National Adopt-A-Shelter-Pet Month

October is National Adopt a Shelter Pet Month, and I wanted to take a few minutes to emphasize the plight shared by shelter dogs throughout the country.

How would you like it?

Imagine for a moment you are a dog.  You are living with a really cool family, but the father just lost his job, and they can no longer afford to feed you.  One day, Mom calls you out to the car.

“A car ride!  Cool!” you think.  But after a short drive, she takes you into a building that smells suspiciously like the vet’s office, and she leaves you there!

The lady at the shelter is nice, but instead of taking you outside and playing with you like Aunt Jeanne does, she puts you in a cage as soon as your mom leaves.  “Okay.  I’ve been in a cage before after I get groomed,” you think, trying to calm yourself.  The nice lady brings you a bowl of something for dinner, but it’s not your usual food, and you’re so depressed, you won’t eat it.  And you have to stay in the cage, even after everyone leaves for the night!  And no one has taken you outside to go potty yet either.

You soil the corner of your cage – how embarrasing! It’s really lonely at night, and you’re tummy’s growling because you’re so hungry, and your cage stinks, and it’s cold when you’re not under the bed covers with your buddy and you’d do anything just to be able to stretch your legs for awhile.

Finally the night ends and people begin coming into the shelter again, but it’s not your family, and it’s not even the same lady from yesterday.  You wag your tail when a man comes toward your cage, and you give him your sweetest look, but all he does is look to see that your water and food dishes are full.  He swears when he sees the mess in the corner of your cage.  He comes back in with a hose and sprays out the cage.  That water is cold!

After a few hours, some people walk past your cage.  You wag your tail nicely and lick a few hands that are extended to the front of the cage.  Finally, a little boy drags him mom to your cage, and the man who checked on you this morning gets a leash.  He takes you outside to a small run, and the boy and his mother come in the run with you.  You’re so excited to be outside, you run around in circles, and the mother says, “I’m sorry son, I think he’s a little too wild for us.”

The man takes you back to your cage.  This happens every few days, but you just can’t control yourself.  It’s so lonely when the people aren’t here, and when you finally do get a chance to go outside, you can’t help but be excited.

After three weeks, two shelter workers come by with a clipboard.  “This one’s been here three weeks,” says the woman.

“Any interest?” says the man.

“He’s been out a couple of times, but no one seems overly excited about him,” says the woman.  “He was a drop-off.  Family lost their income.”

“Okay.  We need the cage space.  Sorry, boy.” says the man.

A few hours later, an older woman comes past and puts the leash on you.  “Oh, boy!  I get to go outside!” you think.  But this time, they take you to a small room that really, really smells like the vet’s office.  You begin to quiver.

“It’s okay, boy, says a young man in the room.  This won’t hurt a bit.”  He lifts you onto the table, then listens to your heart with a stethoscope.  Then, you feel a sharp jab on your front paw, and you get really, really sleepy.  “I think I’ll just take a nap here,” you think.

It happens all the time

That’s just one scenario.  There are hundreds of thousands of others, but most of them end the same way.  Healthy, happy, wonderful dogs are euthanized every day; as many as 3 – 4 million each year.  That’s about 400 pets killed an hour, every hour around the clock.  Even on Christmas.

Can I get a good dog at a shelter?

Recent surveys have shown that less than 30% of the dogs taken to shelters are dropped off due to behavior problems.  The rest are good dogs, wonderful companions, who were surrendered because their families simply weren’t ready to make a commitment to a dog or because they had a change in their circumstances.  Sometimes dogs are dropped off because the family  expected the dog to be perfect right out of the box, or even because they simply didn’t know what to expect from a dog.

What’s a no-kill shelter?

Some shelters are institutional-type facilities such as the one you were asked to imagine at the beginning of this article.  Most of them have a euthanasia policy that requires them to put down dogs when space becomes an issue.

Others are no-kill shelters or rescue organizations, usually run by volunteers.  No-kill shelters will typically have a higher adoption fee and more stringent requirements for the adoptive family.  In return, you will get a dog who has been living in a home and has been socialized to children and other pets.  The foster home will be able to tell you a lot about the dog’s personality and help you find a dog to match your family’s lifestyle.  Most no-kill shelters will also ask that you return the dog to them if you decide not to keep it.

What do I need to consider before adopting a shelter dog?

Adopting a dog is not a decision to be taken lightly.  You will be making a 12 – 15 year commitment if you get a puppy, and it will not be an inexpensive experience.  Even though the adoption fee may be something you can easily handle, you will also have to pay vet bills for a yearly exam and whenever your dog becomes ill or injured.  You will have to provide food, toys, and accessories.  And if you plan to travel without the dog, you will need to provide for his or her care while you’re gone.

Do you have time for a dog?  Each dog deserves daily attention, love, and exercise.  Whether you take a brisk walk with your dog each day or allow him or her to run in your fenced back yard, you will need to provide a time for the dog to stretch his or her legs.  And if you have an intelligent dog, you will need to stimulate his or her mind, as well.  You might need to get the dog involved in a sport such as flyball, herding trials, dock diving, or obedience trials.  You will need to obedience train the dog and socialize him or her to new environments.

Does the dog fit your family’s lifestyle?  Most breeds have a specific reason for being.  Herding dogs want to chase and organize other animals.  Guard dogs want to provide protection.  Hounds want to run around sniffing everything.  Some dogs are more active than others.  Some dogs like children; others need careful, gentle handling.  Do some research on the breed in which you are interested before you adopt one.

Check out The Dog Lady’s book, 101 Things You Need to Know Before Getting a Dog. (Save! Download the e-book.)

Will I really be able to get a purebred at a shelter?

There are more mutts in shelters than pedigreed dogs, but shelters do occasionally get purebreds, and if you take the time to get to know the staff at your local shelter, they may call you when they get the breed you are looking for.  Hint:  a really good way to get to know the staff is to volunteer at the shelter!

You can also look for purebreds by finding a breed rescue group which may be fostering just the dog you want.

And if you can’t find a pedigree, you may find out that you can be just as happy with a dog of mixed parentage.  Many times mutts carry the best characteristics of the breeds from which they were made.

Where can I find a shelter dog?

There are over 5,000 shelters in the United States.  Surely there is one near you.  Check out PetFinder’s Shelter Center to find one near you.  Alternatively, you can search for the type of pet you are looking for on PetFinder’s home page.  You can look for your favorite breed, and you can even specify the age, size, and gender you’d like to have.  You’ll get a list of dogs, most with pictures and great descriptions.  They are listed in order of distance from your zip code.

What if I can’t adopt a dog right now?

If your house or life is too full for a dog right now, help out your local shelter in some other way this month.  Volunteer.  Donate money.  Donate food, accessories, or old towels.  Check out your local shelter’s web site to find out what’s on their wish list.