I've heard a lot of fellow Neopians try to emphasise the point that pets need
to be taken out of the pound. Many guilds flash a motto such as: "Don't create.
Adopt!" When I was a Newbie I took this very seriously and tried to adopt pets
instead of create them, but now look at me! I've got three beautiful pets, all
my own creations, and I'm very happy with each of them. Now, is there really
a problem with the number of pets in the Neopian
Adoption Agency? Should we always adopt rather than create?
Let's look at some of the advantages of creating a pet. First of all, you
can give your pet any name you want it to have. You can make it to suit you
and your pet, and you can choose what species, colour, and gender your pet will
be to match its name and your personality. Just think, you don't have to take
some totally wacky name such as dkj18e273 for your pet! Wouldn't it be terribly
embarrassing for a pet to sport a name like that? Think of your pet's first
day at school: "Hi, my name is dkj18e273 and I come from Neopia Central..."
Doesn't that sound a little strange to you? Besides the fact that you can choose
what your pet looks like and what its name is, you can choose what kind of personality
it has. The personality of a pet is a factor which decides what he or she likes
and dislikes, and you can base your pet's description (on its lookup page) on
the personality of it.
There are NP issues involved in creating and adopting pets. You have to pay
NP to adopt a pet. For all the encouragement people get to adopt a pet, I'm
not sure if its worth it! You get 50 NP for creating a new pet. You actually
get paid to create your own pet! Those wheels turning up in your head yet?
When you adopt a pet, you just don't have that sense of accomplishment in
your head when you feed or play with it, or even just look at it. I know that
when I tried to adopt a pet I always felt so awkward when I was looking at it.
It just didn't feel like mine. It felt wrong there with each of those perfectly
made pets, each of which suited me well. It just didn't belong. Other people
I have talked to feel that way about adopted pets too.
I know you're dying to go and click that Create-A-Pet button now, but wait!
There's more! Neopia actually celebrates when more pets have been created. No,
you never see on the news that there are only 30 pets in the Adoption Agency!
But when there are some more new pets in Neopia, it hits the headlines!
And for those guilds that are dedicated to finding pets good homes - most
aren't very active. They say they are going to change Neopia by finding every
pet a good home... and then they sit and say how cute their own pets are. It's
no use trying to change the nature of a human being; most people just want something
they can call their own. A lot of those who adopt pets normally end up abandoning
them soon anyway.
If you strongly believe in adopting instead of creating, and I know there
are some of you out there, then you are doing the rest of Neopia a favour. While
they are doing what they want, and you are doing what you want, Neopia stays
balanced. I agree with one of your points, actually: don't create a pet if you're
not planning on keeping it! For all you Neopians out there, if you see something
cute, just remember to ask yourself this question: "Could I really keep this
pet forever?" If your answer is yes, go on ahead and create. If your answer
is no, look through the Adoption Agency. Something of the same species might
be there if you look, and that way you won't be putting another unused pet into
the world of Neopia.
I don't think there is a problem involving the Neopian Adoption Agency. Even
if some people who are busy adopting now switch to the creation method, Neopia
will stay pretty balanced because there are always newcomers to join the fight
between creators and those that adopt. The number of pets in the Adoption Agency
is lower than it used to be. Neopia is well-balanced at present. Remember, no
pet will ever be in the Adoption Agency for very long, so there is no need to
go out and start a campaign to save them all. My sources tell me the Adoption
Agency is a pretty nice place for a pet to live anyway; it's not all soggy oatmeal
and tiny cages! The reason you see pets crying there is because they long to
be loved. Don't feel that you need to adopt one just because it is crying; somebody
will come along and adopt it within the next day or so.
Don't forget that whether you create or adopt a pet is purely up to you and
what you want to do. Don't let my ideas influence you too much if you have beliefs
that you are already trying to stick to. Just have fun creating and adopting
pets!
Note: This article is based on my opinion of Neopia and is supported by a few
facts. I encourage you to stick to your beliefs and not complain about my personal
opinion. Thank you! | 
