Reckless bargain hunting on Black Friday is strongly discouraged by animal welfare organisations

The Animal Welfare Society of South Africa’s animal care centre supervisor, Lawrence Nkotha, with Odin. Picture: Jackie Wernberg

The Animal Welfare Society of South Africa’s animal care centre supervisor, Lawrence Nkotha, with Odin. Picture: Jackie Wernberg

Published Nov 26, 2021

Share

Cape Town: Local animal welfare organisations discourage reckless bargain hunting on Black Friday as a pet should not be taken for granted.

The Animal Welfare Society of South Africa (AWSSA) and TEARS Animal Rescue believe a pet requires a lifetime commitment and any decision to acquire one or more must not be disregarded.

Spokesperson for AWSSA Allan Perrins said: “There are a few reputable animal shelters (ourselves included) that have wisely taken advantage of this annual shopping phenomena by, for example, discounting their senior pets or those who have been in their care for a long time. These discounted adoptions have been centred around what is in the animals best interests and differ substantially from those Black Friday adoption campaigns premised on a numbers game.

“These organisations (including ourselves) have also not ‘cheapened’ their adoption criteria making it a real win-win for everyone especially the animals. So before you ask “how much is that doggy in the window”, please consider the real price tag of these priceless personalities that come with a lifetime guarantee of unconditional love and responsibility,” he added.

From left: Oreo, Ariel and Peyton. They are part of the magnificent seven. Picture: Jackie Wernberg

TEARS marketing manager, Wendy Scheepers said: “Black Friday is the biggest shopping day at the TEARS online shop and we're happy to drive traffic to the online shop by offering more incentive to shop with TEARS. However, our offering a discount on adoption is not something that TEARS is willing to do.

“As stewards to the vulnerable animals in our area, we are unwilling to compromise on adoptions. All of our adopters must be able to afford private veterinary care and quality food as we cannot continue to burden the animal welfare system. A discount on an adoption fee should never be the drive to adopt,” she said.

Chairperson of the Cape Animal Welfare Forum Karen de Kerk said: “Millions of rands are spent annually on trying to cope with the large volumes of abandoned and unwanted pets, some of which were given as gifts, or were bought on an emotional reaction. Puppies and kittens are not toys, or gifts or for discarding when you have had enough. There are many sites online which will tell you exactly what you need to know about caring for an animal, so do your research and learn first.”

Weekend Argus

Related Topics:

Animals