Did you know that approximately 6.3 million companion animals enter animal shelters nationwide every year?

Of those, approximately 3.1 million are dogs and 3.2 million are cats. Only 10% of those animals received by shelters have been spayed or neutered.  As a result, it causes overpopulation and an excess of animals killed annually.

There's a misconception that shelter animals are “damaged goods.” I can assure you that's truly not the case. Most arrive at the shelters due to a death, divorce, moving, lifestyle change, the birth of a child, or even because the family didn't train them.

There are several benefits to pet adoption. Obviously, you're saving an animal’s life and also other lives by creating space for another pet who needs shelter. In addition, you're getting a pet that will already be spayed or neutered so they won't be contributing to the overpopulation epidemic.

Most “preowned” dogs are already housetrained and shelters/rescue groups often include vaccinations, microchipping and spay or neutering in the adoption fee.

You want a purebred dog you say? Around 25% of dogs that enter local shelters are even purebred.

My husband and I adopted our two girls Lacy (now 7 years old) and Sugar (now 8 years old) last year from an animal rescue. They came in as a bonded pair, so they had to be adopted together.

Their previous owner had several repairs needed to their fence, so the girls kept getting out of the yard. And this time the owner just decided not to go after them.

We haven't had any issues with Lacy and Sugar trying to escape our yard.  Lacy knows simple commands like "sit" and "stay" and they're both very smart and loving dogs.  We love these girls to pieces and look at them as part of our family!

If you're looking to adopt, a great site to go to is https://www.petfinder.com. You can search by the type of animal, age, gender, and location. This makes it very easy to find your new best friend!

Anyone who knows me knows my true love for animals, so please don’t shop...ADOPT!

Disclaimer: Please note that the statistics mentioned in this article have been updated to reflect the most recent data available as of November, 2023. Animal shelter and adoption statistics are dynamic and may change over time. We strive to provide the latest information to our readers and have revised the article accordingly to include these updates.