Every pet owner knows that their furry children are as much a part of the family as any human, but that doesn’t necessarily mean everyone else will understand.
One couple has spoken out about coming under pressure to “give up on their dogs” when they find out they were going to become parents.
Aditya Raheja and Sanjana Madappa from Bengaluru (Bangalore), India, shared a post on Facebook explaining how friends, family members and doctors had all advised them to get rid of their brood of dogs when Madappa became pregnant, but they refused.
The couple, who are now parents to newborn Ayan, have five rescue dogs from the animal charity where Madappa works, included their pets in a maternity photoshoot as a response to the criticism.
Raheja explained on Facebook: “Dogs are part of your family and abandoning them is a disgrace to mankind.”
Madappa added that she is proud she got through her “unreasonably difficult” pregnancy without putting her pups up for adoption.
The mother-of-one suffered with morning sickness for the first six months, even vomiting blood as a result of the symptoms, and was categorised as high risk for premature delivery.
However she said she didn’t once consider getting rid of her pets: “My dogs are the reason I got through my pregnancy with my sanity intact.
“I couldn’t afford to be staying bed feeling sorry for myself when I had these kids depending on me.”
Madappa also says that having her dogs around prepared her for motherhood in a way that nothing else could have done.
“I couldn’t ever in good conscience give away an animal that loves me and trusts me with the same innocence and purity that my baby does,” she wrote