Adopt or shop responsibly: Breeding, rescue, and my evolution
This article was first published in July 2022 and last updated with a few small tweaks in November 2023.
One of the most polarizing conversations I’ve noticed as a dog owner is the discussion about where to get your pet. Should you “adopt” from a shelter or should you “shop” from a breeder?
People get passionate about this topic, and I understand why. More than three million dogs enter American shelters each year. About 400,000 are euthanized. The homeless pet reality is hard for any dog lover to face.
But well-intentioned passion can lead to unproductive anger. It’s heartbreaking to watch folks who should be bonding over their shared love of canines berating each other’s choices instead.
The way I see it: You can be a responsible owner and get your dog from a shelter or rescue… and you can also be a responsible owner and get your dog from a breeder. These things are not mutually exclusive.
Here’s my attempt to distill the complex “adopt or shop” topic into a digestible article based on personal experience, research, and general dog-world learning! (I’ve put together another article about how I suggest friends should get their next dog depending on their preferences, lifestyle factors, and more, too.)
My forever disclaimer
I am not a dog trainer, breeder, or other pet professional. I am always happy to share how I’ve come to my conclusions and provide resources that have helped me learn.
Feel free to email or comment with questions or thoughts of your own!
What this article dives into
My personal experience (I used to shout #AdoptDontShop from the rooftops)
A quick look at the homeless pet problem in America
Ethical shelters and rescues: Why they’re important and what they look like
Ethical breeders: Why they’re important and what they look like
How ethical rescues and breeders might work together in an ideal world
Some myths about purebred dogs and rescues
Ultimately: Everyone gets to make their own decisions
TLDR: Main “adopt or shop responsibly” takeaways
Both adopting and shopping can be done responsibly in ways that don’t directly contribute to the homeless pet population. Both can also be done irresponsibly in ways that ultimately hurt the species we love.
An ASPCA national rehoming survey found that “pet problems” (like undesirable behaviors, growing larger than expected, or health issues) are the most common reason people get rid of their companion animals.
Ethical breeders try to minimize those pet problem risks by making thoughtful parent pairings and preparing owners. They also follow through on rehoming contracts—so their pups never end up in a shelter environment.
Speaking of preparation: Ethical rescues can also prepare owners for exactly what they’re committing to, especially if they’re foster-based. While staff and volunteers might not know an adult dog’s genetics and ancestors, they can observe habits in a home environment ahead of time.
Purebred doesn’t necessarily mean well bred. We can love poorly bred dogs—their lives are absolutely worthwhile!—while also wanting to create a more stable, adaptable canine population in the long run.
Multiple things can be true at once. Genetics affect everything from appearance to personality. How we raise them matters, but puppies aren’t a blank slate. Old dogs can learn new tricks. Nothing with dogs (or life in general) happens in a vacuum!
Shelters are important to address our current situation (reduce pet homelessness in the here and now) while ethical breeders are vital for long-term sustainability (produce healthy dogs suited to our modern world).
The way to truly help dogs is not to shun all breeders. It’s to educate owners, increase access to pet care resources, and work together for the animals we love so much.
My personal experience growing from “adopt don’t shop” to “I also support ethical breeders”
Quick high level of my rescue involvement and beliefs
My Australian cattle dog, Scout, is a rescue. She was found as a stray and is pretty much my whole world. (Just take a look at this website 😉)
Scout also struggles with health (epilepsy) and temperament (fear) issues that likely have some genetic components.
The inspiration to adopt Scout came from my parents’ rescued husky. She had a rough start to life in large part due to an unethical breeder. It was heartbreaking.
Before we moved into our van, I regularly walked local shelter dogs.
We fostered five dogs in 2022—an injured adult and four puppies, one of whom came back to us months after her initial adoption with a broken leg—even though it required some extra logistical effort given Scout’s fear.
In all likelihood, we’ll adopt another shelter or rescue dog someday. Fostering to adopt seems like a great option!
I’m also really excited about the idea of getting a well-bred puppy from an ethical breeder in the future.
I adore my rescue dogs
In 2017, my family adopted a special-needs Siberian husky named “Snort” (don’t even get me started, she came with that title) from our local shelter. She’s an incredible creature who was dealt an unfair hand. I couldn’t be more thrilled we were able to give her a second chance.
Two years later, I fell in love with an Australian cattle dog at the same humane society. Scout was similar to Snort in many ways—both uncharacteristically fearful dogs of notoriously high energy, bold breeds—and I’ve never regretted bringing her home.
