According to recent data from the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, about 6.3 million pet animals enter shelter homes every year in the United States alone.
While about 920,000 pet animals in shelter homes in the United States alone have been euthanized every year.
Before recent data, the number of companion animals that were euthanized was over 2 million as of 2011.
This number has significantly reduced largely because of adoption.
Adopting a pet from an animal shelter not only provides companionship but also saves these little creatures from being euthanized.
Pet animals are lovely creatures that provide companionship, pleasure, loyalty, and trust to their human caregivers.
They have been known to be human best friends for many years most especially dogs and cats.
Animal pets such as dogs have also evolved from companionship to fighting side by side with humans to protect society.
They have been used by law enforcement agencies around the world in fighting crimes from sniffing narcotics, and bombs, to capturing law offenders, etc.
Their value and commitment to the human race cannot be over-emphasized.
If you want to know how to adopt a pet from a shelter either as a companion, for protection or to provide a new home to reduce the number of pets euthanized, here are a few steps to guide you.
Animal Shelter Home:
There are thousands of shelter homes in the United States alone.
You need to research online the ones close to you or you can ask other pet owners, friends, vets, and families.
Shelter homes are the best place to adopt a pet not only because of the potential prevention of euthanizing but their expertise to match you with the right fit.
At shelter homes, the general well-being of pets has been assessed before offering them for adoption.
In some cases, they might have installed a microchip that helps you easily find your lost cat if it ever goes missing.
Read here to learn more about how to use a microchip to find a lost pet.
Decide What Type Of Pet You Want:
At the animal shelter home, there are different types and species of pet animals up for adoption.
It is necessary to decide on what type of pet animal you want and their specification even before visiting an animal shelter to avoid emotional bias in adoption.
Pet animals such as dogs, cats, fish lizards, birds, mice, rabbits, etc are easily available for adoption in shelter homes.
Important considerations before choosing the type of pet animal to adopt are personal lifestyle, housing type, family needs, and size, resources, other resident pets if any, etc.
You should also think about grooming, energy level, amount of interaction needed by your new pet, etc.
Interact With The Pet Before Adoption:
After choosing the type of pet animal you want and narrowing your choice to a species and specific individual, it is best advised for you to spend a reasonable time with the new pet before adoption.
If you have other household family members or resident pets, it is advised to go with them to the shelter home to interact with the new intended pet.
Most shelter homes have a space where you can have this important interaction that allows you to personally study temperament, behaviors, aggression levels, etc.
Decide On Adoption:
After interacting with your chosen pet, it is important to ask all necessary questions you must have observed during your interaction.
Their behavior, health status, grooming needs, temperament, socializing skills, dietary needs, etc should be well discussed before adoption.
Shelter homes do have experts and vets to answer all your burning questions.
They can also provide you with some records if available for your chosen pet.
Start and Complete The Adoption Process:
To adopt a pet from a shelter home, some personal information will be required by the animal shelter to be certain you can provide the best home for the particular pet.
This information may include your physical address, your photograph, work schedule, pet experience, how you plan to take care of the pet, etc.
In some cases, they might visit your home to authenticate your claims.
This process is called a pet adoption process in most shelter homes and it usually includes a fee
The fee which is called an adoption fee covers the cost of vaccination, care, and in some cases spaying or neutering varies among pet animals.
In comparison to breeders, it is far cheaper to adopt a pet from an animal shelter.
Lastly, before completing the adoption process, you should inquire about the possibility of returning the pet if your decision is not right and also re-register a microchip with your contacts.
Prepare A New Home For Your Pet:
Before bringing your new companion home, you should prepare a space that suits your new friend.
You should provide food, clean water, medication, bedding, pet toys, etc.
Adopting a pet means long-term responsibility and pets are not supposed to provide for themselves no matter the circumstance.
Transition phase:
First-time pet owners are likely faced with a different routine and lifestyle.
To prepare you for this if you are a first-time pet owner, you need to exercise some patience and be calm and expectant of anything.
Also give your new pet the time, peaceful environment, and personal space, while providing for basic needs.
If you follow through this process, you will not only learn how to adopt a pet from a shelter home but also how best to take care of your newly adopted pet.