A bond between a pet and their owner is special in many ways. The unconditional love that pets bring, brings an incomparable joy to a home. When wanting to expand your family with a pet, adoption or buying from a breeder are the most common methods.
And while purchasing a pet from a breeder is a common method, many argue that it isn’t the best one.
A study conducted by Bone Voyage Rescue found that pet owners in the state of Idaho are shifting towards adoption rather than purchasing pets from breeders. According to the study, 50% of potential dog owners in Idaho expressed their intention to adopt from animal shelters, resulting in a 10% shift towards owning a pet from a shelter.
Eastern Idaho has several animal shelters and most notably, The Snake River Animal Shelter is the largest no-kill rescue 501c3 in the area. Filled with animals waiting to be adopted, the impact of adoption is argued to be far greater than purchasing one.
“The reality is that our country is overpopulated with unwanted pets,” Michelle Ziel, ? of the Snake River Animal Shelter said. “From our perspective, it is better to save the life of an animal who has been orphaned than to support an unregulated industry.”
The industry of breeding pets has been proven to be flawed in the case of many purebreds having health issues and additionally, many of these purebreds are rehomed because of the owners lack of readiness. “Oftentimes families are not ready for the time or financial commitment,” Michelle said.
At Snake River Animal Shelter, their mission is to find animals’ forever homes. To ensure a lesser likeliness of a pet returning to the shelter, the SRAS evaluates the potential adopter to see if they are the right fit.
The shift towards adoption could lead to less animals being homed in shelters where many animals are waiting to be adopted. “Many of the animals here are potty trained and have zero behavioral problems,” Michelle said. “We have moved into a phase where many of the animals actually have a high retail value out in the marketplace.”
As more animals are adopted from shelters, the space and resources for the current animals will increase, the unethical practices of breeding will potentially decrease and the quality of life for the adopted animal will greatly increase, according to the study.
“Adopting an animal is a life changing experience,” Michelle said. “We have heard so many absolutely incredible stories from adopters about how an animal that they adopted from the Snake River Animal Shelter has changed their life.”
Owning a pet is said to have benefits for both the owners mental and physical health all while increasing the wellbeing of the pet. With that being said, it’s safe to say that adoption is a win-win situation.
The adoption process at SRAS requires the potential adoptee to physically spend time with the animal at the facility along with any child under the age of 13 or any pet that lives in the home. The shelter performs a meet and greet and if approved by the adoption counselor, they can then fill out an adoption application. “The process can be one day or one hour,” Michelle said. “We want to ensure that we really are finding the right home and making it more convenient for folks to choose us as the shelter that they want to adopt an animal from.”
The shelter also encourages the community to foster animals, whether it's a short or long-term period. “Fostering can be so beneficial and rewarding for you as a person or as a family,” Michelle said. “Fostering allows that orphaned pet from the shelter to experience the warmth and the love of a family.”
The Snake River Animal Shelter houses a wide variety of pet breeds and ages, primarily from eight weeks to eight years. Those looking to adopt a loving companion are highly encouraged to visit an animal shelter.
“We want to lead the way in how the community perceives what a shelter can look like and feel like, and what kind of animals are in it,” Michelle said.
For more information on the Snake River Animal Shelter, call 208-523-4219 or visit www.snakeriveranimalshelter.org.