For many years, society has been hearing “Adopt, Don’t Shop.” While the meaning seems to vary depending on who is saying it, the basic idea has always seemed to be to discourage people from purchasing pets from breeders and only obtain from rescues. This was designed specifically to lower the number of animals in the shelters. It was believed that if people only obtained a pet from a shelter or rescue organization, then it would help save unwanted pets from occurring. Sadly, this has not been the case, as it does not address the heart of the problem. It does not encourage people to buy pets responsibly, to own pets responsibly, or to breed pets responsibly. The “adopt, don’t shop,” mantra does nothing to teach people how to chose the correct animal for their home in the first place, which would in turn, over time, help to lower the number of animals who end up in less than perfect situations.

Another side affect of the “adopt, don’t shop” idea is that it points fingers and the blame to all pet breeders. When, in truth, many pet breeders work hard on being responsible breeders, health testing their pets when appropriate, working with the babies so that they can adapt to their new homes, and talking with potential owners to make sure that they are familiar with the pros and cons of that particular pet.

Granted, there will always be those with less honest leanings in the pet world who are breeders, but sadly, there are those in the rescue world who are also not honest, and do not have the best interest of the pet, or the owner, in mind in their businesses.

Buy Pets Responsibly hopes to address the main reasons that pets are in shelters, rehomed, neglected, abused or abandoned. And that is that people need to take the time to learn about their chosen pet and train the pet. If those two aspects have been done thoroughly and correctly, they will be more than happy to keep the pet and grow to love it and consider it a part of the family. This in turn, over time, will begin to lessen the numbers of animals who find themselves in need of a new home or rescued from a unhealthy living environment.