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I am just wondering what other animal lovers would do in this situation (if you dont like animals please dont respond with any negative comments). I have a pet parakeet that I got a little more then 4 years ago. I am extremely attached to her as she is to me. She’s not the type that just sits in a cage for decoration. She comes out of her cage often and is a very social/playful bird. This past week she had an unfortunate accident. She flew into a closing door which injured her pretty bad. We dont have pet insurance (though after this we probably will look into it) and so far we paid over 1000 dollars for vet visits. She sees an avian specialist in Manhattan as most vets dont treat birds that need urgent care. Baruch Hashem she is recuperating and is doing much better. She is out of the ICU and is very much alert and active at this point but far from out of the woods yet regarding care for her injuries. The vet seems quite hopeful in terms of her prognosis and recovery but obviously can not give us any guarantees that all will be well. My husband’s father is very upset that were paying a fortune for a tiny parakeet that costs 20 dollars. He thinks spending all this money (and more) is baal tashchis especially because money is tight for us. My family believes shes a living creature and not giving her proper care would be tzar baalei chayim. I am truly attached to this bird and I cannot imagine not giving her care she needs. I am just curious, how much money do you think is too much to spend on a beloved pet especially when the cost of care way exceeds the amount the pet is actually worth?
i don’t have a response, but this is a very interesting question! Intriguing and debatable. Hope your pet recovers quickly!
I have had more than 20 birds in my life. All types.
I currently have an African Grey parrot, who says well over 300 phrases….in any event, a parakeet costs 30 bucks. Let it go. You made your hishtadlus. There are people starving in every frum neighborhood. They have not had $1000 for food in a year.
Hashem already has seen your love for his creations, as it says “kol hamirachem al habriyos mirachmim alav min HaShamayim….”
The cost of the pet is irrelevant. If the value to you of saving it is more than the cost of saving it, then you are increasing your utility by spending it.
By the way, next bird you get (which will be in a few days – this one won’t make it anyways), have his wings clipped. It costs alot less than $1000 (more like 10 bucks every 5 months). You can do it yourself also. Simple to learn how to do it.
90% of birds die in accidents like yours (fly into walls, windows, doors etc).
Pet birds are not meant to fly. They don;t even know what that is. They were born in cages. CLIP THE WINGS next time….and leave this poor fellow in the vet…
Seems to me the issue here is not the value of the bird vs the cost of healing her (you already explained- she’s not worth much), or the act of being kind to an animal (you’ve already made the attempt to help out the poor creature). The issue here is the attachment to a “beloved pet,” as you call her. You and your family members are really the only ones who can figure out how great the attachment to the bird is and how much money you are willing to part with.
There are indeed starving people in need of money, as another poster pointed out, but you have the right to prioritize and set yourself a budget that includes provisions for pet care, or other forms of leisure or entertainment. I wonder if the poster who is so concerned about others going hungry would fault your husband if he bought you a dozen roses, a new piece of jewelry, or a game for the kids.
My father recently spent over $2000 for surgery for his pet dog to cure her of cancer. It has worked and she is still alive, smiling and happy without any other complications. People spend money on vacations and luxury cars all the time. This dog brought him a lot of happiness when he came home every day. I think it is a personal decision. Of equal importance, I think if you purchase an animal there is a responsibility that comes with it and we have to live up to that responsibility.
I don’t think this is a din in tzaar baalei chaim. I don’t think you have any requirement to spend any money to save it (you just can’t cause it more harm). I also don’t think it’s bal tashchis because you’re are getting what you believe is your money’s worth.
In short, I think you should spend however much you want to spend, and if you decide it’s too expensive then you shouldn’t feel guilty.
mercury – Be sure of what you said. Not many vets can properly treat a parakeet, and they might not be 100 percent honest with you.
achosid- stop doomsdaying the bird’s life. Your thoughts on it’s fate weren’t requested and arent being appreciated
The money wasted on pets could be used to feed hungry children, send kids to college to get an education, buy seforim, help baalei teshuva and gerim learn in yeshiva for a year, etc.
