rebecca LANDO

ericmortensen:

(via tuttifanni)

My dog, Baxter, is an emergency blood donor.  We live very close to the animal hospital so they save us for emergency situations.  We got the call last night at about 8.  We drop him off, where he’s absolutely terrified, and then we pick him up a few hours later.  When gets home we treat him like a hero, even though he didn’t have a choice and doesn’t really even understand what happened, other than that it was unpleasant.

Adopting Baxter is probably the best thing I’ve ever done. It’s great for him because he found a home. It’s great for me because he is a constant joy generator.  And it’s great for the four or five dogs who have been lucky enough to receive his blood and a new leash (see what I did there?) on life.

Do not buy a dog.  Do not breed a dog.  Find a no kill shelter and adopt a dog. There’s one there waiting for you, desperate for your love and eager to love you back.

Reblogging specifically for Eric’s last part [emphasis mine]. Yes, that puppy in the pet store is adorable. But if you don’t think fully-grown dogs are cute, then what are you going to do once that puppy you bought isn’t a puppy any longer?

You think shelter dogs come with baggage and issues? Yes, some do. Some come with severe baggage and emotional handicaps that take a lot of training to get over. But puppies start at zero. Puppies need to learn everything. And that puppy at the pet store probably needs to learn even more, because, more likely than not, it was born in a puppy mill and was separated from its mom way before it should have been.

Don’t shop. Adopt.