My initial rescue experience made me want to hate all breeders
After seeing what my family’s husky went through because of her irresponsible breeder, I was ready to brand anyone who sold puppies as a horrible person. Snort was bred far too young and then carelessly abandoned because of her health.
I hashtagged #AdoptDontShop without a second thought and cringed when the people on my social media feeds showed off their new non-rescue puppies. I thought I was promoting good decisions and showing my love for dogs… but I didn’t realize I was wrongfully discriminating against some great owners.
What I came to understand is that there are unethical and reputable breeders. There are unethical and reputable rescues. And there are valid reasons to both adopt or shop!
I now deeply understand wanting more predictability in a well-bred dog
While I’m delighted my family adopted Snort and that two years later I found Scout, I’d be lying if I said these shelter dogs haven’t given us their fair share of pain along with all the joy.
There’s a good chance our blue heeler’s idiopathic epilepsy is hereditary. Had Scout been reputably bred from lines that were monitored, we might not be dealing with seizures and associated med side effects.
The same goes for my family’s husky. Snort has severe keratoconjunctivitis sicca (dry eye) that’s been only partially mitigated by two implant surgeries and still requires multiple (sometimes more than 10) eye drop applications each day.
We love these dogs. My parents and I are honored to work through whatever comes up with our companions. We’re also privileged to have the resources to do so. That financial, emotional, and time commitment would be unreasonable to expect of everyone who wants to share life with a pet.
I can responsibly support both “sides”
While Scout is one of the most amazing creatures I’ve ever met, it does break my heart that what we’re dealing with maybe could have been prevented. This personal experience with terrifying seizures, invasive tests, and difficult medication decisions (not to mention her timid temperament despite years of training) has made me even more aware of the value of reputable breeding.
And—as hard as it was for this former #AdoptDontShop-er to swallow—there are unethical rescues out there, too. The line isn’t as simple as a black-and-white divide between “adopting” or “shopping”. Both can be done responsibly! And both can be done in a way that hurts the species we love.
A quick look at the homeless pet problem in America
It’s difficult to obtain exact data on how many homeless dogs, cats, and other companion animals live in the United States. That said, at the time of writing:
The ASPCA estimates that about 6.3 million companion animals enter shelters each year (3.1 million dogs and 3.2 million cats).
This number of pets entering the shelter system has actually declined in recent years. This might be due to a range of factors like increased adoptions, more frequent reunions with original owners, and a decrease in accidental litters through education and spaying & neutering protocols.
According to a national rehoming survey, “pet problems” (like undesirable behaviors, growing larger than expected, or health issues) are the most common reason people get rid of their companion animals.
Human and animal welfare are directly correlated. Pets are often neglected or abandoned not because their owners are “bad people” but because they don’t have access to important resources.
Many factors contribute to pet homelessness: Systematic inequalities, poor healthcare, lack of education, difficult housing policies, breed-specific legislation, unethical breeding practices, and more. There is no magic one-size-fits-all solution.
Shelters and rescues play an important role in giving dogs a second chance
Every year, animal shelters and foster-based rescue organizations save thousands of pets and brighten the worlds of countless people. The ASPCA estimates that more than four million dogs and cats are adopted into new families annually, while around 800,000 strays are reunited with their original owners. (Microchipping is a big part of that latter number.)
These nonprofits do their best to meet changing needs while dealing with limited resources and public criticism. Staff and volunteers often feel overworked and underappreciated. Each day they try to clean up other people’s messes. They are forced to face the harsh reality of animal neglect and abuse in our country; to wonder how some owners could do such harm to innocent creatures; to sit with injured, scared, abandoned pets who deserve better.
It’s a difficult job. And it’s an important one.
From the beloved family dog who escapes his fence and can be reunited with his owners, to the puppy rescued from a hoarding situation, to every animal in between, reputable shelters and rescues are integral to our lives with companion animals.
These organizations create joy out of hardship. They inspire: They highlight the depths of our compassion for other species and showcase the resilience of man’s best friend. Above all, they underscore the amazing human-canine bond—a coevolved relationship that has survived for centuries.
Signs of a responsible shelter or rescue
Provides honest descriptions of their adoptable animals, at least to the best of their knowledge. Dogs might show different behavior in shelter environments than they will once settled in a forever home, and some problems (like our own cattle dog’s epilepsy, for example) are hard to detect right away. It’s unreasonable to expect any shelter or rescue to be perfect—but they should try to give a full picture. Foster-based organizations know the most about each dog in their program.
