Baby animals are one of life's small pleasures. We enjoy watching them stumble around and witness their surrounding for the first time. Those cute little button noses and paws too big for their body are to die for. Most people see puppies, or kittens, or any baby animals and squeal about how much they want them. Some end up buying them. Then these puppies or kittens grow up, and they aren't so tiny anymore. Their owners get frustrated when they jump up or play around. What was once okay, maybe even adorable, isn't anymore and they don't understand. Owners end up getting tired of the messes they make, the noise they make, and how they bump into things and knock them over. These pets usually end up in a shelter. They usually end up living their final days in a 4 ft. by 4 ft. kennel, fenced in, on a concrete bed. The puppy spirit never dies, but in those shelters they do. You can see the light go out in their eyes. They were given up, brushed aside, unwanted.
People need to educate themselves more on the animals they intend to buy. This doesn't just stop at dogs and cats. This goes for turtles, birds, lizards, frogs, hamsters, guinea pigs, gerbils, mice, rats, fish, tortoises, snakes, spiders, bunnies and chinchillas. If these animals are in pet stores, they usually end up with an inexperienced owner who doesn't realize the time, effort and money that goes into caring for an animal. Any sized animal takes a tremendous amount of care.
But the thing that happens the most, is small cute animals grow to be giants and their owners didn't expect it. Puppies are the prime example of this. German Shepard's, Rottweilers, Labradors, Dalmatians, Collie's, Great Dane's, Mastiff's, Bernese Mountain Dogs, Saint Bernard's... the list goes on and on. They start out small and clumsy and grow to be big, powerful and loyal companions. Prepare yourself for that.
The Bearded Dragon is also an example of an animal that starts small and grow to be a giant. They start at about the size of a hand, sometimes even smaller, and when they reach their adult size they reach from 16" to 22" long. They can start out in a small tank, but as these creatures grow their tank needs to grow with them. Some owners do not prepare for this.
Another example of a tiny animals who grow to be massive is the tortoise. Even though they do take years and years to grow, they will grow to be giants. Most of them will even outlive their owner. Although, there are tortoises who stay small. The Cherry Head Red Foot Tortoise is a popular one for beginners, since they only grow to be about 12". But even that is way bigger than how they start.
Snakes are also a great example. They start out rather skinny and short, but they can grow to be thick and long. Corn snakes are a snake that stays relatively small. Ball pythons are a very popular snake that can grow to be rather large. Owners must be prepared for this.
There are tons of animals out there who end up in a shelter or even released to the wild when they've been captive their entire life and have no idea how to cope. If you have a soft heart, go get one of these gentle giants at a shelter and give it a home that will appreciate it and its size. Educate yourself before you buy, and appreciate your giants.
