The AnnaBlog

As we written about before, AnnaBelle’s is dedicated to all dogs, but we have a special soft spot for rescue dogs. We encourage those looking for that special addition to their family to look to their local animal shelters and rescues. The right dog might just be waiting out there for you!

We have some tips from Adopt-A-Pet.com to help answer your questions about pet adoption and rescue dogs. Adopt-a-Pet.com is the world’s largest non-profit pet adoption website. They are like an ad agency for shelters and shelter pets. Sadly, there are 4 million healthy adoptable companion animals killed in shelters each year due to overcrowding. Adopt-A-Pet.com does its best to relieve that problem and put pets from shelters in the homes of pet seekers all over the country. Their website makes it easy for anyone with an internet connection to find profiles and pictures of adoptable animals by location, breed, gender, age, size, and color. Over 8,000 shelters posts pets on their website, displaying over 125,000 pets available for adoption at any given time. Adopt-A-Pet.com also help volunteers connect with shelters, and currently hosts thousands of people listed in its volunteer database for shelters.

Common Questions About Pet Adoption

Question: Although there are literally millions of pets in shelters, pounds and other ‘temporary housing’, many pet-owners-to-be don’t think about pet adoption when they’re looking for their new four-legged friend. Why do you think this is, and what can be done to turn that around?

Answer: Many people who want to get a pet just are not aware of how many pets are available at shelters. They might also have the misconception that pets are shelters might be there because there was a problem with the animal. In fact, most pets end up in shelters not because of any problem pet behavior, but because an owner died, moved, or simply didn’t have the time or money to care for the animal. In some cases animals are lost and never found by their owners.  These animals are healthy and very eager to please. Rescues pets are wonderful- just ask anyone who has one.

Some people are seeking purebred animals or puppies and think these are not available in shelters. In fact, nearly a quarter of all animals in shelters are purebred. Often someone buys an expensive purebred animal and then attempts to breed that animal to recoup their money. Often these puppies or kittens are not placed in homes, and end up in the shelter. Puppies and kittens often up in shelters as well, but it is important to note that young animals, especially puppies, require a lot of work and training and can be quite destructive (peeing on the carpet or chewing shoes). Puppies are great, but often people are much happier getting a dog who is older, and whose size and temperament is a known quantity.

With Adopt-a-Pet.com and without even leaving their home, people can search all their local pets and see pictures and descriptions of the animals. This way, they can find the exact pet they want, call the animal shelter or rescue group, and get information on how to adopt that specific animal.

Question: What are the 5 most important things a potential adopter should consider when choosing their new pet?

Answer:

1. You need to make a real commitment to care for your pet for its entire life.
2. Verify in advance that you’re allowed to keep a pet where you live.
3. Never adopt a pet on a whim or because you feel it’s love-at-first-sight
4. Provide sufficient exercise and stimulation, especially during the first several weeks, this will help the pet adjust.
5. Make any necessary modifications to your yard and fence to provide for your pet’s safety.

See more reasons at: http://www.adoptapet.com/public/guides/permanentpets.html.

Question: What are 5 positive aspects of pet adoption, and why it’s a good option?

Answer:
1. When you adopt an adult animal, you can see his/her size and temperament. This helps ensure that the pet is right for you and your family.
2. It feels great to know you have saved an animal’s life and everyone you meet will give you kudos  for years to come.
3. Adopted pets are very loyal and grateful that they have been given a new home.
4. Adopting a pet can be an important lesson to teach your children–both about the value of life, and also about civic responsibility and even recycling- in this case recycling a living and loving animal into a new home.
5. Choosing a mixed breed animal can help avoid many of the genetic health problems that have developed in purebred animal due overbreeding and inbreeding.

We hope that if you’re looking for a new furry family member, you’ll consider adopting a rescue dog.  AnnaBelle’s has listed several rescues located in the Greater Lansing Area on its website. Many more can be found on Adopt-A-Pet.com.

Tags: Animal Rescue 911

This entry was posted on Sunday, July 19th, 2009 at 12:58 pm and is filed under Animal Rescue 911. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Responses are currently closed, but you can trackback from your own site.