I thought the sorrow I felt for the death of my dog, Bo, would have lasted forever. My family and I felt depressed for days when we had him euthanized. We knew that his old age was causing his hip problems to get worse. We decided against having the surgery done on him because we did not want to see him suffer anymore. And according to Burkhard Bilger, in his essay “The Last Meow” for the New Yorker, Americans are spending too much on their pets. Bilger states “that our love of our pets has gotten out of control.” Pet owners must develop a better understanding of their pets and their feelings.
American’s spend too much on their pets. They need to get a better understanding of the costs associated with keeping their pet alive for a couple more days. Many poverty-stricken people still do not understand that spending money on their pets is pointless. Bilger states “The total cost would be more than …show more content…
Everyone across the globe pampers their pets, but there are those who take it a step further. According to Bilger “as the birth rate dropped, pets came to take the place of children in some families” (par.12). When people do this their understanding of the roles of pets in a family goes askew. They begin to spoil their pets like they would spoil their children if they had any. In some cases, they spoil their pets so much that they become overweight. This obesity becomes unhealthy for their pets, but they don’t care because they think it is their child. Another good point Bilger brings up is when he talks about the J. Paul Getty. “Of J. Paul Getty, who refused to return from Europe when his twelve-year-old son died of a brain tumor but had a vet flown in when his dog developed cancer. When the disease proved fatal, he spent three days weeping in the dog’s room.”This is a great example of people giving their pets child-like