Reasons to #AdoptDontShop

Approximately 7.9 million companion animals enter shelters every year; and unfortunately, 2.7 million of those animals are euthanized. It is better to adopt your next dog or cat rather than buy it at a pet store or from breeders. Besides gaining an awesome pet, there are a plethora of reasons to #AdoptDontShop.

1. You’ll be saving a life.  Not enough people consider adoption. Too many innocent animal lives are lost each year because too many pets come into shelters, with too few people coming in to take them home. So many lives can be saved if more people adopted their pets rather than bought them.  By adopting your next dog or cat, you are taking an animal out of the potentially dangerous shelter life and bringing them into your house to be a part of your family.
2. You’ll be saving money. Store-bought pets can cost hundreds of dollars; breeders can charge even more than that for their pets. On top of that, you’ll have to pay out-of-pocket for vaccine and spay/neuter costs. Adopting a shelter pet is significantly cheaper! Plus, your pet’s vaccines and spaying or neutering (sometimes even microchipping) are usually included in the adoption fees.
3. You’ll be helping more than one animal. Each year, shelters take in millions of animals who were homeless, abused, or lost. When you adopt and take home a shelter pet, you are opening up a spot for another animal to enter the shelter and hopefully find their new family. As if that isn’t great enough, your adoption fees go directly towards helping the shelter care for more animals.
4. You’ll be fighting puppy mills. We hate to break it to you, but if you bought your dog from a pet store, online seller, or flea market, you almost definitely got it from a puppy mill. These mills operate like factories, constantly churning out new puppies to sell for profit. The mothers of these puppies are often kept in small cages and denied human interaction and proper veterinary care so they can be bred as often as possible. Puppy mills stay open by using deceptive tactics on unsuspecting customers. Adopting can help put them out of business and stop their inhumane practices.

We go could on and on about the reasons to #AdoptDontStop, but it really comes down to this: adopting gives a pet a new chance at life. Remember, no pet ever asked to be in a shelter - they were simply dealt a bad hand. Use this site to locate a shelter to visit near you. Choose to adopt, and help give animals their forever homes.

While your adoption fees will likely cover your pet’s first vaccinations, you should have a trusted vet who can maintain your furry friend’s health for years to come. Berkeley Heights Animal Hospital has been keeping dogs and cats healthy in Summit, NJ since 1976. Call us at 908-464-0023 to schedule an appointment for your newly adopted pet!