Are Shelter Dogs America’s Throwaway Dogs?

Are shelter dogs America’s throwaway dogs? It’s #NationalPetDay, so it’s a good time to ask this question.

I did some digging. I went to 11 shelter websites in CA, NV, TX, AL, SC, and NY, and looked at their adoption fees for adult dogs/puppies. The range for all dogs was $0 to $150, with the average adoption fee of $70 for an adult dog.

Now compare that $70 average fee to a “Family of Four Feast” at Red Lobster for $136.99, an annual Netflix subscription for $167+, or a monthly cell phone bill for an F-O-F for $150/month+.

Where am I going with this?

When someone adopts a shelter dog that costs less than a dinner out, a Netflix subscription, or a cell phone bill, what are the odds of the dog becoming nothing more than a commodity?

Contrast that with someone who goes the breeder route, and adopts a dog for $$$$. According to a 2023 NAIA Study, only 5% of shelter dogs are purebred. A different value system?

• Fact: 60% of dogs adopted are with different owners within six months of their adoption.
• Fact: 6 out of 10 dogs adopted are returned.
• Fact: 96% of dogs surrendered received no training

Take Broward County ACC. Between 10/1/2021 and 9/30/2022, they took in 2,382 dogs of which ~20% were outright owner surrender or adoption returns; 70% were strays (a.k.a. abandoned/dumped, or lost/unfound); the rest cruelty or confiscation.

Of those owner-surrendered, the reason breakdown:

• Euthanasia Request/Medical – 25.5%
• Aggression/Bites – 13.0% * Owner Problems – 10.1%
• Too Many Pets – 6.5%
• Euthanasia Request/Behavioral – 6.3%
• Eviction/Homelessness – 4.6%
• Moving – 4.3%
• Landlord – 3.8%
• Owner Died – 3.3%
• Allergies – 2.7%
• Other/No reason – 19.8%

Of those adopted/returned, the reason breakdown:

• Aggression/Bites – 23.2%
• Owner Problems – 22.2%
• Landlord – 7.1%
• Destruction/House Soiling – 6.1%
• Allergies – 5.1%
• Euthanasia Request/Medical – 5.1%
• Moving – 3.0%
• Too Many Pets – 3.0%
• Other/No reason 25.3%

Shelters are at capacity; rescues are overwhelmed. Healthy dogs are being euthanized for space.

My SM feed is inundated with pleas and photos. “Adopt/Don’t Shop,” “Looking for a Home” and “Save a Life.” Many good, well-meaning people, who are NOT really prepared to adopt a dog can act emotionally and impulsively.

More importantly, people adopt the wrong breed of dog for their personality and lifestyle. And when the dog is brought home, reality sets in.

The result? A trip to the shelter, a Craig’s List ad, a gate or door left open, a one-way ride to …, etc.

What’s the answer?

In my book, put all the adoption puzzle pieces together for people before they adopt, and help them decide which adoption path is best for them.

I want to help break this cycle of the throwaway dog and help people know everything from what dog breed is best for them, what it really costs to own a dog, and why training is so critical for dog & owner to create that unbreakable bond of love and caring.

And, most importantly, I want people to learn that dogs are emotional beings with the capacity to understand when they are loved and truly wanted vs. merely tolerated and “in the way.”

Fewer dogs may be adopted, true. But those who are will have a better chance of loving, forever homes.