Fear of pet commitment? Try Flex Pets... or not

I thought I've heard it all when it comes to pet care but this one has my head spinning. I love the idea of fostering a dog. Foster pet parents are there to help, teach, care for and love a dog, but at the same time must manage not to "bond" too strongly with him and jeopardize the chance for a successful adoption when the right person comes along. The important point of fostering is that the pets are in need of a temporary home and care in between being rescued and going to a new permanent home.

Flexpetz is a service promoting anything but fostering. Flexpetz offers what I can only see as confusion for a loving dog. I feel like their ads might cater to the Paris Hilton wanna-be's: "Need a chihuahua for the weekend? Try this one - it'll match your every shoe! Just have it back by Monday."

The website promotes exactly what its name is - flexible time with a pet. No commitment. You don't even need to spend time on pet personality testing or vets trips - just pick up a pet and go.

The site states "Many people work long hours, travel frequently or have housing/jobs/activities that are not dog-friendly. Our members realize that full-time dog ownership would be unfair to the dog and choose to be FLEXPETZ members instead."

OK

I'm still not getting it - I'd like to see this same energy spent on trying to find PERMANENT homes for shelter dogs that really need it. You want to see if a dog fits in your family? Great! Take a trip to your local shelter and they'll love to let you walk and play with a dog - for free! You may find a furry best friend who can live with just you - not several other pairs of hands that may not be caring 100% for its safety or mental health.

Comments

[bg]

I'm surprised they didn't do a tie-in with a rental car company. Need a car for a few days? Why not throw a pet in! Sub-compact and a Chihuahua or full-size and German Shepard perhaps?

[jill]

This just sounds cruel to the dog. Site says they are 2 or 3 years old - how will they ever bond?

[Jen]

This sounds horribly cruel, as noted by the above comment. What kind of life is this for the dog?? Moreover, pets are NOT rental cars! This really represents exactly what the problem is with pet ownership today...people don't take the commitment seriously. If you want a weekend pet, try volunteering for a rescue group or shelter!

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