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Would you adopt from a shelter?

post #1 of 64
10/12/07 at 1:16pm
Thread Starter 
I know this has been covered before, but there have been a few new members since then....so I'm dragging it out again.

Would you adopt from a shelter?
Why or why not?

I know of one member who never would(I won't mention a name), & I cannot believe the way this member was treated by shelters. It is very upsetting.

I was declined recently to foster long-distance for someplace because I am a "hoarder". I have 5 cats of my own & 2 foster kittens....apparently that is hoarding. (Everyone is fixed & has shots)
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post #2 of 64
10/12/07 at 1:21pm
Yes yes yes!

We adopted Bayley from our local shelter & it was the best thing we ever did! Just seeing the way he's adapted to home life & being pampered, I couldn't imagine not adopting him!

Even tho he came home to us with a cold & claw infections, about 3 vet visits (& about $300 later...) he's healthy as can be! It was worth it though, I never thought twice about spending the money and love on him, he's worth every bit of it. Just thinking about him being in that shelter brings tears to my eyes, I'm so happy we can show him what love really is

Our next kitty (which might be in the near future, we aren't sure yet!) will come from the same shelter. They did treat us wonderfully & we had a great experience with them! (besides Bay coming home with the infection, but its alright )
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post #3 of 64
10/12/07 at 1:22pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by white cat lover View Post
I know this has been covered before, but there have been a few new members since then....so I'm dragging it out again.

Would you adopt from a shelter?
Why or why not?

I know of one member who never would(I won't mention a name), & I cannot believe the way this member was treated by shelters. It is very upsetting.

I was declined recently to foster long-distance for someplace because I am a "hoarder". I have 5 cats of my own & 2 foster kittens....apparently that is hoarding. (Everyone is fixed & has shots)
Yes, I would adopt from a shelter. However, I have had friends get cats from shelters that were so sick that they should have been PTS and not adopted out.

Here's the deal though. Even if I were to buy from the best breeder in the whole wide world there are always going to be things that they can't account for, or know is going to happen. Any adoption has a small amout of risk to it.
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post #4 of 64
10/12/07 at 1:53pm
I've had too many pets in my lifetime to even count, but only five weren't shelter/rescue animals/strays, so I definitely believe in adopting from shelters!
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post #5 of 64
10/12/07 at 1:56pm
Okay, are you talking about adopting from a shelter OR a rescue? I wasn't aware that shelters had to many requirements. When I got mine, I went in plunked down my $$ and walked out.

I didn't know shelters had fosters. To me, a rescue is private and a shelter is owned by city or county. Is that how you all view the difference between shelters and rescues?

I got all 3 of my dogs from shelters. My last two I found in shelters listed on Petfinder. They are all 3 wonderful dogs and I would adopt from them again for sure.

My cat came from the Humane Society (which I consider a resuce) and I would do that again.
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post #6 of 64
10/12/07 at 1:58pm
absolutely, but I learned before with a dog, take them to the vet before you bring them home. the puppy had Parvo $450 , two days after I got him, even thou they had to destroy 10 dogs for parvo, I couldn't prove, the puppy got it from the shelter
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post #7 of 64
10/12/07 at 2:04pm
My local shelter is a non-profit, the Northeast Animal Shelter, not affiliated with the city. It was started in the 1970s by private citizens who cared.

That's where I adopted Ginger from. We do not have a local humane society - which is fine by me, since most "humane" societies seem to (from what I have read) operate kill shelters.

In my experience, the feral rescue that I adopted Ferris from had MANY more requirements and conditions than did the no-kill shelter. Their (the shelter's) big thing was: will the landlord allow you to have a pet? They don't bother with home visits, but MUST speak with your landlord directly by phone.

With the rescue, the Billerica Cat Care Coalition, I was required to fill out a questionnaire that was more lengthy than the one that Kai Bengals asked me to complete when I was looking at adopting Penny.

