Shaker Pets: The Reckoning

By my count, we've seen pictures of: 1 rat, 1 bird, 1 turtle, 1 horse, 1 rabbit, 2 oxen, 2 guinea pigs, 4 chinchillas, 10 alpacas, 52 dogs, and...wait for it...140 cats.

This, suffice it to say, is an animal-loving group.

Since we adopted Sophie in August, there have been at least a dozen Shakers who have emailed me or dropped a note in comments about adopting a kitten or adult cat themselves, many of them citing Sophs' adoption and/or the Daily Kitteh as motivation for opening their homes to a(nother) cat—an unintentional little bit of teaspooning that makes me blub with joy every single time.

Because of the economic crisis, American shelters are overflowing with dogs and cats whose owners have abandoned them, sometimes with extremely heavy hearts, because they can no longer afford to care for them. One Shaker who's a foster mom to rescue animals tells me that the foster organization with which she works had an unprecedentedly difficult time selling pets over Christmas this year.

I hope, if you are able and willing to provide a good home to an abandoned animal in 2009, you will consider doing so. The American Pet Products Association estimates that the average cost of dog ownership is $1,400 a year, or about $117 a month, and the annual cost of cat ownership is $1,000 a year, or about $83 a month.

To potential first-time pet owners: With careful research into breeds, thoughtful household planning, and the always-generous assistance of foster parents who really get to know the animals that live with them, it's eminently possible to find an animal who can fit your life. There's no such thing as a perfect pet—but there is such a thing as the perfect pet for you.

If you do rescue an animal this year, I hope you will send me pictures; I'll happily post about every new Shaker pet, from the tiniest toad to the biggest buffalo, who finds a forever home with a member of the community.

I also have a small amount set aside in case any Shakers need some economic help to keep their pets in the upcoming year. It's not a lot, but if a few bags of food or a month's worth of meds could make the difference between your ability to keep your pet or not, please let me know. I'll help as much as I can.