Pets

cuddlyewok · Pets

Should we keep animals as pets?

The first evidence for human beings living with animals is from 12 000 years ago. Remains found in early human sites show that men had already domesticated wolves and created dogs.
This may have been to help them hunt, but they must have quickly come to enjoy their company and affection.
Dogs appear to have been with early humans in many different parts of the world.
It was the Ancient Egyptians who first bred wild cats 5000 years ago to produce the domestic cats we know today.
Other people around the world seem to have tamed many sorts of animals as companions and pets, from goldfish and birds to monkeys and reptiles. It seems a very common human quality to enjoy the company of tame animals.
Today pets (also called companion animals) are very common in many countries, especially richer western nations where people have the time and money to look after them. For example, one in every two families in the United Kingdom owns a dog or a cat. But is this right? Is it good for people, for the animals, and for our society to keep animals as pets?

Your opinions please, and as this is a debate discussion, I would appreciate it if you could explain your reasoning. Thank you.

Joey

I Think Having Pets At Home Is Fine, As Long As They Are Looked After Well By The Owner.

Personally I Only Perfer Small Animals Like Fish/Rabbits/Hamsters Rather Than Large Dogs etc, My nan has them and they smell and seem unclean and tidy!

I Think As Long As The Owner Cares For The Animal It Should Be Kept, As Its Preobably A Better Life Than Starving Or Being Hunted Or Killed Due To Weather Conditions Etc.

My Little 7 year old Sister Has 2 Fish, And Hamster, And She Cares alot about them, but I think some kids are given animals too young to care about them!

iliveinireland

I think they also should be kept,just like Joey.

i think as long as the owner feeds,cleans the animalk it should be kept.Unless the person is being unfair to the pet.

Pets are great,I have 1 dog,and 1 hamster and hopefully getting 1 more dog soon

and i look after both pets Very well.

FluffyZigzag

yeah, as long as the animal's happy. And it wouldn't be right to free any odd animal. Like if you've got a hamster and you free him, he's not gonna survive for long as he's tame, doesn't know how to survive in the wild because he was bred at pets at home or someone and there's cats everywhere. So we're actually helping the animals to survive by keeping them as pet, if you know what I mean.

iliveinireland

Hayley

I have two Fish and A dog.

With the fish all you can do is feed them and clean them out really. We feed our fish everyday and we clean them out once a week. We must be doing a pretty good job at caring for them as one has nearly been living for 5 years, and its only a goldfish.

And sometimes when the fish are kept in places like pet shops they don't live as long, and they have top cope with people tapping on the tanks all day long. So i think fish are fine to be at home.

My dog is nearly 3. And i love her to pieces. She is obviously well cared for as is always clean... she has a bath once a week!

So she doesn't smell and she is clean. I think a dog is fine to keep because someone has got to look after dogs really, i know it can be sad to take them away from their parents and everything, but if you have your dog at around 7weeks of age it isn't likely they would k now any different and i think they appreciate the care and love anyway.

So i think it is fine to keep animals as long as you look after them. I think it is a terrible shame for people who leave pets on the streets, abuse them etc. Surely they don't deserve it. So i think it is right for some pets to deserve a caring family.

xx

Kitty

Like everyone else, I think keeping an animal as a pet is perfectly fine- if they are happy!
If the animal is a domestic animal, then why not enjoy their company? If you have a pet such as a tiger- it may get a little out of hand as wild cats are use to a big environment and they are natural hunters- so it could be a threat to you, as well as them.
Animals such as: dogs, cats, birds, etc, require alot of attention and care. I think one should only be able to have an animal if you have alot of time on your hands, and genuinly will love and care for the animal.

Fizzy

Providing that the animal has an appropriate place to live where it has room to exercise and is well cared for, I see no reason why any animal cannot be kept as a pet. What I disagree with however, is animals being treated as mere material possessions and for example being given as presents for Christmas only to be dumped somewhere a couple of months later.

rubyangel2

yes i think its fine bcuse if we didnt look after small animals like rabbits,hamsters,rats and all them because theyd get killed by other animals also cats and dogs love humans and like the warmth

puddleduckie

We give poor animals a home, I think it was a good idea keeping animals as pets, we care for them and feed them. Just think of all the animals in homes because of injuries they would'nt be able to care for themselves properly and could even result in death. THINK OF THE ANIMALS.

-- Animal lover..

Jack

This was hugely bumped. Locked.