Will I be able to have a puppy?

By Sho Chang-young

A recent public survey showed that one in three people belongs to a household that raises pets. People's interest in pets has increased more than ever before. Consequently, major media outlets have been covering this subject frequently. For instance, The Korea Times published an eye-catching article about “pet sitting” earlier this month. Just a week later, another one describing the joy of raising a pet puppy was published in the opinion section. I empathized deeply with both writings. These days, there are certainly many people who are thinking about starting to raise pets.

I am indeed one of them. I confess that I have never experienced raising one before. Therefore, I eagerly want a pet dog now. One day, I took the opportunity to tell my wife my hope. As it was not possible without her active consent, I cautiously suggested that we adopt and raise a small, cute puppy together. But she did not readily agree, and we had a pretty long talk.

As a result, we were able to roughly sort out three uncomfortable issues, which should be considered prior to us making the physical effort to raise a pet. These issues may mean serious difficulties for us, even though some other people might not mind them. Those issues we discussed are the following.

First, the worry about the spreading of COVID-19 cannot be ignored. Will our pet always be safe from it? If our pet gets infected with COVID-19, what will happen to us, and vice versa? Our search on the internet confirmed several cases, which seemed not as much of a concern as we assumed. However, to prevent unwanted occurrences, should we put a mask on the pet's face as some people do? Although, maybe doing that would be useless and awkward.

Second, the matter of neutering should not be set aside. During our hunt for related information, we learned about the fact that most adopted pet animals undergo neutering. In this way, it is possible for the owner to avoid management troubles caused by the dog periodically being in heat and giving birth to puppies. Nonetheless, it seems cruel that we deprive a pet of its reproductive functions. It is similar to degrading the pets into mere “living toys” for human pleasure. In some ways, it could be regarded as “a necessary evil.” But my wife and I could not fully agree with this view, as we believe that humans do not have such rights to control animals by nature.

Third, and lastly, there is the problem associated with the low fertility rate of the young generation. Our society has an extremely low birthrate and a surge of single young people. According to a recent poll, more than half of young single-person households said that they plan to continue living alone, and many of them prefer to be with their pets rather than with other people. To them, marriage might mean a significant impediment to keeping their pets. Whenever I have the chance, I try to advise them that it is better to get married than live with only a pet. But if I myself raise a pet, the logical basis of my advice will be weakened.

It still remains to be seen whether we can adopt and care for a pet dog. Will my wife and I be able to free ourselves totally from the above unwanted barriers, and have a pet puppy? Otherwise, as an alternative, following my wife's recommendation, should I simply be satisfied with the potted plants in the living room? This situation is indeed a really tricky one.

The writer (

sochan57@naver.com

) is a retired principal at Gunsan Girls' High School.