schedule and habits. It is not fair to another person to make a decision for them that could change their life in this way. 

Puppies Turn Into Dogs 

I know, puppies are adorable. That is a great reason to go volunteer at your local shelter but not a good reason to get, or gift, a dog. There is so much more to getting a dog than what they look like because they are only puppies for a small fraction of their life. Puppies don’t stay puppies forever and that is when all of the factors listed above become problems. And when people realize they are not fit to have a dog, they take them to a shelter. And the sad truth is that shelters are full and in order to take a dog in, most shelters euthanize another dog to free up the space. 

Getting a dog should be a well thought out decision. Determining if you are ready for a commitment like that is something no one else should be deciding for you. It is important to pick a breed and size of dog that will fit well with you and your family and should be given some serious thought ahead of time. 

What You Could Give Instead…

If you know that someone has been talking about getting a dog or plans to and you would like to help them do that, there are better ways to give that gift. Maybe you give them a ticket that says that you will pay the adoption fee if they want to go adopt a dog. This way they still have a chance to think about it and do their research before making that decision. If you do decide to do this, PLEASE, do not pressure anyone into it because that is just setting both the owner and dog up for failure.