College pet ownership, adoption up for debate

The Daily Illini

Editor's note: A representative with the The Champaign County Humane Society advises that university students in general not adopt pets, because pet ownership is very time consuming.

Zoro, a 7-month-old American kitten, will fly to his new home in Beijing next year when [University of Illinois] international student Xinger Yang, senior in FAA, graduates. The black and white feline will require a passport, plane ticket and two-month quarantine before he’ll reach Yang’s family home.

“It will be pretty hard to take Zoro back,” said Yang, while strolling through the pet food aisle at the County Market on E. Stoughton. “I made a commitment when I adopted him, though, and I love him and want to take him home.”

The Champaign County Humane Society, 1911 E. Main in Urbana, has had a problem with international students doing just the opposite of Yang — surrendering animals they adopted in the U.S. when it comes time to leave the country. In fact, the shelter recently decided to ban all non-U.S. residents from adopting pets.

“We’re looking for permanent homes for these animals, and it isn’t fair for them to be brought back here in one to four years,” said Michelle McKnight, shelter manager. “It was happening so often with students on visas that we had to do something about it.”

McKnight said she does not know the exact number of animals surrendered by international students, but is confident it was a much higher number than those surrendered by U.S. students. Yang believes the new ban is discriminatory.

“Most of the international students I know are very responsible,” she said, clearly shocked by news of the ban. “They don’t get animals and then give them away.”