Just two weeks ago, I decided to go for a walk around campus and two minutes in, I came across a small dog running through a parking lot behind an academic building. She looked scared and ran away from me when I went towards her. It wasn't until I sat down on the curb and held out my hand that she cautiously approached me, then proceeded to hop in my lap. She didn't have a collar on, and her owner was nowhere to be found.

Nicknamed Queso for her love of cheese, she soon proved to be the sweetest little Chihuahua I had ever met. I shuffled her around between generous friends' houses for a few days while a few friends and I did all we could to reunite her with her owners. Ultimately, we were given no leads, and I had to make the choice to surrender her to a rescue that could adequately care for her and hopefully find her a new home if her owner never came forward.

While Queso has now caught a lucky break and found a loving home that will keep her from going to a shelter, her struggle has once again proved the urgency in promoting shelters over pet stores. It would have broken my heart if her perfect family chose to buy a dog from a pet store instead of giving her a chance at finding a home.

Let me begin by saying that buying a dog from a breeder or pet store does not make you a bad person. I’m not here to attack people. Many of my closest friends’ family pets have been purchased, and they love their dogs to the ends of the earth and have given them wonderful, loving homes.I'm not in any way doubting a person’s love for their dog or the puppy’s right to a place in this world. But unfortunately, there are more dogs than homes. Pet stores only add to the problem. By buying a dog from a pet store or breeder, you are encouraging people to keep breeding and adding to the overpopulation problem that could be further prevented. And shelter dogs are wonderful!

There is almost no reason why anyone should feel that they should purchase instead of adopting. I know from experience that rescues are the most loving, loyal dogs you could meet. They will appreciate you forever for giving them the home that no one else would.

I’ve heard so many people say that they don’t want a shelter dog because they don’t know what they’re going to get, when in fact shelter volunteers are experts in matching a family to their perfect furry companion. Shelter workers want the dog to end up in a forever home, so they do all they can to make sure the match will last. Although you can definitely find a purebred in a shelter if that’s what you’re looking for, mixed breeds have actually been proven to be somewhat healthier than purebreds due to increased genetic diversity.

Side note – if medical bills from an “unhealthy” shelter dog are what you’re worried about, I’m assuming you’d also be opposed to the astronomical price that breeders and pet stores charge? Shelter fees are always very reasonable, typically include spaying/neutering and many necessary vaccines.

Plus, you can find literally any breed, mixed OR purebred, at a shelter. To prove it, I even used petfinder.com to search my area and found plenty of hypoallergenic dogs (some shown below) up for adoption – something that is another major specification people use to justify shopping for their dog.

Yes, I know that pet store puppies need to be rescued, too. Every dog deserves a good home, but this change isn’t going to happen overnight; it is going to be a gradual indication that people are moving away from buying dogs slowly enough that it will send the message to inhumane breeders that breeding dogs isn’t going to keep lining their pockets forever, and they should find new work. Demonstrating this societal shift is the only way to stop inhumane breeding and overpopulation. It won't be quick or easy, but we can get there.

Dogs are incredibly special and all deserve loving homes. Next time you’re looking for a four-legged friend, please do your part in discouraging puppy mills and clearing the shelters. Next time give the dog with a rough life the loving home he deserves. Next time, adopt.