I would abso-posi-lutely adopt a shelter cat again - and I think I am fortunate to have a shelter that will not adopt out animals that are ill - there is an animal hospital (not affiliated) on the same property, so all their animals receive proper care.
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post #8 of 64
10/12/07 at 2:19pm
I would absolutely adopt a shelter animal! I was an animal control officer so all of my past animals (permanent and foster) came from a shelter. None of my current animals have come from a shelter, although they are all rescues. It's just that every time we said we were going to go to the shelter to adopt... an animal in need of a home basically fell into our laps in some other way.
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post #9 of 64
10/12/07 at 2:24pm
One of my cats is from a shelter and yes I would adopt from a shelter again. I have no plans at this time of adopting another cat from a shelter though.
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post #10 of 64
10/12/07 at 2:26pm
Yup-sure would!!! Thats where Taffy came from...he was a itty bitty kitty then

I would always adopt from shelter if I could!!
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post #11 of 64
10/12/07 at 2:39pm
well, i guess i would, 'cause i have [Chip] but i seem to 'find' more just out there [Cable, Java, Firefox].
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post #12 of 64
10/12/07 at 2:47pm
Aside from the fact that my cats have all, one way or another, "found" me before I got to a shelter, yes, of course, I would. If I had concern about some particular shelter, I might give it a miss, but I certainly wouldn't dismiss shelters in general as a place to adopt future kitties.
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post #13 of 64
10/12/07 at 2:50pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by GingersMom View Post
In my experience, the feral rescue that I adopted Ferris from had MANY more requirements and conditions than did the no-kill shelter. Their (the shelter's) big thing was: will the landlord allow you to have a pet? They don't bother with home visits, but MUST speak with your landlord directly by phone.
That just tells me that they had adoptions returned because the landlord didn't allow the pet(s) and the adoption parents said "Yes, the landlord allows pets" on the form.

Anyhoo. YES YES YES and did I say YES?

My belief is that since I'm American, I'm part of a melting pot of different cultures and ancestry the so should my pet The most important thing to me is personality. If the pet and I bond, then better have those adoption papers signed.
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post #14 of 64
10/12/07 at 3:09pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by lookingglass View Post
Yes, I would adopt from a shelter. However, I have had friends get cats from shelters that were so sick that they should have been PTS and not adopted out.
My "shelter cat" had fleas, worms, ear mites, conjunctivitus from herpes, food allergies that made her vomit frequently till we figured things out, and a urinary tract infection. She cost more in medical care the first six months than we spent on me and my husband all year. But I would do it again in a heatbeat.

She is a dream of a cat and it breaks my heart to imagine that she might have been killed because no wanted to take on her problems.
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post #15 of 64
10/12/07 at 3:14pm
I would in a heart beat, but they won't let me

I live in an apartment that has a no pets policy and even though I have always had a cat (now 2) they have never said anything and the management has seen them because I've never hid the fact that I have cats. However a shelter phones and does a check and they would be told "no pets". So I adopt privately or take in stray homeless kitties.
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post #16 of 64
10/12/07 at 3:16pm
My dog is a shelter dog, so yes, I have and would again.

FWIW: He was from a Municipal Animal Control Facility, high kill AKA, The Pound.
They do, indeed have foster programs, volunteers who come in and play with the animals, and volunteer dog walkers.
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post #17 of 64
10/12/07 at 3:20pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Abigail View Post
My "shelter cat" had fleas, worms, ear mites, conjunctivitus from herpes, food allergies that made her vomit frequently till we figured things out, and a urinary tract infection. She cost more in medical care the first six months than we spent on me and my husband all year. But I would do it again in a heatbeat.

She is a dream of a cat and it breaks my heart to imagine that she might have been killed because no wanted to take on her problems.
I'm sorry... let me qualify that. One kitty my friend adopted had a tumor wrapped around his bladder that made him so sick that he passed several weeks after she adopted him.

I'm saying that any type of adoption from anyone is some what of a risk. 8-Bit has allergies, Scratch has social problems, and Dr. Claw is a medical mess, but I'd still adopt all of them again in a heartbeat.
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post #18 of 64
10/12/07 at 3:27pm
Yes and that's how i got Jack through the Cats Protection.

They gave me a telephone interview which i was told afterwards that i'd passed, and they usually do a house check as well, more so with people they've never had contact with, but i've been a member who donates monthly for a while now.

