Reflections on Responsible Animal Guardian Month
Welcoming a pet into your life is so much more than sharing space with an adorable, fluffy buddy! While their companionship is priceless, there’s no denying the fact that it requires time, dedication, financial responsibility, and consistency. The In Defense of Animals organization dedicated May as Responsible Animal Guardian Month to reflect on all that’s involved in caring for pets. So, what does it mean to be a responsible pet guardian? Although it’s an extensive topic, we narrowed down eight essential categories.
Researching and planning in advance:
It is every person’s responsibility to ensure they can care for an animal before bringing them home. This includes researching breed, age and activity level, training suggestions, costs, veterinary resources, and more. Have those realistic household conversations and confirm that all members are on the same page, willing to put in time and effort. Too many animals who are brought home are immediately set up to fail because the household is either unprepared for the lifetime commitment after the easy stage is over, or are not suitable matches to give them what they need (exercise, breed-specific training, socialization work, etc).
Our team hears about these situations on a weekly basis, often in surrender forms. While each circumstance is different, many of them could’ve been prevented with adequate preparation and planning. Encouraging advanced planning is a main driving factor behind our appointment-based visiting process. This reduces the temptation of an impulse adoption, allows a potential adopter that crucial thinking time, and facilitates quality get-to-know-you opportunities between the adopter and animal.
Meeting physical, mental, social, and nutritional needs:
To maintain the health and wellbeing of a pet, multiple areas of need must be consistently met, especially when the going gets tough. This includes their physical health (exercise, grooming upkeep, etc), providing activities for mental stimulation and engagement, facilitating socialization opportunities (either with other animals or with people, depending on the pet), and offering a well-balanced, healthy diet.
Seeking training guidance from certified professionals:
Whether it be addressing recently developed behavioral issues or implementing basic skills and obedience training for a young animal, choosing the correct training source is crucial. It’s the guardian’s responsibility to seek out reputable, professionally certified trainers with areas of expertise and researched methods that match the need.
Positive reinforcement methods of training are well-researched, gaining popularity, and are approaches that our shelter supports. These techniques tend to have success in addressing underlying issues of behaviors long-term, in contrast to aversive training methods which may not focus on root causes and could actually worsen issues over time.
Providing quality time for their life:
Pets bring their families incomparable joy and love — but they also require a lot of time. From daily exercise to playtime to socialization and even quiet evenings just sitting together, time is the greatest resource put into pet guardianship. This is especially true in the beginning stage as a new pet adjusts to their new life. It can be a lengthy process and requires ample patience, kindness, and understanding.
Having a pet is committing to them for their lifetime. So many animals end up at shelters and rescues with families stating that they don’t have time for them anymore and are unwilling to problem-solve. You may have other pets before or after them, but they’ll only have you — they deserve your unwavering dedication.
Maintaining Routine Veterinary Care:
Keeping up on a pet’s medical care is essential to their long-term wellbeing, and having a pet comes with inevitable cost. It’s in the pet’s best interest to receive regular checkups at a trusted veterinary clinic and address any medical concerns early. Saving up funds, obtaining pet insurance, and applying for financial vet assistance or Care Credit during temporary hardship may make a critical difference in your pet’s health each year — and help you prepare for any urgent care circumstances.
This is especially important as pets age. They require more frequent screenings as they reach the senior years, which is something every family should prepare for. Commit to loving them and providing medical care through all stages of their life, particularly as they age and become more vulnerable. That’s when they need you most.
Following ethical practices:
There are so many decisions to be made when you’re entrusted with a pet. They’re wide-ranging and include topics such as where you get a pet in the first place (avoiding puppy mills and irresponsible backyard breeders), choosing reputable training methods for issues that arise, getting your pet spayed/neutered to reduce overpopulation, and refraining from harmful procedures like declawing and devocalizing for natural pet behaviors.
Rehoming responsibly (only if absolutely necessary):
Although many rehoming instances are avoidable, sometimes the ability to keep a pet is outside of one’s control. In these situations, it is still your responsibility to do so with care, honoring your commitment. Pets are living, sentient beings and deserve your time, effort, and diligence to secure a safe new home.
When you can no longer be your pet’s forever guardian, begin the search immediately. Do not automatically rely on a shelter or rescue to take your pet right away. No matter how outgoing an animal is, the shelter is no substitute for a home environment and the sudden transition can have negative health impacts (particularly for senior animals).
Once a possible new family is found, ask the right questions and screen them appropriately. Resources for rehoming can be easily found online and by contacting organizations for suggestions. Make sure your pet is fixed prior to leaving your care, so that they don’t contribute to the breeding and pet overpopulation crises.
Advocating for all animals:
This is something that everyone can do, regardless of if you have a pet in your life or not. Anyone can be a voice for the voiceless and speak up when others remain silent. Get involved. Become educated in animal welfare topics. Support those in animal rescue. Volunteer to transport injured wildlife. Help someone else with their pet. Dig deep and do what’s in your power. The possibilities are endless and there’s something for everyone. Don’t assume that someone else can help or care for the animal; if you can take action, be their hero.