To give or not to give: How to ensure pets given as presents stay in their forever homes

As the holidays roll back around, people are on a search for the best gifts to give their loved ones. 

For some, a furry friend may be the only thing on their Christmas list, but others disagree on gifting a life-long companion.

Residents across the region have shared their personal stories of giving and receiving pets as gifts during the holidays, as well as some advice on how to ensure these presents are a successful placement for both the family and new fur-baby.

When parents give their children a pet for the holidays, a successful placement can be more likely, as the primary caregivers are often assuming the main responsibilities.

Amanda Romberger, a Chambersburg resident, is doing just that by giving in to her 3-year-old daughter's request for a puppy this year for Christmas. 

"Of course the responsibilities are my own, and truly I will be taking care of the new family dog now," she said. "We have thought it through and prepared."

She hopes the stigma can lessen around giving animals as presents as people make these important decisions as a family.

"Usually pets that are gifts fall to the wayside and go to rescues because the parent has the expectation of the child fully caring for the pet or it’s a gift to an adult as a surprise, not a mutual decision," she said.

Romberger isn't the only parent whose child has had the chance to make a new furry friend around the holidays.

T.J. Snyder, 36, Smithsburg, Maryland, said last year her 8-year-old daughter had been asking for a hamster for months. Her mother was keen on getting one for her.

"My mom always wanted to get my kids their first pets of various types," Snyder said. "So we agreed that she could get the hamster cage but I wanted Abby to pick her own friend."

Snyder always explained to Abby that Santa couldn't bring pets, because "they won't fit on the sleigh and may fight with other pets he has."

Abby ended up choosing a tiny Winter White hamster that she named Tracy.

"She loves the little thing and feeds it seeds from her hand, it even climbs the cage to see her when she goes in her room," she said. "I feel its important for a child to be able to bond with their pet, especially one they will handle, and picking it out is the start of that bond."

Janice Gillespie, of Waynesboro, 31, was gifted her orange and white kitten named Sparkle when she was just 10 years old. She had wanted a kitten for at least a year. 

"On Christmas Day I woke up to a letter on the tree from one of Santa's elves," she said. "It said that I had to listen extra well while my mom was at work all day. It even gave me instructions on making sure the dogs were fed, taken outside, and that I help with dinner. Then after dinner, I would get another letter."

Sure enough, Gillespie got that second letter, instructing her to head to the garage.

"I walked out to the garage to find Sparkle in her crate with a bow on the crate," she said. "The whole thing was absolutely perfect."

Gillespie said her parents had actually gotten the kitten in September.

"They kept Sparkle in the basement - half-finished with lots of room to play, eat, drink, etc. - while I was home and then when I went to school she would come up and play and hang out with my dad until I came back home."

Although Sparkle was a great addition to her family, Gillespie said it's important for people to do their research before taking the leap to buy an animal for someone else.

"I would suggest that if you want to give an animal to someone as a gift, that it's something they truly want and something they have already shown or taken the first steps in caring for the animal," she said. "Animals are companions for life, not just a phase or season. You want to be sure the person has those intentions in mind."

Terry Shade, of Chambersburg, 60, has received dogs as unexpected gifts twice in her life.

She received Poppy, a rat terrier, from her parents in her early 20s after her other dog passed away.

"It was a total surprise and while she arrived right around the holidays as a gift, it was not on Christmas Eve or Christmas Day because I came home from work and she was there in her shoebox bed by the heater," she said. "I was thrilled."

Years later, her husband gave her another rat terrier, Jake, that resembled Poppy.

"Jake was hidden away at my mother’s on Christmas Eve and brought out as a surprise," she said. "I was not initially thrilled as now I was a working mother of two teenagers with much less extra time on my hands to fool with a puppy." 

Even though the gift was a bit overwhelming at first - for Shade and Jake - he ended up settling in easily with the family after the holidays.

"As a general rule, I think people should be very careful about giving a pet as a gift at any time but under certain circumstances, it is possible to be successful," she said. "The idea of opening a box on Christmas morning and a puppy popping out sounds so sweet but pets are a big responsibility so whenever you’re considering a pet, the whole process should be well thought out."

Giving pets doesn't always work out. In fact, if a pet or owner doesn't bond with their new companion, the results can be quite the opposite of what was intended by the gifter.

Sara Shank, 30, of Waynesboro, had what some could call a traumatizing experience when her sister gave her a cat for Christmas when she was 10 years old.

"I wanted very specifically a male orange cat because of a book I had read," she said. "I don’t remember the name of the book now but the heroine had a male orange cat named Albert."

The cat she received was less than the side-kick she had hoped for.

"The cat I was given was a feral female tabby that hated me and my mother and actively attacked us out of nowhere until the day we had to put her to sleep at 19 years old," she said. 

It's better to let someone pick a companion on their own, she said.

"Take them to the shelter to get it themselves," she said. "Give them a collar or a leash and make it a special outing. I had a friend once that wrote in a card to her daughter that Santa needed help bringing cheer to a special dog in the shelter and picked her to love them and that she would know just which one she was meant to help."

Fostering an animal during the season of giving can be another option worth considering. Shank now works as an adoption coordinator through the National Great Pyrenees Rescue.

"Some rescues and shelters encourage fostering through the holidays - a high percentage of those animals end up adopted by their holiday fosters," she said.

Jennifer Vanderau, communications director of the Cumberland Valley Animal Shelter, agrees that everyone needs to be on the same page when it comes to bringing home a new member of the family.

"Our policy is that we need everyone to know the animal is coming," she said. "If you want to do a Christmas thing, we suggest putting a certificate under the tree."

"Animals require responsibility," she said. "It's an actual being that needs care. Everyone needs to meet and pick the animal together."

She said that every couple of years, the shelter sees an increase in adoptions around the holidays, but adopting an animal during a busy time isn't always the best idea.

"It's ideal to bring a pet - especially a dog - home during the most normal time to get them on a regular schedule from the very beginning," she said. "I myself get the winter blues, so January or February might be a good time to focus on a four-legged baby."

At the shelter, it is always their goal to match a pet with a family that suits their needs and lifestyle, Vanderau said.

If you aren’t able to give a pet a home for the holidays, gift or otherwise, there are plenty of other ways shelters need help around the holiday season - like stopping in to volunteer or offering a donation to pets in need.

"People are incredibly generous and we are lucky to be in the community we are in," she said. "Those who aren't able to adopt always make sure our four-legged babies have a good holiday as well."

The Cumberland Valley Animal Shelter is hosting a "Holiday Open House" on Dec. 7 and Dec. 8 from 11 a.m. - 3 p.m. at 5051 Letterkenny Road West, Chambersburg, where pets can get their photos taken with Santa and donations will be accepted.

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