Buying a puppy or getting it from a homeless pet shelter?

Question

i went into a store today and saw a cute little, white puppy (i don't know what breed), with short, curly fur. (not a poodle).

would it be better to buy or adopt? i realize when you adopt, you probably pay too. are they healthy? how was your experience?

Answer 1

Adopting is much better.  Pet stores get their dogs from puppy mills which are awful places!  Many of them are sick and have chronic health problems.  Pet stores will not tell you that is where they get them, but they do.  Most of the time the stores don't really know where they come from.  

http://www.hsus.org/pets/issues_affectin...

Answer 2

I have adopted two times and yes I like it a lot better.  1) you do pay but it is less than what you would if you went into a store or to a breeder and bought a puppy (the adoption fee is usually to cover the intitial cost of examining the dog and the cost of fixing them), 2) if you get a rescue there is a VERY good chance that the dog as been checked by a vet and has been spayed (female) or neutered (male) so you will be giving a loving dog a 2nd chance at a happy and loving home.

Answer 3

You're better off getting a puppy from a shelter. They are given their shots and taken care of. If you buy one some where else you could end up with a sick dog and an expensive vet bill. And by adopting a dog you are doing a good thing and caring for a dog that nobody wanted. That will be a dog that will mean a lot to you.  

Answer 4

Adoption is better.

Puppies in petstores come from puppy mills.  These are horrible places that breed large quantities of dogs for profit.  The dogs are crammed in tiny cages with wire bottoms.. cages are stacked upon each other, so that when the dogs in the upper cages relieve themselves, it falls thru the wires and onto the dogs below.  These dogs are almost never taken out of the cages.. many dont know how to walk on solid ground, much less how to run and play in grass.  They never get love or attention.  They often do not get medical care.. many are a matted mess with injuries.  The dogs are bred continually every season.  They are fed poor diets and suffer from poor dentation and other health problems.  There's no regard to inbreeding or even breeding mixes.  Paperwork is often falsified just to put papers on the pups.

When you buy from a petshop.. you support this practice.  As long as people continue to buy from petshops, dogs will suffer in these horrible conditions.

Pups in petshops appear healthy because they are pumped full of antibiotics and wormers before being shipped off..  many suffer health problems later on from the poor breeding practices.

When you adopt from the shelter, you save a life.  You dont support an unethical breeder with your money.  There's no 100% guarantees on health, as these pups come from unknown/untested parents..  the shelter does what they can to take care of these pups..  after all they are cleaning up the messes that are left behind from irresponsible breeders!

Answer 5

I haven't ever been to an adoption center but I think it's a good ideo to adopt one. If they don't find a home, they put them down.

Answer 6

Animals from animal shelter are always healthy and usually will have been vaccinated and if they are old enough neutered or spayed. It always better to adopt due to the fact that the have usually been mistreated or abandoned and they deserve a second chance.

You you should never under any circumstances buy a dog from a store because these dogs almost always come from puppy farms which practice cruelty, They are often not truthful about the health or breed of the dog that you are buying,

If were to decide to adopt from a shelter then it is doubtful that you have to pay they generally just ask for a small donation, Click on the below link to find out more about puppy farming.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tvX6E3K2y...

Answer 7

Buy from a reputable breeder!  Too bad if people don't like this response.  It is the best way to get a healthy puppy.  A good breeder will help you with any questions you have even after you get the pup home.  A pet store takes anything and many times these are from very unsavory breeders.  Adopting a dog can be dicey...it may or may not turn out to be a suitable dog.  People dropped them off at the shelter for a reason...and who really knows the truth why?  

All of the above have a price on the dogs that you have to pay.

Answer 8

The store? You mean a pet store? And you have no idea what breed?

Not a good idea to get the dog cause it's cute. Pet store dogs are never healthy, they come from puppy mills.

It's better to adopt of course! I rescued my Pomeranian from a shelter, and she's perfectly healthy.  

Answer 9

When you adopt, you save an animal from being killed.  When you buy from a pet store, you encourage puppy mills to produce more dogs who will end up killed in shelters.  You actually have a better chance of getting a healthy dog from a shelter because the people there are a lot more likely to care enough about the animals to try to make sure they're healthy and only go home with people they're sure can handle them.

Answer 10

DO NOT GET THAT DOG FROM A PET STORE!!!! Chances are that it's from a cruel, cruel, cruel puppy mill and you do NOT want to support those places. Please don't!!! And if you do choose to adopt (which I sincerely hope you do) chances are that it will be a perfectly healthy dog, with much better chances of health as getting one anywhere else. You will be saving a life and supporting a great cause, especially if that shelter is no-kill. My friends have adopted and have been undyingly satisfied with their canines. So please, do a dog a favor and adopt! :)

much love,

  lilactress

Answer 11

I have had my dog for four years now that I got from a shelter and he's the best dog I have ever had.Having said that you need to ask if he has bad habits that got him put in the shelter in the first place.Sometimes they are really good dogs that just cant be cared for anymore.

