We all see those “Free to good home” classifieds running through the Pets Section of our local Kijiji or Craig’s List advertising websites. You know the ones…the ones with the cute pictures of fluffy kittens and fat, little puppies that are so adorable you want to make a phone call and go pick up your new pet without even thinking about it.
But what do those ads really mean for your pocketbook? And how do those ads really impact the lives of the animals they purport to make better?
When you bring home one of those “free” puppies or kittens, your new pet will need a set of vaccinations every 3 months for a year. She’ll also need to be de-wormed over that year so that intestinal parasites don’t take all the nutrients in her food and cause her to become malnourished. Additionally, you’ll probably want to have her microchipped so that, if she becomes lost or strays, whoever finds her knows how to contact you. You may also need to have her stool or her blood tested for such horrible diseases as canine parvovirus, rampant in backyard puppies, or FIV/Feline Leukemia, diseases easily preventable by a vaccine, but ones that can be passed from an unvaccinated momma cat to her kittens. Later, of course, as a responsible pet parent, you’ll want to spay or neuter your “free” pet.
All of this good care can run you anywhere from $500 to $800 at your favorite veterinary clinic. Compare that expenditure to the cost of adopting a pet from your local shelter or Humane Society. Adoption fees for puppies and kittens are a fraction of this cost ($150-210) and include vaccines, de-worming medications, flea treatments, adoption counseling, socialization and enrichment, food samples, microchips, and spay/neuter procedures. Some shelters even provide 6 months of pet insurance if you adopt one of their homeless pets.
People involved with animal rescue have long recognized that many of the puppies and kittens listed in the classifieds come from puppy mills or backyard breeders. With little to no federal regulation of these dealers, the puppies and kittens they “give away” are usually the ones they can’t sell. When well-meaning people take home one of these little animals, the breeders are only encouraged to continue making new babies for sale and giving the ones they can’t sell – the “free” ones – to anyone who will take them.
Many of these animals are products of overbreeding and are born with genetic issues that predispose them to ailments that only show up as the pet ages. Many come from mothers who were malnourished during pregnancy and whose babies suffer from a lack of complete nutrients in mother’s milk. You may find that your “free” puppy or kitten is so covered in fleas or filled with intestinal worms that its health is compromised. Some diseases, including canine parvovirus, canine distemper, and Feline Calicivirus, a common respiratory disease in cats, can be asymptomatic until a few days after you get your new pet home. All of these diseases are preventable with early vaccinations, but most “free” puppies and kittens are not given that kind of care by their breeders.
According to numbers compiled by the Canadian Federation of Humane Societies, there were almost 120,000 cats and kittens and over 53,000 dogs and puppies living in shelters in 2012, the latest date statistics were available. Approximately half of those animals were adopted into forever homes – the other half were humanely euthanized due to disease, temperament, or space restrictions. Many of those animals were purebred dogs and cats just waiting for a home with someone not wanting a mixed breed.
So here is my question for animal lovers everywhere: Isn’t saving the life of an unwanted puppy or kitten living in a shelter a better deal in the long run, both economically and humanely, than bringing home that “free” pet from the classifieds?
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