I have actively tried to persuade people from getting pets for just this reason. One time I was in a college library checking out some books and got into a conversation with an undergrad who was thinking of adopting a cat. But she was from India. So I asked her — what happens to the cat when you go back home? And she gave me this blank look. So I educated her. “Cats bond with you,” I told her. “They become emotionally attached, just like dogs or children. It is NOT OK to adopt an animal, let it love and trust you, and then abandon it. And a cat can live to be 18 years old or older if you take good care of her. Don’t adopt a cat unless you’re ready for that commitment.”

An Indian couple I know adopted two dogs, but when they went back to India, they took the dogs with them and still dote on them. They will have those dogs forever. That is what you’re supposed to do with pets.

I also try to talk people out of getting high maintenance dogs like Dalmations or Border Collies or, God forbid, Belgian Malinois. Thanks to Conan, I’m afraid there might be a spike in adoptions followed by a spike in returns. A dog like a Malinois needs a lot of time and interaction and is frankly not appropriate for the average suburban family.

Pets are for life.