Why Adopt a Pet?

Thinking of buying a new pet from a pet store?  You might consider adopting a pet instead.  There are a lot of great reasons to adopt instead of buy, not the least of which is that you’ll save some money.  Perhaps the most important reason however is knowing that you’ll be doing a good deed, and that the animal you choose to bring home with you will probably owe its life to your decision.  That same lovable animal might not be able to survive without you!

Millions of animals are euthanized each year because people give them up and there aren’t enough people adopting them from the shelters where they live.  Since no one can afford to take care of them, they are put down as an act of mercy.  This is a hard decision to make for shelter staff members, who want to save animals and not kill them.  If everyone who bought new pets bred for the purpose of being sold at pet stores instead decided to adopt pets, not only would the pet industry dramatically transform, but countless animals could be saved each year.  Not only do you save the life of the animal you adopt, but you potentially save the life of the next animal that can be brought into the shelter or rescue group for adoption by someone else.

Pets in shelters and rescues are usually healthy, which can also be beneficial to you as a new pet owner.  While not all pets which end up in shelters and rescues are healthy (and they need homes too), it’s a misconception that all animals in shelters are somehow unsuitable or require extensive medical care.  Most shelters vaccinate animals and treat them for medical problems when they arrive.  

Saving money is another benefit of adopting instead of buying a pet from a pet store.  Not only will the animal cost less (or nothing) to begin with, but you may also get to skip out on fees for common treatments like vaccinations, spaying and neutering, which many shelters perform when the animals arrive.  This saves you even more money.

Finally, not only will you be doing a good deed by adopting a pet, but you’ll also not be doing a bad thing by supporting puppy mills and pet stores which practice inhumane treatment of animals.  Dogs raised in puppy mills are produced as if they were objects in a factory for consumption; they typically receive poor medical care and live in harsh conditions.  The parents of these pets usually are kept in cages and used as breeding stock repeatedly until they can no longer bear a new litter, and then they are typically killed or left for dead.  Since most customers are completely unaware of the existence of these factories, they don’t realize they are supporting animal cruelty when they purchase a puppy from a pet store.  Now that you’re aware, however, you can do the right thing and adopt an animal in need!