Anyone who knows me, or has read my blog to any extent, knows that I am passionate about animals. But, I am also passionate about something else… animal adoption.
A lot of people assume that adopting a dog or cat from a shelter means that they will be adopting a pet with physical problems or behavioral issues. This could not be further from the truth! Most of the dogs I have worked with at the shelter over the past 7 years have been wonderful and loving dogs. And, most of them were at our shelter due to circumstances outside of their control… home foreclosure, job loss, an owner’s death, an illness in the family, divorce, etc.
I know it’s hard to believe, but most pets are NOT in a shelter because their owner found them to be an awful pet. And yet, somehow the image still persists that adopting a pet from a shelter or rescue organization somehow means that the pet is “flawed” in some way.
The first dog I ever adopted from a shelter was a Shepherd/Collie mix named Indy.
She was 5 years old. She was given up for adoption because her owner was going off to college. I can honestly tell you that Indy was one of the BEST dogs I have ever had. She was not only fully trained (and I do mean FULLY trained!), but she also had great manners. She never begged for people food. She never jumped on furniture. And, she was loyal and loving. When we went for walks, she would walk by my side, unleashed. Indy was “the perfect” dog and she came from a shelter. I still miss her dearly 4 years later.
Since Indy, I have had the opportunity to adopt 3 other wonderful dogs: Aspen, Daisy and Jasper. Each of them has been special. And, not once have I ever been disappointed in adopting any one of my “shelter dogs”. On the contrary, my life has been richly rewarded and blessed because I adopted them.
People will tell you that their shelter dog seemed grateful to have a new home. As an owner of several shelter dogs, I will tell you that I have experienced this firsthand. Shelter dogs know what it’s like to have a home and lose it. I think they know what a blessing it is to have a forever home (something even us humans can relate to!) with someone who loves them and cares for them.
Did You Know?
According to The Humane Society of the United States:
Eight million (8,000,000) pets enter animal shelters and rescue groups every year
Approximately three million (3,000,000) of these healthy and treatable pets are euthanized due to a lack of adoption.
In the next year, it is estimated that 17 million people plan on acquiring a new pet. 17 MILLION! Could one of those 17 million be you? If so, then consider this… What if, instead of buying a dog from a pet store (often supplied with puppies from a puppy mill) or going to a breeder, you were to check out your local shelter or rescue organization first? What if you were to give an animal a home for life? Just think what a difference you could make for a loving pet.
The Shelter Pet Project is a campaign sponsored by The Humane Society of the United States and Maddie’s Fund
Their goal is to:
Eliminate the stereotype that there is something wrong with shelter pets
Make shelters the first choice and desired way for acquiring a companion animal
Increase the rate of animals adopted from shelters
You’ve probably already seen their commercials on TV and didn’t even know it. Check them out!
They also have some great resources for prospective pet adopters:
Pet Personals – Start looking for a pet right away!
The Adopter Network - Ask questions about adopting a dog or cat or browse through a list of questions asked by other prospective adopters
Adopt-A-Gram – Send an Adopt-A-Gram to a friend to encourage them to adopt from a shelter. You can even pick a pet to include in the Adopt-A-Gram
I encourage you to check out their website. It’s fun and interactive and it will definitely keep your kids entertained with the talking dogs and cats!
0 responses so far ↓
There are no comments yet...Kick things off by filling out the form below.