If you're looking for a pet in Qatar, the first thing to take into consideration is that keeping a pet is a very big responsibility. A pet need lots of care, and also need lots of love and attention for their growth, development and general wellbeing. You must be completely ready for this and plan thoroughly before you venture out there into the world of animals to get yourself a pet, otherwise later on you may be overwhelmed and feel you made a mistake.
Before we discuss how to adopt a pet, rather than buy one, it’s important to talk about what to take into consideration before adopting a pet that will become part of your home.
Keeping a pet is a full-time responsibility and if you're planning on getting one, then you must be 100% ready to take on the responsibility because you will be feeding the pet, caring for it, giving it time, grooming it, ensuring it's vaccinated, neutered and chipped, providing it love and affection, making sure it has enough exercise, and protecting it from getting sick, and if it does become sick, taking it to a proper veterinary (vet) doctor, giving it medication on time and nursing it back to health. It’s hard work and you have to be sure you can take on this added responsibility.
Once you're sure you can take on the responsibility, it’s time to think about what kind of pet you would like to adopt. The assumption here is that your landlord allows keeping pets. There are a lot of considerations to take into mind before choosing the right kind of pet for you.
Do you want a furry pet?
If you want a furry pet, would you choose a cat or a dog?
In either case, would you choose a pet with long fur or short fur?
Do you have outside space where you can exercise your pet?
Do you or any of your family members have any allergies to any pets or pet hair?
Will there be someone home to look after your pet?
What would you do with your pet when you go on holiday?
Is your home big enough for a pet?
What is your lifestyle like?
And, so on and so forth.
It’s also important to know that keeping a pet incurs financial costs in terms of food, toys for their entertainment (you may think this is unnecessary, but most animals like some form of entertainment and animal toys are a good thing to invest in) as they keep your pet busy and occupied for periods of time, and help them exercise their limbs.
There are also the costs of vaccinations, yearly vet examinations, protection from fleas and heartworm, vet costs if they fall sick or get hurt, grooming, litter trays, and also boarding for the pet when you are travelling out of Qatar and can't take it with you.
If you’re still not sure whether you can take the full-time responsibility of keeping a pet, or you haven’t been able to decide which type of animal you would like to have in your home, perhaps, you could try volunteering at an animal rescue shelter first or try fostering a pet before you make that final decision. This will help you decide whether getting a pet is for you or not.
You could go down to one of the animal rescue shelters in Qatar (details at the end of the article) and spend some time with the pets there. There are many different kinds of animals at the shelters and these animal rescue shelters are always on the lookout for volunteers to come in for a few hours and help them out with the animals they've rescued. Spending this time with the animals will help you understand what looking after an animal is all about and will aid you in making the decision of whether you really do want to adopt a pet or if it’s just a fanciful and timely whim you have!
When you foster a pet, you look after it and nurture it for a fixed period of time till someone adopts it, without the full-time commitment of a full-time pet, and if you feel, during fostering, that keeping a pet is not for you, then you can return it back to the animal rescue shelter. However, many a time, people end up actually adopting the pet they wthought they would foster for a short period of time.
Not only is it much cheaper to adopt a petas compared to buying one from a pet shop (adoption fees at animal rescue shelters in Qatar would normally be QAR.500 – QAR.1,000), it's great for the animal's’ wellbeing as well (a lot of these animals have been through a lot while on the streets, abandoned by previous owners or been injured and need a safe and secure environment to flourish in) as well as that of the animal rescue shelter which will have more space to foster another animal.
When you go down to one of the animal rescue shelters, it’s important to keep in mind that these shelters’ foremost priority is to ensure the animal they are giving for adoption is well-looked after, so the process for adoption may not be as simple as you think it may be and follows a proper procedure and stringent guidelines to ensure you are suitable as an adopter and also so you get the pet you are looking for.
Some of the questions that will be asked by the animal rescue shelters are about living arrangements (Where do you live? Who do you live with? Does your landlord allow pets? etc.), the way you live (Do you spend a lot of time out of the house? What are your working hour, if you work? Who will look after the pet when you are away? Are you very active or do you spend a lot of time just lazing around?). Once these questions are answered satisfactorily, the animal rescue shelter will be able to make an informed decision as to whether you are suitable as an adopter and what type of animal would be suitable for you.
An adult dog or cat will probably already be neutered or spayed, but a kitten or puppy would need to undergo this procedure as soon as it’s old enough. This is a commitment you have to make with the aimal rescue shelter. Neutering is very important because there are too many unwanted animals in Qatar and the last thing you want is for your pet to contribute to the growing problem.
Once you’ve adopted a pet, don’t think the animal rescue shelters’ job is over. These shelters check up on the adopted pet and the adopter from time-to-time just to ensure the pet is being looked after and also to ensure the adopters are happy with their pet.
If you’ve finally decided you really do want a pet, have weighed all the pros and cons, and even decided on the animal you want to make a part of your family, it’s time to check out where you can adopt a pet from:
Website: qaws.org
E-mail: [email protected]
Twitter: @QAWSQATAR
Instagram: @qataranimalwelfaresociety
Tel: +974 5539 6074
Website: pawsrescueqatar.org/
E-mail: [email protected]
Twitter: @PawsRescueQatar
Instagram: @pawsrescueqatar
Facebook: facebook.com/pawsrescueqatar
Facebook: facebook.com/pawlovepa
E-mail: [email protected]
Facebook: facebook.com/2ndchancerescueqatar
Twitter: @2ndChanceRescue
Instagram: @2ndchancerescue
Tel: +974 6655 6489, +974 5540 6254
Website: http://dogsindoha.weebly.com/
E-mail: [email protected]
Tel: Vanessa: +974 6618 4924 (Qatar) or Birgit: +32 4894 3892 0 (Europe)
Website: https://canvethospital.com/new-clients/adoption/
Email: [email protected]
Twitter: @canvetdoha
Instagram: @canadian_vet_hospital_qatar
Tel: +974 4411 8850
Are you an animal lover? Do you have a pet? If not, would you like to get a pet? Please do let us know in our Comments section. Like and share the article - it keeps us going?
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