Answer 12

i have a yorkie who my mum bought me as a pup and i love him and its lovely getting a pup and exciting:) but .....

but i recently saved and adopted my 1 year old jack russell and its a real good felling knowing this dog you have saved and that you made a difference do a dogs life.  also you know how there temperament is and most dogs are trained in toilet etc...

so in both experiences have been good and i love both my dogs as equal as each other.

when adopting a dog they will have had medical treatment and healthy too.  

god luck with your descion and your new dog :D  

Answer 13

well when you adopt, it's cheaper, and you save the dog from being in the pound.

i got 3 of my dogs from the pound, and 2 of then from the store.

when i look for a dog, i look everywhere. because the perfect dog for you might just be in a pet store.

so i think it's better to adopt, but when you find love, you find love.

not all dogs at the pound are healthy. sometimes they're dying and they need help. so it just depends on the dog.

you never know with adopted dogs though. one of my dogs almost never eats anything, and when he does it's just meat. i got him at the pound.

the second one still bites roughly when he plays. i got him at the pound.

the third one is very independent. he doesn't play with toys, and he doesn't like kids, and doesn't liked to be picked up. i got him at the pound.

the fourth one is very stupid. she runs into walls and pees everywhere. i got her at the pet store.

the fifth one is probably one of my smartest dogs, (knows alot of tricks), is such a sweetie, but can be naive. i got her at the pet store.

so personally? i think if you find the right dog, it doesn't matter. but i would try and look at the pounds so you could save one.

Answer 14

NEVER buy a puppy from a pet store.  Most pet stores buy their puppies from puppy mills.  

Adopting a puppy is the best thing you can do.  You can always inquire about the history and 8 times out of 10, they will know the history.  Mixed breeds have less health issues.  Adopting can cost, depending on where you adopt.  

Research before you buy, don't buy because its cute, keep in mind that this dog will be in your life for 10+ years.

Good luck!

Answer 15

When you buy from a petstore you are encouraging the petstore to buy puppies from either bad breeders who don't care where the puppies end up and will sell for cheap, or puppy brokers.  Puppy brokers get their puppies from puppy-mills, or basically a place where the dogs are bred until they die and kept in as small of cages as possible and fed as little as possible, and pet/loved as little as possible.  Buying a puppy from a petstore in America is basically supporting these puppy-mills.  

Petstore puppies also have to go to the bathroom in their cages at the store, which makes potty-training much harder.  They normally are left in the store all night alone, which makes them more clingy.  They have to meet anyone who wants to pick them up, which makes them more scared of people.  And because of the number of puppies and the people who come and touch them, diseases happen.  And the costs of the puppy are ridiculous, often 3-5 times more than what you would pay from a shelter or even from a breeder.  The only benefit is they could care less where the puppy goes, and will sell it to whoever has the most money.  This speaks LOADS about how valued the pups are though.

In a shelter, the puppies have the same sort of a gamble as far as the background comes.  They could come from someone who loved them every day until they were old enough they were taken to the shelter.  They could have come from someone who didn't care.  They could even come from a raided puppy-mill (my boy did.)  But, the difference is that your money is supporting an organization that is trying to help animals rather than one that is hurting them.  They are slightly more picky about where puppies go, but not terribly.

If you are worried about backgrounds in the puppies and behaviors, then the best choice is to find a rescue organization who will foster puppies and find homes for them.  However, they tend to be more picky where their puppies go.  Still, you know how their behavior is because they were living with people for a while.

So... the worst place to get a puppy is from a petstore.  You're better off with a professional responsible breeder, or a rescue.

Answer 16

It depends on what you are looking for. I agree that pet store puppies are just a sad waste of life. They are raised by puppy mills & get treated horridly!

Adopting a pet is just as fulfilling as buying one from a reputable breeder.

If you are looking to buy a registered purebred, definately take some time to shop around to find a great "family" that is selling their pups.

It is all your own personal decision and whatever you do, just remember that it should be for the life of the dog. Don't do it just because the dog looked cute. Those are the types of dogs that have a sad life because they grew up.

Good luck on your search!  

Answer 17

I used to think that the dogs from the shelter were all strays or adults but far from it. I recently adopted a 8wk old puppy King Charles Poodle mix and she is adorable. I was given a weeks grace period so i could get a full check up at the vet. Thankfully she passed her health check and is doing fine. I think that this is important as if you adopt a unhealthy puppy it could cost you a small fortune.

I paid $400 to cover the shelters outlaid cost but i'd of paid over $1000 from a pet shop/breeder. Its not just about the money though, these little puppy's are in need of a good home so your doing a good thing too. I'd highly recommend having a look on www.petfinder.com as this is where most of the shelters advertise.

In my opinion the only downside to adopting is that most of the time you cant view the pups parents as is normally recommend when buying a dog. However if you research the breed before committing you can get a good grasp of what your letting yourself into. Good luck :)

Answer 18

Puppies from shelters tend to be healthier than pet store puppies. However, your best bet would be to get a purebred from www.puppyfind.com. Expensive, yes, but most already have shots and they have better health.