Are you planning to get a new dog for your family? Instead of buying a new pup from a pet shop, why not adopt one instead?

Adopting a pet has many benefits, some of which might not have crossed your mind or you may have not considered. Not only will you reap the physical and emotional health benefits of owning a pet: you’ll also be providing a loving home to a dog in need, and receive their life-long love and companionship in return.

Here are some of the reasons why you should adopt a pet:

1. Save a life.

When you adopt a dog from a shelter, you are giving an animal the second chance he or she deserves. A lot of the dogs from shelters are victims of terrifying circumstances such as animal cruelty. Many of them have also been subject to neglect or abandonment, with their owners no longer able to look after them due to certain situations.

Shelter staff does whatever they can to nurse their rescued animals back to health and rehabilitate them to ensure they are prepared for adoption. Unfortunately, not all of them are as fortunate to find a new home. Due to lack of space or funds, shelters have to euthanize some of the animals they have rescued.

You can play a part in reducing the unwanted deaths of dogs in shelters. By rehoming a pet, you can help stop overpopulation and give an animal a loving, stable home he truly deserves.

2. Save money.

Shelters often take care of the necessary veterinary procedures of animals that come into their care, such as microchipping, spaying, neutering, and vaccination. This saves you a lot of money because you’ll no longer have to pay for the procedures yourself while still being sure the pet you’re taking home is healthy.

Also, the prices of adopting a dog from a shelter are often more affordable than the rates charged by breeders. This way, you can reallocate some of your pet funds for other expenses, or buy your new furry friend dog toys or treats he’ll surely enjoy!

3. Help eradicate puppy farms.

A puppy farm or mill is a place built for breeding puppies for the main purpose of maximizing profit out of the dogs., without any regard to their health or well-being. In a puppy farm, dogs are being forced to breed several times, often to their health’s detriment. They are also often kept in terrible environmental conditions with barely enough basic necessities.

People who oversee puppy farms for the sake of profit are usually not concerned with producing healthy dogs. Since they don’t provide veterinary care for the dogs as often as needed, the offspring they produce can also be born with health problems that emerge over time. What’s even more saddening is that the dogs are often destroyed once they can no longer reproduce.

When you adopt from a shelter, you are playing a crucial role in stopping dogs from being subjected to these horrific conditions, because rather than funding a trade that focuses solely on profit, you will be rehoming a dog from a reputable institution that supports animal welfare.

4. Improve your well-being and make yourself happier.

Various studies have shown that having a pet can improve your overall happiness and health. It also helps people with depression, stress, and anxiety. The affectionate and loyal nature of dogs as pack animals that form close relationships with their owners can help provide comfort and companionship to people who may feel like they don’t have anybody else. Indeed, the animal you have helped through rehoming can also help you.

5. Enhance social and emotional development of children in the family.

Pet ownership can teach children valuable life skills, such as the importance of maintaining responsibilities. Rehoming a pet can also encourage empathy in children by making them think about how they have helped in providing an unwanted animal with a loving, safe home. Pets, in turn, can help children with separation anxiety and provide them with security, as they can be safe in the knowledge that someone will always be there.

6. Save time from basic house training.

Animals at shelters, especially the older ones, have often been house-trained by their previous owners. This saves you a lot of time and effort since you won’t be training your new pet from scratch. You no longer have to worry about basic commands such as “sit” and “come”, and more importantly, potty training!

7. Enjoy tons of cuddles and unconditional love.

A pet is a companion that will never judge you and will love you regardless of whatever happens. Without you knowing it, their unconditional love and affection raises your self-esteem. It is said that animals are able to know when they have been rescued and who rescued them, so the bond between you and your rehomed dog will be especially strong and like no other.

Although you may already have a picture of what kind of dog you want for a pet, there are various kinds of animals waiting to be adopted from shelters. This may mean a dog with a breed that you would never have thought could turn out to be a great match for you. That’s why it’s always important to have an open mind when visiting shelters.

When you choose to adopt a dog instead of buying one, you’ll turn a homeless animal’s life around AND get a best friend out of the deal.

Seriously, what could get any better than that?

About the Writer

Dani Smith is a content creator for dogIDs. Aside from writing, you’ll find her mountain biking with her dog Crash, binge-watching her favorite series, or food prepping her next high-carb meal.