Pet Adoption = Rich Sims Only

[Ashleigh]

I KNOW I did not just pay $3,650 for a border collie. You can buy a car in this game for less than that.

[Ellie]

I think it's ok.. most things are much too cheap anyway, including the cars.

[skandelouslala]

Well if it were up to me everything would be more expensive so I'm pretty happy with the fact that pets don't come dirt cheap if you buy one in game.  You can always get one for free by creating one and then adding it to the family.

[Ashleigh]

The point is, it's not proportionate. Well, not much in this game is, but at any rate, I would not pay more for a dog than a car in the real world, and I scratch my own head at those who would. It reeks of DOG OWNS YOU.

[J. M. Pescado]

I KNOW I did not just pay $3,650 for a border collie. You can buy a car in this game for less than that.

I dunno, dogs of specific breeding and pedigree can sell for a very large sum of money.

But cars in the game are too cheap. This is partly a limitation of the the Sims being stuck in the 16-bit age, so the maximum anything can cost is $32767.

[idtaminger]

In China, you have puppies getting sold on the street for like less than $10 USD. I'd see a new litter every week. And man, they were beautiful. Absolutely gorgeous. The type that'd probably go for hundreds here. If I could've taken them over w/me, I would've done so in a heartbeat.

Here, the prices for dogs are ridiculous. Even if you try to adopt it's like $100, and even then the puppies are rare. It's so unfair. For the doggies too. The dogs in the West really have it good.

[ZiggyDoodle]

In China, you have puppies getting sold on the street for like less than $10 USD.

That's probably because dogs are people food in China.   Their street sales are like hot dog carts in NYC.

[idtaminger]

That's probably because dogs are people food in China.   Their street sales are like hot dog carts in NYC.

Okay, that's so not true.

They're only pple food *sometimes* in Guangzhou - they eat everything there - and even then, it's specific restaurants. Kinda like how you have to dig out an Indian place in the smaller cities. You do not just go to a random street corner. And outside of Guangzhou its very, very rare for anyone to eat dog. And pple don't randomly sell puppies to eat. They sell puppies so they can make some money for a litter they can't take care of. And for the most part they're adopted by college students and like, not the local butcher.

It's a really disgusting stereotype that's so, so off base.

[Velax]

Here, the prices for dogs are ridiculous. Even if you try to adopt it's like $100, and even then the puppies are rare. It's so unfair. For the doggies too. The dogs in the West really have it good.

As I understand it, the reason places like the RSPCA (Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals) charge for pets is so that the creature has value to the person that adopts it. Abandoned pets are a big problem in Australia (and I suspect much of the world), and people tend to value something they have to pay for more than something they got for free, and so be less likely to throw it away. Hence, the cost.

[eamethyst]

It is also to cover at least some of the cost of caring for the animal at the shelter, as well as to encourage responsible pet ownership.  Our local Humane Society shelter will refund a portion of the adoption fee if you spay/neuter the pet within a set period following the adoption, thereby reducing the future stray population.  As the owner of 2 "pound puppies" all I can say is there is no such thing as a free pet.

[ZiggyDoodle]

It's a really disgusting stereotype that's so, so off base.

It does exist, has existed, and a Google search turns up plenty of links to the reality that dogs are eaten in China.

That said, my comparison to hot dog stands was facetiously made.

[nectere]

Stats prove around my parts that if you scoff at the price of an adoption fee you will also scoff at the price of petcare in general, including food, shots, decent place to sleep etc. I say if you dont have the funds to adopt then you dont have the funds to invest in the care of your pet either, so please just say no to pet ownership - its perfectly ok to not have a pet.

As far as the sims are concerned, I thought it was pretty close to accurate, pure breds cost money, and most of those higher priced pure breds in the catalog also come with a range of skill sets and training. So to the title...uh so? Get a puppy instead those are pretty cheap, or adopt a stray, those are free.

[Jelenedra]

Yeah, but it works in reverse too. I sold a puppy that was housebroken, non hostile and playful for about $2500. Fun!

[idtaminger]

It does exist, has existed, and a Google search turns up plenty of links to the reality that dogs are eaten in China.

I never said it didn't exist. But like I said, it's mostly in Guangzhou. They eat cow testicles and fried rodents too. But having a couple of restaurants w/ freakish tastes does not mean the Chinese as a whole, or even Guangzhou as a whole, loves eating cow testicles and fried rodents.

Stats prove around my parts that if you scoff at the price of an adoption fee you will also scoff at the price of petcare in general, including food, shots, decent place to sleep etc. I say if you dont have the funds to adopt then you dont have the funds to invest in the care of your pet either, so please just say no to pet ownership - its perfectly ok to not have a pet.

I don't have one. I want one though, but eh, it'll happen when the time comes. I only scoff at the price of adoption b/c its so expensive in comparison to elsewhere. I know pet medical costs are insane though. A while ago, a friend of the family paid thousands for their dog to have hip surgery or something. Again, pets here really have it good.