Seeks families who are a genuinely good fit for each animal, even if it means waiting a little while to finalize an adoption.
Openly answers questions about where each adoptable pet came from and how they’re cared for.
Is transparent about adoption fees and where that money goes.
Signs of an unethical shelter or rescue
Does not honestly evaluate their adoptable animals. Might lie or “sugarcoat” issues in an attempt to get dogs out the door as quickly as possible.
Often has purebred litters of puppies from an unknown source. Some organizations buy from puppy mills or other unethical breeders to sell under the guise of rescue.
Does not vet potential adopters at all.
On the flip, makes it nearly impossible for anyone to adopt an animal by imposing excessive requirements.
Adoption applications are a tricky balance, and every shelter strikes it differently. It’s important for rescues to have some guidelines to avoid giving animals to folks who won’t be able to provide a stable home—but at the same time, too-difficult adoption restrictions (like insisting an adopter has a yard and doesn’t live in an apartment) can actually drive people to unethical breeders (who will happily give them a puppy without asking any questions).
Ethical dog breeders are also key to preserve the species we love
I’m a rescue advocate. Having experienced the joy of adopting animals and volunteering with wonderful organizations firsthand, it used to be difficult for me to imagine supporting anything that wasn’t a shelter or rescue.
But the truth is this: Without thoughtful breeding practices, we could lose some of the traits—and the ability to guess them at a young age—we love in our domestic dogs.
I praise ethical breeders for trying above all to maintain steady temperaments and good health in their puppies. There is so much value in a dog with a known ancestry, reasonably expected personality, and low chance of genetic diseases!
Note that I emphasize words like ethical. Are there bad dog breeders out there? Absolutely: Puppy mills, backyard operations in it for the wrong reasons, folks who want their dog to have a litter just because it would be fun (or because they don’t take precautions and it happened by accident), people who produce purebreds with a focus on appearance alone, people who think breeding certain dogs gives them a status boost… and more, sadly.
Those are the breeders contributing to overpopulated shelters. Those are the people who claim to love dogs but actually hurt them.
The breeder who bred my family’s husky despite her eye condition and then dumped her at a shelter? Yep, one of those irresponsible examples. But every breeder in the entire world? That would be an unfair—and ultimately unproductive—generalization to make.
“Why do people need specific traits?”
This is a question I’ve often heard when talking about the stability of well-bred dogs. While I understand where it comes from—perhaps in a perfect world we’d all take in whatever dogs came our way and be able to work with them through any problems—it’s not reality.
Here are two answers I think about often, plus an extra tangent.
Good dog breeders breed adept working dogs
First, some people do need dogs for specific jobs.
Service dogs improve the lives of more than 80 million Americans. Functioning as medical equipment according to the ADA, these working animals make it possible for their handlers to experience greater freedom, confidence, and independence.
While many working breeds are now most commonly owned as pets, thousands of people still use herding, livestock guardian, or other purpose-bred dogs to help them run their livelihoods.
It’s imperative that dogs used in law enforcement or security capacities have stable temperaments. Examples include detection (like the pointers who regularly sniffed me and my partner before we flew out of our local airport) and search & rescue dogs.
Good dog breeders provide families with peace of mind
Second, some families need dogs with a certain temperament—even if they’ll be pets, not working canines—because of individual lifestyle requirements or past experiences.
I know multiple people who have had to go through behavioral euthanasia. I’ve also watched many devoted owners struggle with the emotional and financial realities of their pets’ health problems. And no matter how strong or committed or equipped you are… those are ordeals I wouldn’t wish on anyone.
Thanks to ethical breeding practices? We can stack the deck in our favor to avoid them!
By getting a puppy from a reputable breeder, families can minimize their odds of having to deal with severe issues down the line. It’s important to note that nothing is a guarantee—nature and nurture both play a role in who our pets become—but a truly dedicated breeder does their best to lay a solid foundation. They aim to provide important peace of mind for those who need it.
Not everyone is in a position to handle intense behavioral modification or physical rehabilitation. And that’s okay. An inability to take on greater uncertainty doesn’t mean these families don’t still deserve to share their lives with a canine best friend.
