Jake is available for adoption at Long Island Golden Retriever Rescue in Plainview, NY.
We recently ran a post about a New York Times columnist who bought a dog even though her young son had urged her to adopt. The reason? Her husband wanted a Golden Retriever -- or at least a "bigger dog ... who fetched and swam" -- and they didn't think they'd find one in a shelter.
Our blogger wrote that it's a common misconception that there are no purebreds in shelters (in fact, 25% of shelter pets are purebred). One commenter suggested another misplaced belief:
[T]hat somehow a shelter animal (even a purebred rescue) is somehow less healthy or less valuable. ... People feel [that] spending $800 or $1,000 on a purebred dog or cat is a symbol of how high-class they are as individuals.So we decided to put together a list of common adoption myths, in the hopes that you can gently point friends toward this post when they talk about why they've got their heart set on buying.
Myth #1: I don't know what I'm getting
There may in fact be more information available about an adoptable pet than one from a breeder or pet store.
Many of the pets posted on Petfinder are in foster care. Foster parents live with their charges 24-7 and can often tell you, in detail, about the pet's personality and habits. If the pet is at a shelter, the staff or volunteers may be able to tell you what he or she is like.
At the very least, you can ask the staff if the pet was an owner surrender (rather than a stray) and, if so, what the former owner said about him or her. Quite often pets are given up because the owner faced financial or housing issues (more on that later). You can also ask about the health and behavioral evaluations the pet has undergone since arriving at the shelter. In contrast, pet store owners rarely have an idea of what a pet will be like in a home.
Continue reading Shooting down common myths about pet adoption.
