Adopt Don’t Shop: Why I Support this Important Movement
Editor’s Note: Please welcome our newest intern to Project Pawsitivity, Samuel Chillette! Samuel majors in English at Westchester Community College. He lives with his family and their dog, Roscoe.
Animals that are up for adoption need our help but more importantly, they need our love, affection, and companionship; they’re a lot like us in that regard. Just like we feel things, they feel things too. Animals are living, sentient beings who are conscious just like we are. Dogs can remember their owners years after being separated from them, and cats have been shown to be able to differentiate between who their owners are and random strangers. Pets know who their human families are, and feel love towards us just like we would each other. Yet, when you go to adoption websites and read the stories of animals up for adoption, you would be surprised as to how horribly many of them have been treated in the past. They have been abused, starved, bred to fight, discarded like trash, and seriously injured in some cases. Many of these animals haven’t been treated humanely and they may never have even known the comforts of a home, or the warm embrace of an owner holding them safely in their arms. That isn’t right. I believe love is a natural-born right, and love transcends species.
When someone buys a pet from a store, they are often giving money to the puppy and kitten mill industries, which usually care more about profit over the actual well-being of animals. More often than not, animals in puppy and kitten mills are housed in extremely poor living conditions and live in small, unclean spaces. The animals from these mills end up in shelters eventually if they aren’t bought, regardless of breed, which is why adoption should always be our first option. In order to put a stop to puppy and kitten mills, we need to stop buying our pets from stores and choose to adopt instead. Many times however, people who buy their pets from shops aren’t aware of the puppy and kitten mill industries, and don’t actually realize where their money is going. This is why spreading awareness and education on the issue is extremely important, so that we can make informed choices for ourselves and our pets going forward in the future.
When I was thirteen, my family adopted our dog Roscoe. Roscoe was living in an underfunded shelter as a puppy, and has since seen me during almost every phase of my life. The first day we took him home, he was so afraid of us and of his new surroundings that he couldn’t stop shaking, and sat in a corner for hours. He had never had a real home before, so everything was brand new to him. It took him a while to trust us, but over time, the bond he developed with us was so strong that now he hates it when we’re not even in the same room as him. He pounces on us with excitement whenever any of us walk into the door, and he’s slept right next to me almost every night since we’ve brought him to our house. The love Roscoe has for me and my family is real, and he’s brought countless instances of joy to our lives, so much so that I can’t imagine my life without him. He loves us loyally, and unconditionally, and there are thousands of dogs in shelters who are waiting to be adopted so they can have someone to give all their love and loyalty to as well. Please adopt and don’t shop!