[Motoki]

I noticed that too! Found a stray and befriended her. Looked like a purebread Himalayan too. But she was the WORST behaved cat. Kept tearing up the furniture and stirring up all kind of shit. I got the sell option when clicking on a visiting sim so I went to sell her and got a nice chunk of change. Didn't even have to convice the sim or anything, just just handed over a couple thou.

[Surelyfunke]

Round where I live, I wish pet adoption agencies would charge *more* than what they already do. People here are generally irresponsible pet owners and frequently kick their pets to the curb (not always literally).  Because, as nectere mentioned, they realized too late that a pet would be a significant financial investment, as opposed to some disposable commodity to be left on the shelf and looked at whenever they feel like it.

[Maria]

Some shelters do credit checks!  My youngest cousin finally got the second cat she'd been begging for and the shelter did a credit check on her mother before letting them take the cat home.  If I adopted a shelter pet, I'd be ok with paying whatever fees, especially if they'd spay/neuter it for me, but I'd never let them have my social security #.  The shelter also called and interviewed their vet about how they were taking care of the first cat, which seems a much better way to gauge how someone will deal with a new pet (though it wouldn't work for first-time adopters, of course).

[Li'l Brudder]

The reason your border collie cost you a whole lot is it was probably pre-trained.

[trancejeremy]

The price of the pets seems to be determined by how well trained they are.  Ones that know a lot of things are more expensive than dogs that don't.

Which is just like real life.  A brand new puppy is fairly cheap (depending on the breed and breeding, anyway), but things like guard dogs and guide dogs which have gone through training are not cheap.

[AllenABQ]

I just adopted a 7 month-old cat from the local animal shelter last week.  The adoption fee was $82 and they broke down the pricing, and all was pretty reasonable.  The shelter here neuters/spays EVERY animal before it goes out the door.  No exceptions.  That's half the cost of the adoption fee right there.

The thing that bugged me most about the shelter was that fully half of the dogs there (and there were A LOT) were pit bulls or pit bull mixes.  Idiot owners who got the dogs for entirely the wrong reasons and either ended up giving the animals to the shelter because they couldn't handle them or were confiscated from owners who were abusing them.  Makes me sick.  It's not the poor dogs' fault. 

[PandaGirl]

Here, the prices for dogs are ridiculous. Even if you try to adopt it's like $100, and even then the puppies are rare. It's so unfair. For the doggies too. The dogs in the West really have it good.

As I understand it, the reason places like the RSPCA (Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals) charge for pets is so that the creature has value to the person that adopts it. Abandoned pets are a big problem in Australia (and I suspect much of the world), and people tend to value something they have to pay for more than something they got for free, and so be less likely to throw it away. Hence, the cost.

that's not strictly true. i have a dog and 2 cats IRL and all of them were free. i value them more than my car. more than anything that i've paid for. One of my cats, my kitten, is the most precious thing in my life. i for one don't place value on this for what i've paid for them, but more for what they mean to me.

[nectere]

Of course its not strictly true that's why Valax said TEND TO  - as in to exhibit an inclination or tendency - a proneness to a particular kind of thought or action - which is not an absolute - obviously. But thank you for coming in and waving your Look at me I am so special and perfect flag.

Seriously this is one of my biggest beefs on the internet, you can't illustrate any possible point of view without someone running in and saying 'nyhuh that's not true because I don't do it that way!' Well la-tee-da and good for you, thanks for adding to the discussion, your wisdom and brilliant repartee on the subject was illustrious and illuminating - you deserve a nobel prize!

Pfft. now wheres my jacket I think I am gonna need it today....

[idtaminger]

I think she/he has a point though. Paying for something doesn't guarantee you value it. If you pay for something you end up not wanting, the feeling is less, I better keep it and treat it well b/c I payed for it, and rather, I can't believe I payed all that money for that piece of crap, and now I can't get rid of it b/c I paid for it, and aurgh!!! You end up feeling bitter about it, which isn't a good thing for either the buyer or the pet. Just my thoughts.

[KatEnigma]

The fees we paid to the ASPCA for our first two cats weren't too bad, and the bulk was refunded when we returned to have the male neutered (the female had already been spayed) but I COULD have bought a purebred for what we paid another charity for our last cat- $300, and we had to give her the number for our landlord and agree to let them do a home visit to check on us, as if we'd adopted a child.    People don't always value things they've bought, especially in this day and age, and maybe there would be fewer animals IN shelters if it didn't cost so darn much to adopt them. Paying $20/month for litter and food (for 3 cats) isn't a big deal for most middle class families, paying $300 upfront for the adoption, plus then taking it to your vet to be checked out, etc is a different story.

[nectere]

I always thought the point was, you must really want the animal if you are willing to shell out the money to adopt it, rather than just randomly picking out an animal because its cute, furry and suits your whim at the moment. Its not that you will value it more, its that unless you have gobs of spare cash, you actually to think about it first before throwing down a chunk of change. However, some people do value things they paid for out of their own pocket moreso than things that are free and hold no monetary value to them personally (NOT ALL - some). I think the general idea is tho, the more hassle you are willing to go through shows your committment to actually wanting the animal longterm and doing what it takes to adopt it, again, rather than the oh its cute lets take it home approach.