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Anonymous
>>52721
Speaking as a long time volunteer at a local animal shelter, I have only seen them turn away potential adopters when the situation would likely turn out badly for the dog, the would-be owners, or both. They charge adoption fees for a reason. The adoption fee for dogs is under $100 for a neutered, vet-examined animal -- if someone can't afford THAT, how could they possibly afford routine veterinary bills? Monthly food expenses? And how can the shelter afford to keep these animals without charging some form of adoption fee? You can't tell me that is unreasonable.
Aside from the money, the shelter that I volunteer at will not adopt very young puppies/kittens or certain breeds/temperments to families with young children. Children who are too young to respect an animal are a recipe for disaster, and the shelter is really saving both the animal and the family a lot of trouble. Similarly, they will STRONGLY discourage someone with a small apartment from adopting, say, a hyperactive border collie mix -- some dog breeds/mixes DEMAND a certain environment to thrive -- this is not discrimination, this is acting on behalf of the dog. I've also seen them turn away adopters who plan to make their animal "outdoors only" or acts as though they're "only adopting it for the kids".
Aside from that, if shelter animals were "free" and people were unscreened, some of those animals would end up in very bad situations. Not all, but the potential is there -- bait for dog fights, sold to animal testing facilities, even small animals being used for snake food or simply abused/neglected. This is why even if you are trying to GIVE away animals, a nominal adoption fee should be charged to prevent people from taking animals for anything less than keeping them as well-loved pets.
Maybe I can only speak for "my" shelter, but their mission is to match up appropriate families and animals, no hidden agendas there.
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