When you're looking to add a pet to your life, consider ado pting a homeless animal from your local shelter. Whether you want a puppy or a more mature dog, a purebred or a one-of-a-kind mixed breed, even a rabbit or hamster, your shelter has the best selection of animals anywhere—all screened for good health and behavior. Most shelters will even help you with spaying and neutering.
The pet care center is your top source for a new pet, and our pet-care experts have compiled all the information you'll need to find your nearest shelter, select a pet who matches your lifestyle, and more.
If you've decided to get a dog. You're prepared to feed, exercise, train, clean up after, work through problems with, and love a dog every day for the next 10 to 20 years. You've evaluated your lifestyle and know exactly what sort of dog you're looking for , and you know that you need to seek out your desired characteristics in individual dogs, not breeds, because breed is no guarantee of temperament or likes and dislikes.
How do you identify and find a reputable breeder? First, know that good breeders breed not just to make money—they don't sell their puppies to the first person who shows up with cash in hand. Many pets at your local shelter are waiting for new homes because they were obtained by someone with unrealistic expectations of the time, effort, and money required to sustain a lifelong relationship with their pet. Animals at any local shelter are eager to find a new home and are just waiting for someone like you.
You can depend on responsible shelters to assess the animals' health and temperament in order to make the best adoption matches possible. When animals are relinquished by owners, the shelter staff makes every attempt to collect a thorough history of that pet. Then, while caring for animals, staff and volunteers try to learn as much as they can about these animals as well as those who come to the shelter as strays. |
