Second Chances For Animal Adoption

Second Chances

According to the ASPCA, 7.6 million companion animals enter shelters every year. Of those, 3.9 million are dogs and 3.4 million are cats. Every year, around 2.7 million animals are euthanized. Euthanasia is the process of ending an animal's life with drugs. These are senseless deaths that could be minimized, or even eliminated, through spaying and neutering animals or adopting from shelters and not breeders. Whether the animal is a stray or a family pet, spaying or neutering could save generations of future puppies and kittens from dying in shelters.

One year ago today, I made the conscious decision to adopt from my local shelter. I had previously adopted from a breeder. When I started realizing that anyone will adopt a puppy,

but not everyone will adopt an older dog, I was heart broken. From that moment, I knew I wanted to adopt a shelter dog. I emailed the Henry County Humane Society and told them that if they ever got a boxer in to let me know. Within a month, I received an email back – they had a boxer in. Her name was Chloe and she was around two years old. She was surrendered because she was "untrainable". The previous owners told the shelter that she would tear up the house when left alone. They said she "counter surfed" - which means that she would stand on her back legs and grab things off counters. I thought to myself, those are simple behaviors to correct. So, I emailed back and told them I would be in to see her the next day. I brought along my 5 month old boxer named Penelope. I wanted to see if they got along before I brought Chloe home, because I did not want to endanger my current puppy. Sure enough they got along great. Chloe and Penny were playing from the moment they met.
I brought Chloe home on January 22nd, 2016. She is the best dog I have ever had. She is very loving. She knows how to sit, shake, and lay down. Never once have I seen her counter surf. When we leave the house, she is kenneled with Penelope so the house has remained intact. Shelter dogs are some of the most deserving dogs. It is not their fault that they are in the shelter. It is the fault of the owners who gave up on them. From here on out, I don’t think I will ever adopt from a breeder again. I will always be going to shelters for my dogs. Rescued is my favorite breed. If we as a whole could come together and spay and neuter our animals, we could clear out the shelters. If we could support shelters and not backyard breeders, we could save millions of animals every year. If people knew that 20-30% of dogs in shelters were purebred, and over half the cost, I bet the backyard breeders would be put out of business. Both of my girls are spayed. I refuse to let their potential children and grandchildren be used for breeding, be abused, or end up in shelters. We can make a difference in millions of animals lives just by spaying or neutering one.