If you are a pet parent of a rescued or adopted pet, you already understand the rewarding feeling and happiness that your furry friend brings to your life. However, those who are planning on adding a new pet to your family might not fully understand the importance and advantages of adopting your pet from an animal shelter or rescue.
What are the major benefits of adopting a dog/cat?
Adopting a pet can be very rewarding. By adopting from a shelter you are giving shelter pets a wonderful new lease on life. Many pets in shelters have already been potty trained, leash trained and have already moved out of the “puppy” or "kitten" phase which can be very beneficial to many new pet parents. If you are looking for a particular breed or size of pet, you can almost always find it at a shelter. By adopting a shelter pet you are making room in the shelter for more pets to be rescued. Many people feel great self-worth when they adopt pets from shelters knowing they rescued a loving pet for their family to enjoy. Most shelter pets are already vaccinated and spayed or neutered.
What should you do once you adopt your dog/cat?
It is important once you adopt your new pet to have it examined by your veterinarian to make sure there is no issues that need to be addressed. Most shelters vaccinate and spay/neuter pets but it is a good idea to go over your new pet’s health record with your veterinarian and be sure to ask out heartworm, intestinal parasite and flea/tick preventatives.
How do you prepare for adopting a dog/cat?
One of the first things to do when thinking about adopting a new pet is to make sure you and your family are ready to accept the commitment of having a pet. Many pets in animals shelters are dogs and cats that were previously adopted and for various reasons, their new families could not or did not want to continue caring for them.
Is there anything to be mindful of when you adopt a dog/cat?
One thing to consider when adopting a dog or cat is to be sure you find the right pet for your family’s situation. Many times small puppies grow up to be very big dogs. If this is the situation make sure you have the room in your house and yard for a large dog. Also, some pets can be more energetic than others and may need to go outside to exercise or be walked more often than other pets. If this is the case with your pet make sure you have the time and resources to commit to doing these things before adopting. There are plenty of pets that don’t take a lot of space or a lot of time to exercise so be sure you find the right fit for your personal situation.
Why is it so important to adopt a dog/cat?
Anytime you adopt a pet from a shelter you are literally saving that pet’s life. Pet overpopulation is a problem and adopting wonderful loving pets into new homes is a great way to help with this problem.