Pet Adoption

Pet adoption transfers responsibility for pet ownership from another party, such as a person, shelter, or rescue organization. Common sources for adoptable pets are animal shelters and rescue groups. Some organizations give adopters ownership of the pet, while others use a guardianship model wherein the organization retains some control over the animal's future use or care.

The ASPCA estimates that approximately 3.3 million dogs in the United States enter shelters each year. Of these, 1.6 million are adopted, 670,000 are euthanized, and 620,000 are returned to their previous owners. A rescue dog is a dog that has been placed in a new home after being abused, neglected, or abandoned by its previous owner.[11] The term can also apply to dogs that are found as strays, surrendered by owners for a variety of reasons

Pet adoption, local shelter and rescue sites have databases of pets being housed by and are searchable online.

Responsible owners will take the pet to a shelter, or call a rescue organization, where it will be cared for properly until a home can be found. The reasons for surrendering a pet may be due to allergies, the pet-owner's death, divorce, the birth of a baby, or relocation. 

Unless the organization has a no-kill policy euthanasia may be used for the excess animals to make room for newer pets The Humane Society of the United States estimates that 2.4 million healthy, adoptable cats and dogs are euthanized each year in the US because of a lack of homes. Animal protection advocates campaign for adoption instead of buying animals to reduce the number of animals who have to be euthanized. Many shelters and animal rescues encourage the education of spaying or neutering a pet to reduce the number of animals euthanized in shelters and to help control the pet population.

Best Friends Animal Society is the largest no-kill shelter in the United States. City shelters and government funded shelters rarely have this policy because of the large number of animals they receive. No-kill shelters are usually run by groups that have volunteers or individuals with enough space to foster pets until a permanent home can be found. However, many of these groups and individuals have a finite number of spaces available. 

In pet adoption, the main issue is whether the new adopter can provide a safe, secure, and permanent home for the adopted pet.