HomeNot Silly StuffLetting Go

Comments

Letting Go — 2 Comments

  1. We’ve always tried to give kittens to people we know if at all possible, especially black ones since our local animal control and shelter people have often mentioned that they are super choosy about who they let adopt black cats. There is an issue there with abuse, especially this time of year, so we were super-careful with Malaysia’s two black kittens (they went to my inlaws and are doing great).

    Kids, though, are different. There’s that super-protective part, which never really stops, but it has to coexist with the ‘gather life experiences so you can be a productive member of society’ part which kinda kicks in as the kids themselves grow more independent. Our daughter never really went to day care other than about 45 min 3 days a week for one semester when my schedule and Bill’s had that gap, and the provider we used not only watched our niece all day, she was a family friend. That said, when there are less and less family members close by, and more ‘strangers’, it does get tough to find someone trustworthy.

    All we can do is the best we can. Adults still have to work, and kids still need to learn to exist in the real world. I think kids should be allowed to ride bikes and go trick or treating and have sleepovers and all those fun things. There’s no reason, though, that the parents can’t get involved, can’t meet other parents, have an open door policy when hosting kid-events, and can’t get off their duff and take their kids to things like swimming at the public pool or whatever. It’s easy to stay home and lock the doors and plug the kids into PlayStation. It’s harder to get out and do things with the kids, or be the house all the kids come to. Fwiw, we were the house the kids came to and there were a few times we’d wake up in the morning to a teenager sleeping on the couch, or a kid who came home with our daughter after school and ended up staying a couple of days (or, as happened one summer, a few weeks). I’d MUCH rather have them safe, warm, fed and loved at our house than ending up God knows where while their home-mess straightened itself out.

    Parents, though, have to open themselves up to that. I wish more would.

  2. Check with your vet about helping to find homes for Roxy and the kittens. Our vet usually has pets for adoption, and we’ve adopted from a vet before.