Animals at home
Animals play important role in human being life since the down of history. At the beginning animals were only source of fur and meat that's why people start to breed them. After these hundreds of years situation changed a bit. We can buy everything in shops - so average human being don't need to breed animals for such reasons. But many people keep animals at home. Why? It's quite difficult for me to say about it because I didn't have any animal at home, do I don't have and probably I won't have.
Many people, who own the pets, claim that animal it's not only an animal - it's sad that dog is the best friend of human being. And to tell the truth I can agree with them, there are many lonely people for whom animal (e.g. dog) is the only relative. Many old people keep animals at home - and generally it's ok. Sometimes pets are the only reason for which they feel needed (they have to feed them and walk with them so there are not bored).
Others claim that keeping animals teach responsibility. It concerns especially children. They have to take care for pet, feed it, and walk with it every day. But I don't agree with them. Of course there are children which taught about responsibility during keeping the pet. But reality is different. In many cases, after a short time animal start to be unnecessarily, children are bored with it, and they have only troubles with it. That's why parents have to take a care for it instead of children. In many situations people just through animas form home like a rubbish or damaged toy. They don't see in animal living creature with feelings and emotions anymore. That's why I wouldn't say that keeping animals teaches responsibility - I would say that keeping animals needs responsibility. Everyone who thinks about keeping animals has to think and take into account few things. 1st if he really want to have an animal at home.2nd if he had enough money to breed it. 3rd if he had a good conditions to keep animal he wants to buy. 4th if all of occupants of home/flat - place where that animals agree for it.
Animals very often can help people. For example there are special trained dogs, which help blind people to walk. Some people keep animals to feel more safe, especially people who live in houses with gardens - dog is a guard, it scare away robbers and postmen.
I've said here about the conditions. For instance, in Poland most of people live in block of flats. In my opinion that is very big problem. I think that people shouldn't keep animals like dogs in flats. Why? Dogs need huge area for running, and people who keep animals at home walk with them rarely. And there's difference between walk and run. In the town - I'm not sure about lore paragraphs about it - but I think that people must keep dogs on leashes. That's why I think that only persons who own big gardens have only good conditions to keep animals like dogs.
I've said about throwing out animals. It's a big problem too. There's not enough shelters for dogs, cats. But to be honest I need to say that in many cases people get used to theirs animals. Sometimes between an animal and its owner become a close relationship, many people treat an animal as a member of family. It's proved by fact that some people cry when their favorite pet die.
But to tell the truth, I wouldn't say that it's the best idea to treat animal as a member of a family. For me it's a bit disgusting. For example, my aunt owns a dog, and she treat it as the most important thing at home, her dog can run on beds, chairs …. and nobody can shout on her favorite pet. I won' understand it.
If I had to choose which, I would probably choose fishes. There are many reasons. 1st fishes are quiet. 2nd they don't need my time. 3rd an aquarium looks quite good. 4th fishes can move only in water, so they won't run at whole house. 5th if I get bored with them, I think that it would be easier to get rid of it (legally of caurse) - I wouldn't have to look for shelter.
Nowadays keeping animals is rather popular. But everything is changing so types of pets keeping at homes change too. Of course in the most cases people still keep dogs and cats (I guess because I don't have any documents or data proving it) but some exotic animals like crocodiles, panda bars, tigers …. are more and more popular, maybe no yet in Poland, but in USA, Asia, and western Europe. I've heard somewhere that in Japan some people start to keep pigs at home as pets. In the most cases people who keep such animals at home are rich and they (I suppose) don't know what to do with their money or they want to make a good impression on their neighbors … To sum it up. It's not important what animal do you have. You just have to take into account that animals live quite long and you will have to take care for him for a long time - if you don't mind that and you think that you will be able to do that - IT' OK.