I am wondering why your husband’s father is upset, is it because he is supporting you financially and feels his money is going to the “birds”?
Refuah Shelayma to the poor thing.
Hi Mercury,
your baby may or may not be SGA, more likely the sonogram is not gauged (they normally aren’t). If it eases your mind, you should demand your OB-GYN to refer you to a center where the ultrasound machine can provide absolute measurements (ie in mm) and error bars. You pay for care, you are entitled to. If your baby should turn out to be indeed SGA and he/she is proportioned, probably the ob-gyn will advise to ignore it: given 100 healthy babies, obviously someone will be in the smallest 5% and someone else in the highest 5%. If the measurements are not proportioned, again this does not mean health problems R”L, it just increases the likelyhood, we all know people who are not well-proportioned but are healthy, some are athletes. Still in such a case perhaps you may want to give birth in a hospital with a NICU, not because it makes a difference to the baby (they ship babies quickly and effectively, including grand preemies) but because if you just gave birth and are tired etc. one thing is to walk to the babies’ ward, another thing is to sign you want to leave, and go to the other hospital. Wishing you an easy birth, with perfect health and strength for you and baby.
As for the parakeet, I wish you that it survives. I never had any pets nor do I want one, I was taught keeping pets is an aveira which leads to more aveirot, so, my humble opinion is, try to care for this bird, but then, if you get so emotionally attached, may be it’s not worth getting another. You may find sympathetic support among nonjewish animal lovers, I call such people all the time when there are unwanted pets, they are very good at finding an accommodation and they raise money – may be they can help you with a part of the bills.
I have 3 cats, saved from the streets of Yerushalayim as sick, little kittens (one was really almost dead).
Now, they’re here in the UK, 3 and 4 years old, and completely healthy – and the best, nicest, friendliest cats anyone has ever seen.
If they would be sick or injured, I would spend anything I have to save them. I’d take out loans – I’d do anything possible.
When I took them into the house, I adopted them, I took responsibility for them. I take that seriously. I do not believe that animals exist solely to be used, and just to be disposed of when they are having problems, as some seem to think.
If anyone wants to tell me I’m a heretic, so be it…
Dear Mercury, I am not an ultrasound technician but I have a Ph D in the sciences and I have had children, bli ayin hara – please bless us that we should have more. I once asked an ob-gyn why most machines are not calibrated, which is simple and easy to do, and he replied to me it’s not done because it is unnecessary, and the few machines that are properly calibrated are more than adequate in number, to deal with those few cases that require it. As you say, fluid, CTG and activity are the relevant parameters.
I do not think it is strictly an aveira to get a pet, I think it’s a figurate expression, like humiliating a person in public is not mamash like murdering. I do think it’s not a good idea, especially in modern times, as we may consider them as “family members” like some nonjews do, and this is an aveira. We had a mitzva to have (kosher) pets once, just before we left Mitzrayim, it is very difficult if you think about it, have children grow affectionate with a lamb, a sweet gentle lamb, hug it, have it respond to our calls, we see the lamb growing day by day, getting stronger and more beautiful — and then one day we shecht it, with the children watching. Nowadays if we had to do, it would be very difficult, and it seems to me we have a weakness, and we should put a fence. Plus, it takes much money, much emotional drain, much time and effort (such as cleaning after them, keeping nonkosher pots, pans and dishes, figuring out what to do over Pesach, etc) which I believe we should direct elsewhere, starting with our own family members and then, if we still have money and time we wish to donate, there are many worthy causes to devote one’s time and money and help Yidden, which, differently from the pets, is an obligation and is the very reason we are in the world.
TCG, you have already explained us that your cats are neutered, which is an issur d’oraita, so your cats are the perfect example of the choice of keeping pets leading to another aveira. In addition, I doubt you would spend everything you have, much less take loans, to help a fellow Jew.
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