It’s also okay to have wants, not just needs
Finally: We don’t have to need something in a life-or-death imperative sense to still want it. Forcing someone to adopt a rescue dog simply because we think they should “be able” to isn’t fair. Think of all the decisions you make in a given year about how you spend your money, what organizations you support, where you travel… each of us lives our own life. We make our own choices, based on our own value frameworks.
No good comes from acting high and mighty. It creates shame and division—when we should be aiming for education, empowerment, and connection.
Signs of a responsible dog breeder
In the breeding world to better their chosen breed and because they’re passionate about the dog-human relationship—not strictly for profit. Prioritizes quality over quantity.
Health and temperament tests parents to minimize the risk of passing on detectable genetic diseases or behavior problems.
Aims to produce dogs with predictable traits. Acknowledge if problems come up in their lines and actively work to prevent them.
Proves their dogs in relevant areas (dog sports, therapy work, and other titles can demonstrate that parents can do what they claim the puppies will be able to do).
Has rehoming contracts so their dogs don’t ever end up in crowded shelters.
Evaluates potential families to ensure a good match for each puppy. Maintains contact with adopters—or is at least available for support throughout their dogs’ lives.
Might be a key player in the breed-specific rescue community for their chosen breed.
Signs of an unethical breeder
Are in it for profit first. Often has several litters a year to get puppies out the door (quantity over quality).
Does not health or temperament test parents and might breed their dogs too young.
Produces dogs with a higher chance of health and behavior problems.
Won’t take responsibility for their dogs if a purchasing family can no longer care for them.
Sends their puppies home with anyone who is willing to pay.
Because they spend less caring for, evaluating, and proving their parent dogs, they have cheaper puppy prices that draw in well-meaning, uneducated dog owners.
How dog shelters, rescues, and breeders can all work together (in a perfect world, what would we do?)
Remember the “pet problems”—undesirable behaviors, growing larger than expected, or health issues—that most commonly lead to owners getting rid of their dogs? In my perfect world, the dog rescue and breeding communities would work together to prevent those situations from occurring.
We’d both:
Adopt out current homeless animals in an honest, transparent way and
reduce the number of unwanted companions by trying to breed more predictable pets in the first place.
I particularly enjoyed this passage from Marking Our Territory’s article on responsible breeding:
“Adoption addresses the urgency of our current situation while ethical breeding sets the standard for future sustainability. Ethical breeding is not a spigot which can simply be turned off today and turned back on when there are zero homeless animals. It’s a process which requires thoughtful and constant stewardship across generations.”
Health and temperament evaluations help owners find the right fit
Rescues should be honest about their dogs’ traits
A rescue or shelter should carefully evaluate each dog that comes to them. Based on their health and temperament screenings, they can then provide appropriate recommendations for a future home!
It’s tempting to say that every animal is good with kids or doesn’t have a single medical issues just to get them adopted. But in the long run, false claims only hurt well-meaning adopters and the dogs themselves.
Breeders should aim for predictability
Similarly, it’s vital that a breeder conducts temperament evaluations and health checks on both the dam and sire prior to breeding—as well as carefully considers their ancestors overall (not every condition has an easy, simple “test” to run just on the parents). My family’s husky is a perfect example of a dog who should not have been bred because of her eye condition. Ophthalmologists believe that keratoconjunctivitis sicca could be hereditary, so there’s a chance she could have passed it along to her offspring.
An ethical breeder will never breed a dog with an undesirable temperament or detectable health problems. They are in the business for the betterment of the breed. They want to improve the dog-human bond! That means carefully evaluating what traits are passed along in their lines.
Access to resources enables families to better care for their dogs
By equipping people to better care for their pets, we can reduce the number of homeless animals on the front end instead of merely reacting after the fact. Every dog owner deserves access to both educational content itself and the resources to act on that information!
When we address larger societal inequalities, we improve the lives of people and their companions together instead of villainizing good hearts doing their best with what they have. I particularly enjoyed how Bronwen Dickey addressed this topic in her Pit Bull book.
I think we’d do well to try to increase access to veterinary care, short-term foster options to help owners keep possession of their pets through housing problems, free or low-cost educational information about canine body language, and related resources. Both the dog rescue and breeding worlds play a key role in this.
Rehoming contracts keep pets out of overcrowded shelters
Rehoming contracts aim to ensure that if you are unable to care for your new pet at any given point, they end up in a good home without putting unnecessary strain on public shelters.
Most rescues require you to return the animal to them since they know the pet’s history and already went through this process once before. (This was the policy at the humane society where my family adopted Snort and I adopted Scout.)
