Breeders can be expensive depending on the breed you want. And if you’re not sure which type of dog you want, the next best place to look for one is an animal shelter.
Here’s what to expect when you’re certain you want to adopt from a shelter:
Hardly any puppies
When you and/or your family go to the shelter to look around, you should expect to see little to no puppies at all. Animal shelters will mostly have dogs that range from 1-13 years old.
Mixed breeds
Many of these dogs will be mixed with all sorts of breeds, since a lot of them are strays. A common breed you’ll see in shelters are the American staffordshire terrier, also known as the pitbull. This is mostly due to the stereotype that pitbulls are aggressive and mean.
Why they’re there
The common reason most of these dogs are at the shelter is because they were strays or their owner(s) didn’t want/couldn’t take care of them. Other reasons could be that the dog was aggressive towards their owner(s) or other dogs. Sadly, some dogs that are labeled as aggressive aren’t actually aggressive; there are a number of reasons why their previous owner may have said they were.
Paperwork
Once you’ve decided on your new family member, you’re going to have to fill out some paperwork. The shelter wants to make sure you’re going to be a qualified pet owner. They want the dog to be safe, loved, and not to see the dog come back to the shelter. Many people who adopt dogs from shelters end up returning them.
The paperwork will typically ask why you would like to adopt the specific dog you would like, questions pertaining to how you’ll take care of the dog, and if you have other pets or children. Some shelters may ask if you have a fence. If you have other pets, the shelter will contact your vet in order to see if you keep up with appointments.
Taking them home
You’re going to want to take things slow, and allow your new member of the family to get used to their new home and surroundings. You may even learn some of the things that trigger them. For example, we found out our dog, Rico, was most likely abused when we would get pots and pans out of the cabinets. He would get nervous, and begin to growl. Rico eventually learned to trust us fully, and has grown out of this trigger.
Once you bring your new dog home and show them lots of love, they will love you and trust you forever because you saved them.
