Support The Shelter Pet Project By Adopting A Pet From Your Local Rescue Group or Shelter!

Last May, our family made a decision that would change our lives forever. We adopted the newest member of our family, Onyx, from a local animal rescue group and he quickly wormed his way into all of our hearts. We decided to adopt from a rescue group because we know how many animals are waiting to be adopted into a loving home. It was our small way of trying to help this growing problem of all these poor disenfranchised animals that are sitting in local shelters counting their days here on earth if they don’t get chosen for adoption.

Adopting a rescue animal is definitely the way to go for many reasons. As far as we are concerned, the number one reason is that, every year, millions of homeless animals are being euthanized because loving homes cannot be found for them. Most shelters have a euthanasia policy which dictates that older and sick pets be put down first in order to make room for incoming animals. When you adopt a pet from a shelter, you are saving their life and freeing up a kennel for another animal that might need refuge.

Also, many shelter dogs are already house trained or crate trained so you don’t have to worry about putting all of the time in to train your new pet how to relieve themselves in the appropriate places besides your livingroom floor. Cats have also been trained to use a litter box. Additionally many shelter animals have already been spayed and neutered which is a big plus for anyone in the market for getting a pet. This prevents unwanted breeding and helps to control to burgeoning pet population which is in its current state due to pet owners not desexing their pets.

Caring for a rescued pet is rewarding and imperative to the pet’s social development and assimilation into your family and home. It is important that you be aware of all of the responsibility involved in caring for a pet. Our puppy is eight months old and he is still getting into everything that you can think of. Currently, we have to constantly be chasing after him for chewing up socks and slippers. We also have to keep an eye on him during the day to make sure that he doesn’t swallow any of my sons’ little toys that could make him sick or get lodged in his throat. He is a handful but we love him to pieces.

The key is to understand that he has already been through a lot in his short life. First he was separated from his mother and then he was bounced around from shelter to shelter before we had the opportunity to adopt him. It is very important to be patient with rescue animals and to prove to them that you are going to care for them and not hurt them. This may take a little while as your new pet learns to trust you and as you train and bond with him or her. In the end, you will find that rescue animals are warm and loving and make a great addition to any family.

The Shelter Pet Project is a public service campaign from The Ad Council, The Humane Society and Maddie’s Fund, and is aimed at increasing the number of pets that get adopted from shelters and rescue groups versus buying them from a pet store or a breeder. The way they go about spreading this message is by breaking down misconceptions surrounding shelter pets and communicating that “A person is the best thing to happen to a shelter pet. Be that person. Adopt.”

Visit them on Facebook to find out where you can find your perfect rescue pet by locating rescue groups and shelters in your local area. You can also find stories there about owner and pet matches that were made in heaven and will prove to you that adopting a rescue animal is a wonderful and selfless thing that you can do which will change the life of some poor cat or dog that has already been through a lot.

Disclosure: I was selected for this campaign by Latina Bloggers Connect. All opinions are my own. Any statements made in this post are the author’s honest opinions. I only recommend products or services I use personally and I believe will be “family friendly.” I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commissions 16 CFR, Part 255 “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.