Puppy Stores

Look, mommy, look! Isn't he just ADORABLE??? Can I have it? Can I? Please, please, please!
Oh, he really is cute... Ok, let's get one of those...

Puppy stores are something that I saw first in American movies, but I didn't really think that they existed. Now that I have come to the US, I have seen one of them IRL. I was in a shopping centre, looking around at clothes, jewellery, books andright there next to the toys was a shop full of adorable
little puppies. I couldn't believe my eyes.

My first reaction was instinctual, of course: aaaawwwwww, aren't they gorgeous! But soon a feeling of disgust came over me. This is how far people have gone in their obsession of selling.

I know that there are pet shops selling all kinds of adorable animals, but puppy stores, in my opinion, are the essence of everything that is wrong with the purchase of an animal. People are lured into the store because the puppies really are adorable. And it is hard to forget that getting a dog is a long-term commitment, especially when your kid is tugging at your sleeve, screaming that they want the doggy and they want it now! Of course they promise that they will take care of it, but we know they won't. And then there is the fact that dogs stop being so cute after some time. They are loyal though. So soon you will realize that you can't take your dog on the vacation you planned, that he eats more than you expected and your kid is playing video games all day long, not taking another glance at their pet.

I do know that there are responsible people out there that really want a pet and understand what it really means to take in a living creature into their homes, but I believe that those people would make a trip to a real pet shop or an animal shelter to get their dog. The problem I have with puppy stores is that those poor dogs are crammed together in small cages, in a shopping center, having little, screaming kids run all over the place all day long, just sitting there on a window display, being adorable, like any other toys. We have become so obsessed with selling and consumption that we would trade lives for money, and that in a very manipulative way.

I would just like people to remember that these are very much alive toys which eventually will g row into grown dogs which will love the, no matter what, will depend on them and also will need you to treat them responsibly, not like a cute, disposable toy.