In this society, we hold our pets to be members of the family. Quite frankly, they have earned it. They hold places as service workers and best friends. As such, getting a pet is a noble endeavour. I applaud anyone who chooses to open their hearts and their homes to a new pet. However, I would like to encourage anyone who is considering getting a pet to keep an open mind towards adoption from their local animal shelter. Here are five reasons that shelter animals make terrific pets:

1) Get past the hardest work. While puppies are extremely cute straight out of the womb, they are the hardest amount of work right off the bat. Potty training alone can take weeks or even months to master. Many shelter dogs are actually house broken prior to adoption. Many even come with some basic command training. Now, it should be noted that any pet at any age will require a certain amount of work. But puppies and kittens can often be the most frustrating.

2) It helps put a stop to puppy and kitty mills. These mills are scar on our society. The animals born into them are often abused and churned out quickly to turn a profit. Those that are unclaimed are often dumped and discarded once they cease to be cute to make room for the next batch. By going after a shelter pet, that is money that is not going to get a puppy or a kitten from a mill. If they are not financially supported, they will eventually cease to exist.

3) They are less expensive. Shelters almost always charge less than a pet store or a breeder. Some will offer the animal free to a good home; others will charge just a very basic fee to make sure that you are serious about owning a pet. In addition, many adoption centres will vaccinate and fix (spay or neuter) their animals prior to making them available for adoption. This is not a small amount of savings for the eventual adopter.

4) Animal shelters need your support. Local animal shelters provide an extremely valuable service to their communities. By adopting an animal from these locations, you give them affirmation of their services, a small donation to help them take care of other pets, and even clear out some space to make room for other dogs and cats in need of care.

5) You will save a life - and improve your own. The sad truth is that there is simply not enough room at shelters for all the homeless animals. Everyday a number of perfectly good dogs and cats are euthanized because they did not have any place else to go. Not only can you prevent this for one lucky animal, but you may find that you get more out of it than you put in. Adoption fairs like to use the phrase, "meet your new best friend." That is not hyperbole. You may find that the life most affected by expanding your family is your own.