Alice Vol. 2 No. 2

People need animals, plain
and simple. Anyone who has
ever had a family pet knows
this. Cat, dog or canary,
pets are a source of comfort
and comic relief when the world gets a
bit too big and bad.
A 2011 study conducted by psychologists
at The University of Miami and
St. Louis University found the benefits
of having a non-human companion go
beyond a laugh or a cuddle here and
there. This study, which was backed by
the American Psychological Association,
concluded that spending regular
time with a fuzzy counterpart or two
boosts self-esteem, encourages physical
fitness, reduces feelings of loneliness
and even increases focus.
But maybe you, like me, simply can’t
own a cat or dog right now. As much as
I would love to welcome a kitten into
my home this very afternoon, my home,
like many student residences, happens
to have a very, very strict no-pet policy.
Past that, many college students are
not financially able to take on a pet.
Pet food and vet trips get pretty expensive
pretty fast. Couple this with the
instability that comes with constantly
shifting class and social schedules,
and you could have what we see far
more often than any of us like: posts on
the Alabama Student Ticket Exchange
Facebook page begging anyone to take
a pet adopted on a whim.
Now, that’s not to say no college student
should own a pet. For some all the
stars align, and they find themselves
in the perfect situation to provide an
animal with all the love and care it
requires. But for those, like me, who
cannot, there is a solution.
Just like people need animals, animal
shelters need people. Unfortunately,
there is no shortage of stray cats
and dogs being found and dropped off
at shelters across the country. According
to the ASPCA, 7.6 million companion
animals – mostly cats and dogs
– enter American animal shelters each
year. Only about 2.7 million of these
animals are adopted each year. You see
the issue.
With more animals coming in than
being adopted from shelters each year,
shelters like the Humane Society of
[44] Alice Spring 2017
Photos by Ramsey Griffin