It's their policy when you adopt through them that they pay for the shots, spay/neuter and microchip, but i wanted to save them money and pay for them myself, so because they knew me they were fine with that
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post #19 of 64
10/12/07 at 3:34pm
It''s the only place I would go. My baby Limerick and our dog were both adopted from shelters. I don't understand why anyone wouldn't at least look at a shelter first.
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post #20 of 64
10/12/07 at 3:45pm
My two girls (Marcie and Darcy) are adopted from different rescue organizations. I was amazed at the paperwork though...more papers to sign that when buying a new vehicle Marcie had pink eye that took quite awhile to clear up, but the main thing is, I just can't see how anyone could abandon either one of my sweet girls...Lucky for me though
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post #21 of 64
10/12/07 at 4:33pm
Not right now. I have two cats already and I don't want/can't have any more right now. Also my cat is allergic to flea medication so I really can't adopt a shelter cat-what if it has fleas or ear mites? I can't even use any medicine on a cat I have right now.
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post #22 of 64
10/12/07 at 4:36pm
Yes, I would adopt from a shelter. Just love those shelter kitties, they have personality and they make the best pets because they are so ever grateful.
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post #23 of 64
10/12/07 at 4:37pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by white cat lover View Post
I was declined recently to foster long-distance for someplace because I am a "hoarder". I have 5 cats of my own & 2 foster kittens....apparently that is hoarding. (Everyone is fixed & has shots)
That's just ridiculous. They turned down a home where the ability to care for cats has been proven? Doesn't make any sense.

All three of mine were adopted from Humane Society shelters.
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post #24 of 64
10/12/07 at 4:43pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by lookingglass View Post
I'm sorry... let me qualify that. One kitty my friend adopted had a tumor wrapped around his bladder that made him so sick that he passed several weeks after she adopted him.

I'm saying that any type of adoption from anyone is some what of a risk. 8-Bit has allergies, Scratch has social problems, and Dr. Claw is a medical mess, but I'd still adopt all of them again in a heartbeat.
My two cats are not from a shelter, one has alopecia and the other has psyco problems.
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post #25 of 64
10/12/07 at 4:50pm
Zoey shelter
Gigi shelter

OF course I would again/....

but my next two are likely coming from breeders... a GSD or anatolian ... the GSD would be from my Gigis groomer and the other is hard to come by .... next cat likely a breeder or shelter want a siamese
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post #26 of 64
10/12/07 at 5:01pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by GingersMom View Post

In my experience, the feral rescue that I adopted Ferris from had MANY more requirements and conditions than did the no-kill shelter. Their (the shelter's) big thing was: will the landlord allow you to have a pet? They don't bother with home visits, but MUST speak with your landlord directly by phone.
Our Humane Society & other adoption places here in town actually need the landlords signature/approval before we can adopt kitties too. I'm sure its just so they don't have to go thru the process of adopting out the cat & then if the landlord finds out, they have to return the pet

We're lucky that our landlord is okay with our 2 kitties, he signed off on Bayley!
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post #27 of 64
10/12/07 at 5:06pm
I only adopt from 3 sources: shelters/rescue groups, ferals, and animals abandoned on the side of the road.

The first cat I adopted when I was 18 years old came from a pet store. This was in the days where pet stores actually took in litters from people who lived in the neighborhood and the concept of puppy mills didn't exist. Every animal since then came from the 3 sources I listed above.
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post #28 of 64
10/12/07 at 5:16pm
I wouldn't hesitate to adopt from a shelter. I've become familiar with a couple of the local ones through my cat involvement and am impressed with the care they give the cats even under challenging circumstances (lack of funds, volunteers, etc...) None of my current cats came from shelters, although Pete and Claire are from a small private rescue/TNR group, but I'd absolutely consider a shelter cat when I'm in the position to adopt again.
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post #29 of 64
10/12/07 at 5:57pm
I've adopted from the shelter twice, so yes I would consider it again. But the next cat I want is another Ocicat, so it will be from a breeder.

I have no problem adopting from a shelter.
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post #30 of 64
10/12/07 at 6:01pm
All my animals recently have been shelter animals. In my childhood they were all from people we knew or strays--I've never bought from a breeder and probably won't. I feel too strongly about giving these Heinz 57 mixes a good home.
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