Should Pets Be Tax Deductible?

A taxpayer from Bayport, Long Island sent a letter to Congress pleading his/her case for treating the two family pooches as children. As such, and because they can't afford to have children, they make the mental leap that the dogs should be declared their dependents and therefore should be tax deductible.

Here is an excerpt from their letter:

"Once again, it's tax time and as always, we owe money to the state and federal governments because I am married with no children. My husband & I have no children because we cannot afford to have children living on Long Island. But we do have 2 dogs - 2 very expensive dogs - and they are our kids. If I should mistreat, neglect, abuse or deprive my dog of health care in any way, I can be arrested for animal cruelty. But yet, here we are, spending thousands and thousands of dollars each year giving my dogs the best care in emergency and non-emergency situations, what do we receive? My proposal is to be able to declare my dogs as dependents on my taxes at the end of the year.

"With the request of proper documentation from pet owners, I firmly believe we should propose a new law to be able to claim our dogs as dependents, whether it be for routine exams, medicines and/or emergency care. Anything would be of great assistance to pet owners."

I think they shoot themselves in their paws over the bolded statements above. "Can't afford to have children", but they spend thousands each year on the canines, giving them the best care possible? Excuse me? If it's too expensive to live on Long Island, how can their neighbors have children? How can they afford TWO expensive dogs?

The Long Island Lawyers must be literally chomping on their muzzles while waiting for this crucial legislative proposal to be enacted. Once the canine species assume privileged status as legal dependents, the activists for each animal species will demand equal rights. What about the very expensive tropical fish that require undue attention and constant care?