Adopt Don’t Shop

 by Manon Francis

Teddy in Romania

In our current climate, any issue which isn’t COVID-19 or Brexit doesn’t really get a look in. But simmering away in the background and largely overlooked, is the problem of ever-increasing overcrowding of our countries’ dog shelters. 

Approximately 130,000 dogs come into UK rehoming charities each year. But still a vast proportion of our dog population is sourced from puppy dealers. Although many puppies are bought from credible dealers, the action still reinforces demand for mass-production of certain trendy breeds, (poodle crosses and spaniels spring to mind) which can have detrimental effects on the dogs involved. The increased demand for these niche, popular breeds has resulted in genetic defects due to overbreeding. There are many recorded incidents of puppies being bought only to die a few days later due to causes like this. The mass buying of puppies has contributed to the puppy farming industry. A puppy farmer can be described as a high-volume breeder who breeds puppies with little or no respect for the health and welfare of the puppies or their parents. 400,000 farmed puppies are sold to the unaware British public each year. Sick or dying puppies can be sold for hundreds of pounds. To stop the inhumane treatment of the puppies, who are bred with no regard for their quality of life, but just for profit, instead of buying a puppy from a dealer, a puppy (or adult dog) can be adopted from a local shelter or organisation. 

The inclination to acquire a dog has been magnified during lockdown, as people have had more time on their hands. However, as they are now going back to work, and some losing their jobs, they have neither the time nor the finances to properly care for the dog, and so are abandoning them at shelters. This has already resulted in a massive influx of unwanted dogs, adding to the already straitened circumstances in the shelters. It is of note that 1 in 4 puppies sold in lockdown were thought to be from a puppy farm. 

Steps have been taken to combat the problem of puppy farming, most recently in the form of Lucy’s Law (named after Lucy, a King Charles spaniel puppy rescued from a farm), which bans the sale of kittens and puppies from third parties from spring 2020, making buyers deal with breeders directly. But the moral dilemma is clear: why support the questionable business of puppy dealing/farming, when there are so many dogs needing good homes already in the shelters? 

Whilst there are some recognised benefits in buying a puppy from a credible dealer, such as being able to form their character from an early age, there are common misconceptions that adopted dogs take more work, when in fact, puppies, especially in the early stages, are very time-consuming (although ultimately this depends on the dog). There are other options to buying a puppy from a dealer, whilst still obtaining a young dog. For example, many puppies are rejected when in training to become service dogs, and are then put up for adoption, and these puppies already have basic training. Or a puppy could be adopted from someone who bought it and now cannot take care of it. The entire process of going out and buying a puppy also neglects the dogs needing homes in shelters. Part of the reason why buying a puppy has become more fashionable than adopting is due to celebrities and trends, prompting adoption charities and supporters to coin the phrases ‘adopt don’t shop’ and ‘a dog is for life, not just for Christmas’. 

Teddy now

The most obvious solution to finding a puppy without contributing to puppy dealing is by adopting one from a shelter or organisation, as both puppies and adult dogs can be found there. For example, my family adopted a dog 3 years ago from a UK based charity which rehabilitates street dogs from Romania (Paws2Rescue). Compared to our friends dogs, all bought from dealers as puppies, he remains the most gentle, well-trained and affectionate of all. He was found in Romania chained in the dark Teddy in Romania Teddy now with 10 other dogs, all in appalling circumstances. The charity rescued and rehabilitated him, then kept him in their pound until he could be rehomed in the UK. The charity is desperately poor, relying on donations, as they often struggle to even feed the dogs. He is an absolute joy and we would encourage anyone to adopt in this way. 

There are also many local UK shelters, all of which contain dogs in need of good homes. There are many benefits to adopting these dogs- it is normally much less expensive, they are less likely to have health problems as they are more likely to be mixed breed and the puppy stage, although desirable for some, can be skipped. The dog may also have had previous training. That being said, adoption isn’t for everyone and people have the right to decide in what way to obtain a dog, but everyone should be aware of how the decision they make impacts the rest of the dog market in the UK as a whole