Why You Should Adopt A Rescue Dog

You’ll Be Saving A Life

Adopting a rescue dog has many benefits. But these perks are secondary when compared to the fact that you’ll be doing an amazing deed. We are talking about saving at least one life (or more if you have space in your home and wallet)!

According to an ASPCA report, about 1.5 million pet animals are euthanized in the United States every year, with dogs and cats as the majority. However, the same study reported that this figure declined from 2.6 million because there has been a steady increase in adoption in the past few years. Woo hoo! You can be a part of an amazing movement!

Adopting Makes You Feel Good

There’s a unique feeling that comes with adopting a rescue dog. It makes you realize that you’re giving another life a second chance. This feeling radiates positivity and it is good for your confidence too. Other perks?

Having a dog under your care may improve your mental health and increases your chances of exercising. I know if I didn’t have my rescue pup, Lucy, I wouldn’t have left the apartment as much during the pandemic.

A really amazing effect, adopting a dog can event help with depression and loneliness.

You’ll Be Joining The Fight Against Puppy Mills

There are about 10,000 puppy mills in the U.S today and that’s enough cause for worry. Puppy mills are places with dog breeding operations that rank profit over the health and well being of dogs. Dog’s in puppy mills are intentionally left in a dirty and unsanitary living space and are mistreated and bred with no care for any health problems that may develop.

Puppy Mills view dogs as livestock and property and treat them as such. Whereas, rescue organizations take these helpless pooches to help bring them into a happy home.

By adopting a rescue dog you’re reducing the population of dogs in puppy mills. By saving one dog, you’re probably going to save more. One horrible fact about Puppy Mills: Female dogs are forced to breed every heat cycle, which can be incredibly harmful to the dog. And often when are no longer fit to breed are treated like trash. 

$ave Money

Purchasing a dog from a breeder can be very expensive, and if a breeder is charging you under $500 there is a great chance that the dog you’re going to get was likely bred improperly and could have a lot of behavioral and health issues. 

Adopting a dog from a shelter/rescue is often much cheaper. Most shelters spay and neuter any dog before adopting them out, and you’ll rarely find dogs costing over $100-$400 at a shelter (this likely varies by region though!). Some shelters even sponsor heartworm treatments or give new owners dog food/bowls/beds etc. 

Even some Veterinarian practices, like Small Door Vet, offer a free initial exam for rescues and FREE 1 Year Telehealth Membership. To get the promo codes for this amazing practice, sign up for our email to get our discount codes from our small business partners.

You Never Know What Breed You’ll Get!

When bringing home a new dog, we are definitely on the look for our ‘preferred breed’. This is not a bad thing! However, we might get stuck halfway through our dream to have the dog we want because the breed is unavailable.

There are about 339 dog breeds in the world today and yet, it is still difficult to always get what we want. Most times, it is either the breed is completely off the market or they are offered at an astronomical rate.

While you may be able to find a specific breed at a shelter, keep an open mind. One of the fun things about adopting from a shelter is that you never know exactly what you’re gonna get. Many shelter dogs are mixed breeds, which vets believe are usually healthier than purebred dogs (not as likely to have breed-specific issues). 

Lucy, pictured in the header, according to Embark (a dog DNA kit) considers her a Super Mutt (as she is a mix of so many amazing dogs) and she is certainly the most SUPER DOG!

Dogs Are Vaccinated

There’s a saying that if you’re looking for dogs that match some unique specifications, don’t go to the market. This is exactly true for spayed, neutered, or vaccinated dogs. You can hardly find them in a pet shop.

Dogs from rescues or shelters are checked and vaccinated when brought in. This is to prevent the spread of diseases like rabies in the center. Most shelters often spay and neuter all of their dogs before placting the dog for adoption in order to lower the number of stray dogs out on the streets. Adopting a rescue dog can save you the stress of having to get the surgery after bringing home your new dog and your wallet.

Adoption Is A Lot Easier (and More Rewarding) than going to a Breeder or Pet Shop

A lot of people think buying a dog from a breeder is easy but that’s not really true. Having the money to make the purchase is just one aspect of the entire process. Even those with a bottomless budget see the follow in rescuing (see Jon Hamm above with his rescue pup, Cora)

Adopting is better because you don’t have to worry about your dog coming from a place that values profit over pooch. The rescues we’ve vetted care about the dogs more than anything. With the abundant rescue organizations, brining home a dog isn’t as stressful as it used to be. In fact, when you’re adopting, there are fewer mountains to climb. Check out our list of rescues in NYC here to find the right rescue for you.

Give Your Family A Reason To Smile

Are you getting bored of staying indoors often or are you worried that your kids have no buddies to play with?  If you are going through this, then maybe it is time to add a new member to the family.

Adopting a rescue dog can be the spice your family needs. Yes, you heard that right. Having a rescue dog in the family can be the best way to teach your kids to care for those in need. Imagine your kids are learning how to love while having so much fun.