Finding the perfect life partner can be a challenge. Luckily in today’s society there are a variety of different outlets to turn to. Many, like speed dating, have become popular among the single community, which has also caught the eye of local animal shelters.
The Humane Society of Scott County hosted their third annual “speed dating” event at PetSmart on Feb. 15. Potential owners came to the store and met animals from the shelter in hopes of finding the right one to adopt.
The owners had time to meet each animal participating in the speed dating event, and they could even bring their other pets with them to see if they would match with other animals. The Humane Society compiled the owner’s likes, dislikes and personality to match them to a potential pet.
At the event 20 animals participated, and 10 found a home.
This event brought awareness to the need for shelter adoptions. Many local shelters struggle to find owners which results in an overflow of animals in need of a new home. Some shelters are created to rescue animals that have been abused or suffered cruelty in hopes of ending animal abuse.
Junior Maleigha McCulley has a lot of experience in the animal shelter community, “My mom is the president of the dog foster organization, K9 Kindness. Her foster is trying to spread awareness of the cruelty that comes along with adopting from many pet stores,” she said.
K9 Kindness finds owners to foster cats and dogs until they can find the perfect home. Many of the animals have medical issues or have been abused by a previous owner. They are looking for homes that will ensure that the animals do not suffer again and that can provide the care they need.
Many people often look to adopt from shelters instead of from pet stores. “A lot of times animals at pet stores are from mills and are overbred in harsh conditions,” said McCulley. Adopting from a shelter gives an animal a second chance at a better home.
Breeders and pet stores often over breed in their mills which creates a brutal environment for animals to live in. Senior Ian Kaffenberger is a proud owner of a shelter dog and believes it is important to adopt from shelters. “I think it is important to support saving the animals we have now instead of supporting breeders that are only in it for the money and might not provide the best living care or the proper mindset to take care of the animals while they are there,” he said.
Adopting a pet can be a challenge with the different ways to go about it, but events like speed dating are providing creative ways for potential owners to meet their matches. Shelters are always looking for people to foster or adopt their animals. Participating in fostering an animal is the first step in giving a pet a second chance at finding their life partner.
Pamela White • Feb 27, 2020 at 1:29 pm
This is a good thing to do, not a lot of people truly understand what animals go through. It’s good to have the experience to adopt them. My parents and I rescued our 3 dogs and we love them so much.