Breeders, on the other hand, do not all have these contracts. They’re important, though—a breeder who stands by their rehoming contract will never contribute to the growing number of dogs in shelters. Any of their puppies who can’t be kept will be returned to them instead of abandoned.
Snort’s original breeder, for example, was devastated to learn that the family she was sold to had dumped her at a shelter. A rehoming contract and more transparent communication could have prevented the entire thing. (While I’m deeply thankful for how it all played out because it brought Snort into my life, I would also love for no dog to have to go through such an experience in the future.)
What is functional breeding and where might it lead?
Functional dog breeding seeks to produce both purebred and mixed breeds who will thrive in our modern human society. Rather than a strict focus on maintaining a closed gene pool (or following a sometimes-arbitrary standard), the Functional Dog Collaborative prioritizes practical physical and behavioral health metrics like:
Ability to breathe and move freely
Reduced rates of genetic disease
Minimal fear of novel stimuli
Minimal separation anxiety and compulsions
I think this movement has potential to improve the purebred and overall dog ownership worlds. I’m excited to see how it grows—and I’d love to support a functional dog breeder if we purchase a well-bred puppy in the future.
They’re a great example of caring about the dogs themselves rather than status.
Some myths about purebred and rescue dogs
Does every dog purchased from a breeder mean another dies in a shelter?
This topic gets messy.
I believe it is important to think about the realities of supply and demand. At the same time, it feels remiss to act like there’s a one-to-one relationship with every dog purchased from a breeder and every dog abandoned in the shelter.
The above section on ethical breeders outlines why some folks might need the traits ethical breeding works to provide. Put simply: It’s not always a choice between “rescue dog” and “dog from a breeder”. Sometimes it’s “greatest chance of ideal temperament” or “no dog at all”.
Many ethical breeders are key players in the rescue community for their chosen breed. They can provide invaluable expertise and a network of resources.
Many families choose to both adopt a dog from a shelter or rescue and purchase a puppy from a breeder throughout the course of their dog ownership. It isn’t all or nothing!
Stable dogs can give (especially first-time) owners a positive experience with caring for a pet. As they learn, love, and grow, this might make them even more willing to take on a rescue case down the line! (Conversely, difficult dog ownership experiences can make folks hesitant to live with a canine ever again. I’d be lying if I said I hadn’t personally thought about this in particularly tough moments with Scout.)
Are mutts healthier than purebred dogs?
Another messy topic: The answer is both yes and no. Mutts can be healthier than their purebred counterparts… but they aren’t necessarily. Because genetics are complex, the simple mantra that “mutts are healthier” can do more harm than good when it sets unrealistic expectations for a new owner.
Purebred doesn’t necessarily mean well bred
First things first: Purebred doesn’t necessarily mean well bred. Purebred simply means from a closed gene pool. Well bred, on the other hand, can have a range of definitions depending on who you ask. It typically means that a dog’s parents have been carefully selected to produce healthy puppies who are capable of handling whatever environment they’re destined for (be that a working dog job, a family home, etc).
An example of this distinction:
My family’s husky, Snort, is technically purebred. The shelter was able to give us AKC registration papers her previous owners surrendered with her.
She is not, however, well-bred. She is structurally out of the Siberian husky breed standard, unusually timid, and suffers from health problems thought to have a genetic component.
I think it’s also important to note that just because a dog is physically within their breed standard doesn’t necessarily mean they’re well bred. This is for a few reasons:
Some breed standards might be rooted in traditions that are actually unproductive when we think about what we want the dog-human bond to be like long term. (Many breeds were developed more for appearance than purpose.)
Breeding to extremism—very small or large body size, incredibly short snouts or legs, and so on—is generally detrimental to canine health. This is an important problem to recognize in some of the purebred dog community.
Ethical breeding is about more than producing certain physical traits. It’s also about creating mental and emotional stability. Looks aren’t everything—temperament is key! Good breeders know this. (Again, this is why I’m drawn to functional breeding.)
Health testing and carefully monitoring lines can make a difference
Health testing plays a huge role in creating purebred dogs who are also well bred. Here’s the way I often think of it:
A randomly bred mutt is going to be healthier than a poorly bred purebred (on the average).
But a well-bred purebred or intentional mix—whose parents were health tested and lines have been monitored—is likely going to be healthier than a randomly bred mutt.
