5 Reasons to Adopt a Pet From the Humane Society

Opening your home to a pet is an exciting and daunting experience for any family. The decision of whether to adopt a pet from a shelter such as the Humane Society, or to purchase a puppy from a breeder or pet shop is an important one to consider. There are many reasons to search for your newest family member from a local Humane Society chapter or shelter.

  1. Wide Selection

    • Humane Society chapters and local animal shelters have the largest variety of pets you'll find. Private breeders typically specialize in single types of dogs, and usually offer only puppies. Pet shops also specialize in puppies and rarely have more than a few breeds or mixes to choose from. A shelter will offer you a range of ages, sizes, breeds, colors and dispositions to choose from. The Humane Society estimates that 25 to 30 percent of shelter dogs are pure breeds. Multiple visits will give you the opportunity to interact with even more animals, letting you take your time to meet your perfect match.

    Save Money

    • Adopting a pet from a shelter or Humane Society outpost in your town is far cheaper than buying a puppy from a breeder or pet shop. Most adoptive pet parents will pay a modest fee to the shelter, as well as any basic preventative medical care that the animal received, such as spaying, neutering or vaccinations given after the animal came to the shelter. Puppies from breeders can cost hundreds, even thousands of dollars with no medical care or vaccinations.

    Assistance and Support

    • Humane Society chapters offer adoption counseling to new pet owners. Some also offer free training for recently adopted dogs and dog parents. Shelter workers want their animals to find permanent, happy homes and will work with you to find the right pet for your family.

    Healthy Pets

    • The Humane Society gives all animals who come to its shelters medical and behavioral screenings and give vaccinations prior to making them available for adoption. Compared to animals from pet shops or puppy mills, shelter animals are more likely to have been de-wormed, spayed or neutered, and vaccinated.

    Save a Life

    • Every year, millions of healthy pets are put down in the United States because there are not enough caring owners to go around. More animals are given up to shelters than there are pet parents adopting from shelters, and the imbalance creates a fatal situation for America's homeless pet population. You can do something very real to combat this situation by choosing to adopt a pet in need. Puppy mills and pet stores contribute to the problem of over population by farming more pets than there are competent, capable owners for, thereby increasing the need for adoptive parents to give animals a second chance.