Boycott the Easter bunny (cute as it is).
Animal-welfare advocates dread two annual holidays: Christmas and Easter. At Christmastime, people buy puppies and kittens for their children. At Easter, it’s bunnies and baby chicks. Then, about three to six months after each holiday, animal shelter populations swell with now-unwanted puppies and kittens and bunnies and ducks.
Little baby animals sure are cute, but they grow up to be adult animals and require a high level of commitment. Chicks grow up to be chickens, which too few people are interested in keeping as pets, and bunnies grow up to be rabbits, which poop all over the place.
Suddenly the little baby animals aren’t as cute, and the kids start to lose interest, especially when it comes to the work involved with owning a pet. The parents are then stuck with caring for the pet. Because many people don’t view chickens or rabbits as the same kind of pets as dogs or cats, your child’s Easter present might very well wind up at the animal shelter.
Time for a Talk
If your child is adamant about wanting a bunny for Easter, explain the work she’ll have to do taking care of the bunny: feeding him, cleaning out his hutch, picking up his poop and giving him regular affection. If she’s unwilling to commit to those tasks, she isn’t ready for a pet… but she’d probably love a chocolate rabbit!
If she is willing to take on the responsibility of pet ownership, teach her how to care for the rabbit. Buy her a book and read it together, so she understands her new friend’s needs. Then head to your local animal shelter and adopt a nice bunny your child picks out herself.
Happy Easter!
Were you planning to buy a bunny for Easter? If so, did I prompt you to boycott the Easter bunny? Tell me your thoughts in the comments section below.
Photo: Hayley Bouchard/Flickr