See what I mean about complicated? Saying that mutts are healthier than purebreds isn’t necessarily false. But it’s also not necessarily true.
Here’s how this works:
Purebred dogs have lower genetic diversity. We did this on purpose. It’s how we’ve created predictable aspects of specific breeds over time.
Decreased genetic diversity in traits we like (for example, German shepherds reliably have pointy ears) also comes with decreased diversity in other traits we might not want (like chance for hip problems).
If we randomly bred two mutts with high genetic diversity and two purebreds with low genetic diversity, odds are the mutts would be healthier because there are so many different copies of genes in their pool. We’d be less likely to “grab” two bad ones.
But here’s the thing: Ethical breeding isn’t random. Health testing can all but guarantee certain conditions aren’t passed along. This actually makes the odds of health problems in a well-bred purebred lower than in a randomly bred mutt!
It’s important to note that there are constraints to this, of course. Not every health problem can be tested for. (In fact many of them can’t, and that’s where more traditional practices of monitoring lines back generations and generations can come in.) Sometimes we have to weigh traits we like against traits we don’t. Breeding is not a seamless, perfectly engineered process—but truly good breeding does reduce the chance of genetic health and behavioral problems.
Dr. Kelly Boddington’s Instagram story highlight on mutt versus purebred health does an excellent job visually explaining this concept. I highly recommend giving it a read!
Does breed even matter?
The Darwin’s Ark project has recently gotten a lot of media attention, shared with headlines like “your dog’s breed doesn’t determine its personality”. It’s been polarizing in some of the dog community, but (as pretty much always) I find myself feeling that the truth lies somewhere in the middle ground.
No, breed isn’t everything when it comes to who our dogs are. But it’s not nothing, either.
Basically:
Dog behavior is complicated. Many factors contribute to who our dogs are and how they act. We can’t separate nature and nurture!
Human sociability, something just about every average family home cares about a lot, was found to be quite heritable.
Some breeds have stronger behavioral patterns than others. Traits like grab-bite (think nippy herding dog) and chasing (think hunting dog) instincts often do fall along breed lines. Other traits have more variability within breed pools.
In some dimensions, dogs within the same breed are just as different from each other as dogs from different breeds.
We should use breed as a guideline, especially when considering groups of dogs bred for a very specific purpose (like working cattle dogs selected specifically for farm life).
But we should also be careful about making sweeping breed-based assumptions, especially on appearance alone, and especially in a shelter setting. (Just because a dog looks like a lab doesn’t mean it will be social or love water).
Are rescue dogs mentally or emotionally damaged?
Absolutely not! I want to be really clear: Rescue dogs are amazing. They are not worth any less than dogs from reputable breeders. They are not “bad” or broken.
Many rescue dogs are fantastic companions who end up homeless for reasons completely unrelated to their own traits, like owner living situations, finances, and health. And even if dogs in the shelter system do have medical or behavioral problems? They still deserve love and care and as much joy as we can provide. (I mean, Scout is by no means an “ideal” dog for our modern human world—but she is the love of my life.)
So no, rescue animals aren’t inherently damaged.
That said: Depending on the rescue situation, they can come with more risk than well-bred dogs whose parents were carefully selected and whose breeder is confident about what to expect. When honestly evaluated and addressed, this risk doesn’t make most rescue pets unadoptable. It just means that an appropriate, well-matched home needs to be found!
After all, not every person in the world is perfectly suited for every dog.
Sometimes it’s difficult to estimate these risks without knowing an animal’s background. For example: While Scout’s epilepsy is likely genetic, it didn’t show itself until we’d had her for nearly two years. The shelter adopted her out to us as a healthy dog—and they weren’t lying to us on purpose. They did the best they could. (An ethical breeder likely would have been able to avoid producing an animal prone to seizures in the first place.)
Every individual has the right to decide they aren’t up for a certain level of potential unpredictability—even if the risks are assessed as carefully as possible. That doesn’t mean rescues aren’t amazing companions. It just means they might not be for everyone, in all situations.
Is it “all in how you raise them”?
This phrase is common—and often said with the best of intentions—but it’s also untrue.
So many things go into our pets’ personalities, preferences, and predispositions. Genetics, early experiences during their critical socialization periods, environmental factors throughout their lives (even while in utero), a bit of pure chance… and more.
The reality that “how we raise” our dogs is not the only variable at play can be both comforting and disheartening. But the more we embrace nuance? The more we can set realistic goals, fulfill our companions’ biological needs, and move forward productively!
