Jan 6, 2015 3 min read

There are some of us old enough to remember Patti Page’s rendition of “How Much Is That Doggie In The Window?” You know, “The one with the waggly tail. How much is that doggie in the window? I do hope that doggie’s for sale.”

These lyrics are reflective of a simpler time when a family could walk down the street dressed in their 1950s finery, peer into a pet store window with a bright-eyed child in tow and ask that iconic question.

Today, dogs and cats are in cages in animal shelters and pet stores. Dogs’ tails seldom wag, until a prospective adoptive family stops and speaks a comforting greeting. “Hi, boy; hi, girl. How are you doing?” The dog seems to have hope. Its eyes brighten, and yes, its tail moves faster than a metronome.

Nearby, a sleeping cat is awakened when a little girl begins talking to it. A few stretches and yawns later, the cat has its face against the cage, a paw reaching through. It communicates with a silent meow or two. “Take me,” it seems to say.

I witnessed both of these events at an adoption day at PetSmart while buying food for my three cats, adopted through Greene County Humane Society at similar events years apart.

I can say I stayed around long enough to see two families begin the adoption process, one for the tail-wagging dog and the other for the cat whose meow now became much more audible.

Frankly, I don’t know how people can work or volunteer at an animal shelter. It must take a special kind of person, because I do everything I can to avoid the cats and kittens, mostly at PetSmart, that look so soulfully at the people who peer into the cages and then walk away.

My wife and I are very fortunate to have adopted pets through an animal shelter. I understand it is easy to look at them and have your heart broken to see them confined. I want to take them all. But think of the alternative. They are warm, safe and fed and, I would hope, loved by the staff.

I would guess there were some excited young boys and girls who received a puppy or kitten for Christmas. Just don’t treat them as a novelty. They are now part of your family.

So, how much is the doggie or kitty? Priceless.

Jon Stevens, Greene County bureau chief, can be reached at jstevens@observer-reporter.com.