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I want a pet, but my mom doesnt
I used to have a guinea pig when I was 8 and my parents never helped out with it because they thought of it as a rat. Now that they are dead :( and I'm 14 now I was another pet. I asked for a dog because that's what I've always wanted but my mom acts like she's afraid of them. I thought about getting a bunny but I'm not so sure if that would work for my busy school schedule (I go to school at 7 and don't get back until 6). My dad said that my mom would be better with a small dog but dog are also really expensive. Do you guys have any suggestions on what I could do because I really want a pet!
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Want to answer more questions in the Domesticity category?
Maybe give some free advice about: Pets?
All you can do is ask the parents for truthful answers as to why you can not have another pet of any kind. Or ask specifically what valid reasons they have for not giving an okay to a dog.
Hopefully your parents give an actual valid answer rather than dodge answering by saying "Oh, its too much cost or too much work." What their real issue in that case is, they really do not want to have to care for the dog if you get tired of doing so. They dont want to have to walk the dog, train it, wash it and comb its fur, keep its water dish clean and filled or be bothered to feed it. You may have good intentions, and for all I know you may be able to stick with it doing all those things, but they dont know that and most kids eventually start slacking off on the pet care especially if they were going to be the only one to care for it. THen theres the issue of who lets the dog out to go potty. I have done caregiving for elderly, some who lived in old folks multi story complexs and many owned little dogs. The lady I worked with had a little dog she couldn't take out often as she was legally blind. But it was trained to go both pee and poo on one of those absorbant throw away pads for bed ridden patients. She'd lay it on the floor of her bedroom and the dog used it regularly but still needed walks which I took care of on the days I was with her. Cost, well, you'd have to ask Dad to spell that out for you. Some adults just dont want the responsibility of a pet in the house and will give an answer meant to end the discussion, like its expensive. Exactly what is so expensive about getting a dog. A thorough bred would be costly. Even a puppy of an ordinary type. But going to a shelter, tho it still costs to pick one up, you paid them for the shots and spay or neuter they did for the dog to ready it for being adopted and a small fee besides. Then there's food. Little dogs do not eat much. We ended up not buying dog food but making a small pot of food for the dog, rice with some hamburger boiled enough for 3,4 days and would scoop some in its dish each day. The dog didn't do as well on dog food and we found that to not be very expensive at all. The biggest investment will be time, to walk it, care for it and play with it.
They probably figure that at your age, your attention will soon enough swing to dating and such and there won't be room time or desire on your part for investing time in your dog when you'd rather be hanging out with your crush. You can't know that now, but I was a teen and once I had my drivers license, I was rarely home. We had no pet at that time anymore and I still got my chores all done so all was okay. You may not win with the parents and to get your 'fix' of playing with a dog, you might have to go to friends houses and play with theirs, not the same but its fun still. Maybe you have a relative with a dog and can do some weekend overnighters there and focus on their dog.
A bunny will require a rabbit hutch which you keep in the yard. We had two,one for each of younger daughters. Their cages need cleaning daily and water bottle checked and refilled. Its a smelly mess trying to keep their cage clean and it will attract flies more so than anything else so our yard was so full of houseflies that we got an enormous amount of them coming in thru windows and the door each time we went in or out. The bunnies did well indoors and the girls played often with them. But a rabbit hutch will cost a nice chunk on top of buying the bunny. It all takes some money of which your parents may be very short on...I dont know. But talking more in depth rather than accepting their excuses is the first step to finding if you really have a chance to negotiate for a pet or not.
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