If you read my previous post, you can probably tell I'm not a huge fan of breeders. The truth is, there are MILLIONS of dogs in shelters around the country. So why add more, when we don't have homes for the ones we have? Do you want a specific breed? You can find virtually any breed or dog in a shelter somewhere, you just need to know where to look. Petfinder.com is a great place to look. You can put in the breed and your location, and Petfinder will find your perfect best friend. It searches all the shelters with in a specific radius around your home for what you are looking for. Do you want a beautiful and majestic Dogo Argentino? There are 75 in shelters across America. Looking for a hunting companion? There are almost 25,000 labs looking for homes across America!
There are two kinds of shelters. The first is your local ASPCA associated humane society. This shelter gets many dogs from the city, like strays. They can have some great catches there, but they often have limited resources. There are also what are called "No-kill" shelters. The difference is pretty obvious. When your humane society gets too full, they have decisions to make. They can't just stop taking in dogs, so they unfortunately have to put down some of them. The ones suffer are the ones that are deemed less adoptable. Some dogs are harder to find homes for, "bully breeds", black dogs, Chihuahuas and old dogs are among the hardest to find homes for. No-kill shelters don't have to make these decisions. They often have foster homes for problem dogs so they can help those dogs become more adoptable. But because of this, they often have to charge higher adoption fees. They invest more into the dogs, so to stay operational; they have to raise fees to cover those costs.
Getting a dog from a shelter is often less expensive than a breeder. If you get a brand new puppy from a shelter, they usually come with most of their shots, and fixed as well. Lots of shelters also offer microchips with the price of their adoption fee. Adoption fees range from $100-$300 depending on the shelter, age and what they include in the fee.
When you go to a shelter, ask to interact with the puppy. Do they shy away from you, or do they seem warm and happy? If you want a very social puppy, then pick one that is social from the start. If you want a more independent puppy, then look for one who is sniffing around, but that looks comfortable. Ask the shelter attendant if they know anything about the puppy, like how they are with other dogs or children. The same goes for adult dogs. Understand that shelter dogs are probably going to need some TLC before they really settle into you home.
When ever you adopt a puppy, plan on taking a training class. It helps them to bond to you, and helps to build their confidence. And, just like with a breeder, do research into the breed, or breeds you are interested in before you adopt, so you know what your getting into.
Happy Training,
Lauren
That's how I got Lizzy! :) And you'll be glad to know, I asked all those questions. Though they'd only had her a short time, so they didn't know all the answers. But they were really honest and helpful. And you know, she's pretty great.
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