I am cutting this down as it was way too long and too much like a rant :lol:
I don't agree with what several other people have said. Just because you live with your parents, doesn't mean you should put up with having animals (yours or theirs) in cruel accommodation.
I DO agree that people who still live with their parents shouldn't get animals if their parents aren't comfortable with having that animal and the accommodation that goes with it... in that case the 'child' is in the wrong and shouldn't have the animal (same as if you had a 'no pets' landlord). Even if you pay rent (as I do) and contribute to the household, if the parents who own/rent the house say no pets- then you shouldn't have pets.
HOWEVER this is not often where animals in family homes come from! Usually there is one of two situations from what I have seen:
1) Parent buys a pet for a child (under 16)
2) Parent talks about pet with adult child, and agrees to it.
In either case this often goes wrong.
In case 1) If a parent buys an animal for their child as a minor, the animals are all in all the parents responsibility. Children should not be responsible for another life. They should be encouraged into responsibility- taught to clean, feed and look after the animal- but if the child fails in that responsibility then the adult is ultimately in charge of the pets and their well-being. I see so many posts on facebook pet sites, preloved etc. that says under it 'we're selling them because my kids got bored'... makes me so mad!
If a parent buys a pet for a child, that parent should provide welfare standard accommodation and care. If they don't, then someone needs to stand up and tell them. A child telling their parents the hutch is too small isn't rudeness or them being ungrateful- it is one person standing up for the rights of a being that can't protect itself. If an adult isn't willing to shell out for the animals care, then the shouldn't have bought it= parent is in the wrong!
In case 2) Parent allows adult child to get a pet and then doesn't allow proper care. My parents wouldn't let me get a 6' hutch even if I paid for it myself, they said if I could afford a bigger hutch I could afford to pay more rent. My grandparents thought it was far too big for a rabbit, to which I replied 'no such thing as too big'. It is literally a case of outright stubbornness and not wanting to admit that maybe the way animals used to be treated wasn't right. I don't feel guilty for keeping my last pair of rabbits in the old hutch because I had a rabbit care book, talked to pet shops, and did research, and that told us that cage was great- and it was a long lasting one that cost my parents £100 even though at the time (11 years ago) we were broke- but now the information is readily available to say that actually that hutch was too small and wasn't right, people need to change their ideas. And I find it infuriating that parents, friends and family members feel the need to judge you because you want your animals to be happy and secure, even though it doesn't effect them. Obviously, if I wanted to put a shed in the garden that would be one thing- but a larger hutch doesn't take up much more room than a smaller hutch! And yet to the animals it makes all the difference.
It isn't just about parents, it's about people in general having out-dated ideas and not wanting to change their minds despite evidence from every corner.
As a side note- my family and I are ridiculously close, and I love them to bits and think they are very good pet owners. My dad lies down in the garden talking to the rabbits and my mum is more than willing to cover out of hour vet costs for our family pets or moisturise steroid lotion into my sisters old hamster every day. The only disagreement over pet care we have ever had is over the size of a blimmin hutch! Although after I bought a 6' two tier hutch and left it at my grandparents (telling my mum to go get it when she changes her mind), my mum talked to a rescue and finally agreed we did need a bigger hutch! It is a case of parents not thinking their child's opinion is worth as much :roll:
Although I am in charge of the animals (cats and rabbits) on a daily basis, they are still considered family pets, and when I go away my parents take over the care and do a great job (although my dad continually over feeds pellets :roll
. But I am using this as an example of when parents are 'in the wrong' rather than the children. If you buy a pet for a child (like the rabbits were originally bought for my 10 year old sister), you should do the research and provide welfare standard care. And if you agree to allow your adult child to own a pet in your house, you also agree to allow them to provide appropriate accommodation and care.
If not, then you are deliberately asking for an animal to be treated badly- how is that right regardless of your age?! This isn't a parents vs children thing- this is a RIGHT and WRONG situation.