This does not mean that person will be a bad pet person; matter of fact, I applaud any person that knows that “this is NOT the per that I can handle” and walks away – after all, the people who DONT know that are the ones that end up putting their animals in shelters or having their animals placed in rescue societies.

So good for you, Laurie (and for your family) for weighing your choices and making the best fit.

Its the people who choose purebreds and breeders over others for the pure status of it that are the problem. They are the the ones that usually have no bloody fucking idea what they are getting themselves into; nor do they care.

Yes, I’ve had hamsters for over fifteen years and I’m aware that they bite, especially when they’re mill-bred and poorly socialized as pups. If you read the entry, you would see that I took Violet in from a local rescue group that could not properly care for her. She belonged to some local children whose parents were sent to prison. The couple tortured and mistreated the pets, and serve as a pretty good argument against pet ownership in general. It’s in that context and given that history that she has injured me quite badly a few times. My other hamsters don’t bite to maim like she does, since she needed to fight for her life in a way that most pets don’t.

The “attacks” I’m referring to were not personal attacks, but attacking someone’s actions, which is what happened to Ms. Valenti. If you disagree that the blog commenters were attacking her actions when adopting a puppy from what I’m guessing was a high-end breeder, then we really have nothing to discuss.

We fundamentally disagree about whether or not you have a right to own an animal. I think you don’t have that right and I think it’s wrong. If you interpret that disagreement as an attack, that’s YOUR interpretation. But don’t mischaracterize my criticism as a personal attack because it wasn’t.