Whether your child keeps nagging you for one, or you want to get it to take your relationship to the next level by showing that the two of you can take care of a living thing, getting a pet does not happen overnight. It’s a process that requires you to make quite a lot of decisions in order to get everything right.
You need to figure out what kind of a pet you want — whether it’s a dog, cat, or something less demanding, like a goldfish or a hamster, the options are endless and various factors come into play.
Do you have enough space in your apartment for a bigger dog? Are you ceartain you’re not allergic to cats? These are just two examples of questions you’ll need to ask yourself before getting a new pet. Do thorough research beforehand and scour the internet for help. There are quite a few websites that are filled to the brim with useful information on that topic, such as the Pet Place. Remember — your decisions will not only affect your future, but also the entire life of your new animal friend.
One of the most crucial choices you will need to make in that matter is whether you should adopt or purchase a pet. There are pros and cons of each option, however adoption seems to be the more humane and inexpensive solution. Keep on reading and check out these five reasons why adopting is, in fact, the better choice.
It’s (literally) lifesaving
Not a lot of people are aware of the fact that due to space and financial constraints, most shelters euthanize their pets after a prolonged period of time spent in the pound. They simply can not afford to keep every single unwanted animal indefinitely, as more and more are coming in, sometimes every day.
In order to keep up with the influx of stray animals, shelters tend to put their oldest residents to sleep. It is a very common practice and there really is no alternative solution to this, except convincing more people to adopt rather than buy their pets. Every decision to get an animal from the shelter equals sparing the life of another one, who would otherwise be euthanized in order to make space for the incoming pets.
You won’t be supporting a cruel industry
People tend to associate pets available for purchase as more exclusive and pure-bred than the ones taken from the shelter. While there is some truth to the fact that the cats and dogs that can be found in the pound are usually of mixed breeds and a little less well-behaved than the pets you’d find at pet stores or flea markets.
However, the majority of customers remain unaware of where exactly these cute, pure-bred puppies are coming from and how they’re treated prior to being sent away for sale. Most of these dogs come from puppy mills, which are commercial breeding farms, where the animals are kept in horrid conditions. Female dogs are kept in cages in order to be bred continuously, whereas the puppies themselves are stored in crowded, tight spaces with little or no access to human contact.
There really is no way of knowing whether the dog you’re planning to buy did not come from a puppy mill. Knowing how widespread they are and how much the pet industry relies on them, if you want to be certain your money won’t go to a commercial breeding farm, your best bet is adopting from a shelter.
Adoption is cheaper
Pets always come with a bunch of additional expenses. After all, they need to be fed, have access to proper medical care and entertainment. However, you can save a lot of money at the start by adopting a pet from a shelter, since most vaccinations and initial medical procedures are already included in the price of adoption.
It helps other animals
Overcrowded shelters are clearly not the best places for rescued, often traumatized animals to be raised and kept in. By adopting a pet from the pound, you will free up space for other cats and dogs to be properly cared for. Moreover, the burden on the shelter workers will be slightly lifted, enabling them to be better, more patient caregivers.
Your pet will be eternally grateful
By adopting a cat or a dog from the shelter, not only will you bring additional joy to your own life, but you will also turn that animal’s entire existence on its head. Coming from a rough background, without a lot of love and companionship in their early days, they will finally see what it means to have a human being care for them and treat them like one of the family members.
In fact, you can go ahead and ignore the first four reasons why you should adopt a pet. There is nothing more precious than looking into your pet’s eyes and seeing just how much you mean to them.
Author’s bio:
Maciej Grzymkowski – an avid traveller and puppy lover. I strongly oppose the treatment of animals by big industry and believe in the importance of supporting locally-sourced meat and dairy products