Joined
·
7 Posts
Ever since we got our Sasha, people stop in the streets (sometime they even park their car to come to us ...) to see her. Many people just ask about her age and pet her. She is so sweet she makes everyone smile... until they ask where she is from. Then moment we don't list a shelter/organizations, their smiles drop and we become the worst people in the universe. Many move away from us like we were lepers or make snide comments.
Sasha was the result of nearly 2 and a half years of searching. Although my husband has had much experience handling german shepherds, Sasha is my very first dog and I made sure I learned as much as I can about dogs before we decided on one. We looked everywhere from Boston shelters to rescue organizations here in Rochester. Due to our work/lifestyle, we were unable to find a suitable dog (or missed out on a dog due to their adoption). We decided to start from scratch with a puppy. I could tell people this.. but its not my job to justify my getting a dog.
Now, I currently live in Rochester, NY where we have great adoption centers. I am a big supporter of getting a family member from shelters. All my previous cats and other creatures are from shelters. I've volunteered at many and always donate when I can. While I do feel that we should get the shelter pets before going for the breeder pets, I don't think its our job as people to judge or make people feel bad for getting a purebred animal. We promote positive reinforcement for training our pets, why do we have to jump on the negative train for our choices before we even understand why they were made? (Obviously this extends to all social aspects)
Has anyone else experienced this? Is this just a Rochester phenom?
Sasha was the result of nearly 2 and a half years of searching. Although my husband has had much experience handling german shepherds, Sasha is my very first dog and I made sure I learned as much as I can about dogs before we decided on one. We looked everywhere from Boston shelters to rescue organizations here in Rochester. Due to our work/lifestyle, we were unable to find a suitable dog (or missed out on a dog due to their adoption). We decided to start from scratch with a puppy. I could tell people this.. but its not my job to justify my getting a dog.
Now, I currently live in Rochester, NY where we have great adoption centers. I am a big supporter of getting a family member from shelters. All my previous cats and other creatures are from shelters. I've volunteered at many and always donate when I can. While I do feel that we should get the shelter pets before going for the breeder pets, I don't think its our job as people to judge or make people feel bad for getting a purebred animal. We promote positive reinforcement for training our pets, why do we have to jump on the negative train for our choices before we even understand why they were made? (Obviously this extends to all social aspects)
Has anyone else experienced this? Is this just a Rochester phenom?