With Christmas right around the corner it is important to know what you’re getting somebody into when giving a pet as a gift.

According to People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals, the average pet requires a 10-20 year commitment. Director of the PAWS and More Animal Shelter Amber Talbot says that a pet can be a special gift in the right situation, “I think that it’s important that everybody in the family, or the individual you’re thinking of [getting] the pet for is able to meet that animal. It’s okay if it’s a gift, but maybe not have it be a surprise gift.” Talbot adds that they see situations where somebody is gifted a pet by surprise they may not have as strong of a connection as they would if they had selected the pet themselves.