Shelters are awesome places to find pets. In a nutshell: They offer a variety of pets for a nominal fee, save you lots of money in vet costs, provide a support network, and help animals in need. They are dedicated to helping you find a suitable pet and reduce the chances of you taking on a pet with surprise problems. Lastly, the animals are really not “there because there’s something wrong with them.”
My dog Chelsea- she was a stray (came to my Grandmother’s door) and no one claimed her at the local shelter
This may sound like a sales pitch, but every claim I’m making comes from my experience (although you can take that as you will). My credentials: I’ve volunteered at a shelter, volunteered or shadowed at 2 vet clinics, and cared for a small boatload of pets (mine and others) including those from shelters, rescue groups, Craigslist, strays, breeders, shady breeder animals, pet stores, feeders from pet stores, and word of mouth rehoming.
.
.
.
Why Shelters are Awesome
Grace- rescued by Ray of New World Riding from a bad situation, now an awesome riding horse. She is super sweet.
You can get all sorts of pets in rescues- don’t think that because you want a rare pet you can’t find it at a rescue. Some specialize in specific breeds of dogs, in various small animals, in reptiles, and more. Some take in livestock. Most are dog and cat shelters, but use Petfinder and Google to look around in your area. For example, MSPCA at Nevins Farm in Methuen, MA takes in livestock of many types, has barns full of horses, takes in small animals, and has a dog and cat shelter. If a rescue doesn’t have what you want at the time leave your name and number and ask them to call you when they get one in. You may have to drive further than the local mall, but trust me it is worth it. Shelters often or always have young animals (depending on size), so you don’t have to settle for an adult if your heart is set on a youngster (although adults can be great because you know their adult size and temperament, come house trained, and are less likely to get sick due to a developed immune system). If you want a puppy “today, ” yes the mall pet store might be your only option. However, a dog is a commitment and is worth a small amount of driving or waiting.
Ben- adopted from Nevins. He’s a really good boy and aims to please his rider.
Shelters save you money. Buying a dog or cat from a shelter is the cheapest way to go (yes, cheaper than taking one of your neighbor’s puppies). If they are a decent rescue, the dog or cat will be spayed/neutered, microchipped, health checked, and have shots started if young or completed already. The adoption fee does not cover all of these costs, and you’d pay hundreds more having this done yourself on a pet store, breeder, or friend’s puppy.
Shelters help you know what you’re getting and get what you’re looking for. You know something about the animal, because shelters evaluate animals and know about their health status. For example, the Animal Rescue League of Western PA does a temperament test on all animals, which has to be passed in order for the animal to be put up for adoption. This involves trying to invoke aggression, being pinched/hugged, and having food taken away from them among other things. Shelters also give you the health status of the animal, because they want to find a good match for the animal and don’t want them to be in a bad situation in the future. Puppies and kittens from pet stores come from “puppy mills,” which pump out animals in poor conditions with no concern for health (sources provided upon request). Again, they are expensive as well. One mall pet store, Debbie’s Pet Land, had puppies “on sale” for the low low price of $1100 and up! This is also before having them fixed, dewormed, given shots, and so forth, and before any health problems coming from the poor conditions they came from and inbreeding. Shelters are usually $50-$200 and often offer free adult animals and specials. Breeders are also expensive, as I’ve never seen one have puppies below $500. Shady “breeders” or puppies on Craigslist might be cheaper, but they will still be more expensive than an adoption fee after vet care.
3 of my awesome rats, adopted from Pittsburgh Rat Lover’s Club
Support: Shelters want you to be happy with the animal and the animal to be happy with you. Thus, they won’t lie about the pet because it decreases the chance of the animal having a good home and staying out of bad situations in the future. If the animal doesn’t work out, you can return them and choose a different pet at any reputable rescue (rescues want you both to be happy!). Shelters also sometimes offer reduced cost vet care, training classes, free food and supplies to those facing economic hardship, and trap-neuter-release programs for feral cats in your yard.
Lauren's Vet Med Blog 
Reblogged this on The Pawsey Piggy Troupe and commented:
Couldn’t have written it better myself! I’ts amazing (and a little worrying) how many adoptee’s i’ve won over by going through how much money they save getting a a shelter animal rather than going straight to a pet shop. And i laughed callously at the one who didn’t listen. She ended up getting ringworm from her shop bought Guinea pigs, and spent a fortune on treatment to boot.
Thanks!
I agree, pet shops are a gamble at best, and in my opinion people favoring pet shops don’t know how to deal with surprise health or behavioral problems (and I have yet to find a pet shop that gives an acceptable minimum of care of small animals). That, and it’s so ridiculous when people think they can breed their own for cheaper than an adoption fee. Maybe it is, but only if nothing goes wrong and only if you don’t take proper care of Mom and kids. One extra vet visit and that $75 fee for a kitten seems pretty good.
This is so awesome to see you write about this. I have wanted to volunteer at a shelter many times before, but allergies have caused some problems in that area. I have two puppies (both not really puppies, but they will always be in my eyes) that have both come from shelters. And as you said they were in great health and I haven’t had problems with either of them. I was just curious to know a little more about the pets you do have. Seems like a lot! And if you can pick (which I know can be impossible), which pet is your favorite to own?
I volunteer at the ARL at the intersection of 5th and Hamilton, it’s pretty awesome and open door (they take in anything brought to them. On the other hand, no-kill shelters are great but Animal Friends in Pittsburgh only takes in less than 5 year old perfectly healthy animals with no cosmetic defects (aka, scars or skin tags, etc) of “adoptable” breeds, aka no pit bulls even though they are wonderful dogs. They have a 6 month waiting list to get in, too). They have dogs & cats in separate buildings if that helps but there’s still “cross contamination” so to speak (problem if you’re more than slightly allergic).
Pets… right now I have 4 rats (adopted, originally feeder rats) and 2 gerbils (craigslist owner who didn’t know how to take care of them, one is missing part of his tail from cats), and my Dad takes care of my/his dog in Massachusetts. I work with other people’s horses because I can’t afford one, they are so expensive to keep if you don’t have land. I helped rehab, retrain and now get to ride the mare pictured, Gracie. She is very sweet and a lot of fun. My sister keeps reptiles (ball python, anoles, and a salamander) and fish, and I use to have an awesome pleco more than a foot long years ago. I use to have hermit crabs that were going to get dumped in the woods (ever seen a wild hermit crab in the woods?), as well as 2 cockatiels, 2 zebra finches, and 3 parakeets that were going to get poisoned to death in a nursing home because the staff didn’t want to care for them anymore. I rehomed the cockatiels and parakeets because I didn’t have time for all of them (and I’m not that crazy about pet birds). Oh, and I’ve had 2 other sets of gerbils.
This article about shelters is very informative. Being able to purchase inexpensive and healthy pets is a great deal. In fact, I bought a hamster from a shelter in Maryland. I like the fact that you included pictures of rescued animals. I believe this makes your discussion on shelters more effective because readers gain a sense of what kind of pets shelters have.
Yeah, it really is cheaper and less of a gamble. Congrats on the hamster, I’ve never had one myself but one of my friends did once. Most people don’t think to go to shelters for small animals but there are a decent number around. It’s great for around Christmas when pet stores sell out of small animals.