The London Humane Society is one of the many locations in London where adopting animals who have been neglected, abused, or abandoned is an option. Adding a furry friend to your family is always great and by adopting, you’re able to give an animal a second chance in a home.
Ontario has the most animal shelters in Canada over any other province or territory. In a 2015 study, it was found that Canadian shelters took in more than 82,000 cats and 35,000 dogs.
About 2,000 animals are provided shelter and care (including medical care) by the London Humane Society each year.
Puppy mill dogs are sometimes brought into the shelter and they need to be retrained in order to be adopted again.
“The biggest challenge with puppy mill dogs, is that they kind of have to learn everything. And they are very fearful of people, they’re unsure of things. So it just takes a little more time and patience to get them at the point where they can be adopted.” -Claire Belsheim, Fundraising Coordinator at the London Humane Society
To adopt an animal, the process is somewhat easy, but at the same time, the Humane Society wants to ensure that you are a proper candidate for this animal. After you and your family visit the animal, if you’re interested in adopting you fill out a 4 to 5 page adoption application. If several people apply for a specific animal, the shelter chooses the individual/family that is best suited for that animal. You can be rejected from adopting.
“What we do is we run all of the peoples information through our OSPCA (Ontario Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Database) to see if they have a history of abuse or neglect of an animal, and if they do they’re automatically declined from adopting any animal from here.” -Claire Belsheim, Fundraising Coordinator at the London Humane Society
Many animals get put into shelters for no fault of their own, and although buying from a private breeder is an option, adopting an animal gives them a second chance they deserve.