You may think you know your granddaughter, brother, or best friend well enough to gift them a puppy for Christmas. But dogs aren’t like toys or makeup palettes. They can’t be discarded or used up. Once you have a dog, you have them for life.
Here are six reasons why you shouldn’t gift someone a puppy for Christmas.
Choosing a Dog Is Up to the Prospective Dog Parent
The simple fact of the matter is that choosing a dog should be up to the prospective dog parent — no exceptions. How can you guarantee that a dog and the recipient will be a match? Much like people, dogs have a variety of personalities. Surprising someone with a dog they have never met to treat as their own for the remainder of that dog’s life can result in a lot of resentment — towards both the gift giver and the dog.
A Puppy Is Not a Toy
A lot of children express desire to have a puppy at some point in their lives. This doesn’t mean that you should give them one. With that said, if you’re fully expecting to take on the responsibility of the dog and would like the puppy yourself, that can be a more ethical situation.
Christmas Dogs Are Rarely Rescues
Rescues are overloaded with perfectly healthy, sweet, adorable dogs up for adoption. If someone is asking for a dog for Christmas, odds are they are looking for one thing: a puppy of a specific breed or breed mix. Because of this, you would need to buy from a specific breeder who breeds these dogs. Rescue dogs are rarely what someone who wants a dog for Christmas is expecting. This also begs the question: Should they really have a dog?
You May Possibly Support a Puppy Mill
Regardless of how good your intentions are, buying a puppy from a seemingly reputable breeder can be a dangerous thing to do during the holidays. During this time, puppy mills do a lot of business. Even if you do a lot of research, there is no surefire way to know that a puppy isn’t from a puppy mill. Doing business with a shady breeder supports a nefarious business.
Christmas Is a Scary Time for Puppies
Perhaps the worst time of the year to introduce a new dog into the family is during the chaos of the holidays. From family gatherings to New Year’s festivities, it’s all but guaranteed that a Christmas puppy will feel fear in their new home. This is a time when they should be getting a lot of one-on-one attention and training, which they will almost certainly not receive.
What You Can Do Instead
No one is saying you shouldn’t gift yourself a dog for Christmas. As we said, there are loads of dogs in shelters just waiting for the right family. If you’re looking to adopt a furry family member during the holidays, there are few things to keep in mind. First, make sure someone is always there with the dog if you have to attend festive functions outside of the home. Second, if you are getting the dog in hopes of teaching your children how to be responsible, be ready to take on a lot of responsibility yourself. Lastly, keep it lowkey in your home. Don’t go overboard with festivities. Ideally, you wouldn’t have anyone else in the home for the first couple of weeks after adoption.
When in doubt, do not gift someone a puppy for Christmas unless that person is yourself.