You can read more of my thoughts about the “it’s all in how you raise them” idea in this blog.
What this means for the “adopt or shop” conversation: Puppies aren’t blank slates. Adopting a puppy with unknown genetics can be a great decision! But we need to be prepared for a wide range of potential traits.
(Personal example: My husband and I fostered unknown mixed breed puppies in 2022. Some potential adopters wanted to know how big they’d get because their landlords had pet size requirements. We were truly unable to make an accurate guess—and that meant most of these families decided to wait for dogs who did come with a narrower size prediction to avoid headache and heartbreak down the line.)
Ultimately: Everything is affected by chance and probability
At the end of the day: There are no guarantees regardless of how we obtain a new dog. Our world is too messy for that, research still evolving, confounding variables always present. If everything is a probability distribution, your dog might be an outlier.
But we can stack the deck in our favor in a range of ways, whether through genetic health testing, temperament evaluations, thoughtful early socialization, and more.
Every household has different needs—and gets to make their own decision
While I’m personally thrilled my family adopted Snort and two years later I adopted Scout, it would be unfair to expect the whole population to take on the potential responsibilities of a rescue.
And I’d be lying if I said there aren’t days where I wish Scout was a well-bred dog I raised from a puppy! Barring unforeseen events, life could be much easier. (I’ve lamented this often since her epilepsy diagnosis.)
Pros and cons of getting a dog from a shelter or rescue
Pros
You might save a life! The impact of this cannot be overstated.
An adult dog’s personality ought to be well-established, so there will likely be fewer surprises—provided the shelter or rescue accurately assessed your new animal’s temperament. Kennel environments can affect dog behavior, so a foster-based rescue might have the most reliable information.
A reputable shelter or rescue will try to give you a clear idea of what you’re getting into with the dog’s current traits and previous training.
It can be extremely satisfying to see an originally unwanted dog fulfill their potential!
It’s cheaper than a breeder in upfront costs.
Cons
It’s frequently hard to determine exact breed composition and lineage (and therefore to predict long-term traits, especially if you’re adopting a young dog).
It can be difficult (though not impossible) to find puppies in these situations if you want to raise your pet from the beginning.
There is no guarantee against genetic diseases or temperament problems with unknown ancestry.
An unethical shelter just trying to get pets out the door quickly might not fully vet the animal (or you as an owner).
It can be emotionally draining to live with a companion whose past is unknown. You might have questions that never get answered and need to be comfortable moving forward with this ambiguity.
You might need to deal with higher long-term costs for training or health problems. (In Scout’s first year of life, I spent nearly $1,000 on training courses and consults alone—not including veterinary visits and food expenses.)
Pros and cons of getting a dog from an ethical breeder
Pros
You know your dog’s exact ancestry, breed purpose, and direct lines.
You can meet the parents, see the premises, and trust what your pet’s life has been like since the day they were born.
A reputable breeder will give you reasonable health guarantees and ensure that your puppy’s parents had no detectable underlying issues.
You get to raise your puppy from the moment it leaves its mother!
The chances of a stable, predictable temperament are higher.
Cons
You must do research so as to not support a puppy mill or unethical breeding practice.
Depending on your chosen breed, reputable breeders might have long waiting lists.
Buying from a breeder costs more upfront than a shelter or rescue.
Even with a truly ethical breeder, there are no 100% guarantees that your puppy will be “perfect”. Many variables are at play in who your dog becomes. (And what does “perfect” even mean anyway, you know?)
Everyone gets to make their own choices
Life is messy. There are no “right” answers. And every prospective dog owner gets to make the decision that feels right for them.
Bashing someone’s decision to get a well-bred puppy from a breeder does nothing except create a divide when we should instead be coming together for the overall love and wellbeing of our pets.
The way to truly help dogs is not to shun all breeders. It’s to work together in meaningful ways.
Responsible adopting and shopping can both be great ways to get a new dog
If you’re looking to get a dog and have the flexibility and willingness to work with a rescue, I applaud you. It’s been incredibly fulfilling to see Scout transform!
It’s also okay if you really want to raise a puppy and decide to stack the deck in your favor when it comes to your dog’s health and temperament. There’s nothing wrong with knowing what traits fit your lifestyle and actively seeking them out in a responsible breeding program.
Adopt or shop. Just do it responsibly. And please, please, please, be kind.
