Shelter puppies, disease and heartbreak.

I'm sure many people have already heard the terrible news of Oprahs heartbreak in losing one of her shelter adopted puppies to parvo virus. I applaud her efforts to draw attention to the pet overpopulation problem in this country by setting an example for her viewers in adopting from a shelter. But, with the sad death of her puppy there may be mixed reactions by the public at large. You can find some great reading on this topic in Dolittlers veterinarian blog. She raises the question, will the public now shy away from adopting from shelters for fear that their pet will fall ill with a deadly virus or disease? I sure hope not but I've seen worse reactions from the public on various issues and I wouldn't be surprised if it does happen. Either way, people need to take responsibility for the decisions they make. If you decide to adopt from a shelter then yes you are doing a great thing by helping these over crowded, understaffed facilities and the general "people are idiots and don't know what they are getting themselves into most of the time and so their pet gets dumped at the shelter" problem. But, you also have to realize that you don't really know what you are getting and if you make this decision you should be prepared to deal with the possible consequences. If you cannot financially keep your end of the bargain you should not be adopting from a shelter in the first place. It would be much better for someone in this position to go to a rescue or a breeder. Although, these routes are not a guarantee for a completely healthy and problem free pet, it does offer better odds because you will have had a rescue evaluate the pet before adoption and if you choose the breeder route a reputable breeder will have documentation of family/genetic lineage and access to some of the family your pet is coming from. I think dealing with a reputable and responsible breeder offers a person the most informed pet acquisition process. I have rescued from shelter before. This dog has recently been diagnosed with an incurable degenerative neurological disease. Am I going to take her back to the shelter because I didn't expect this? HELL NO. When I adopted this dog from the shelter I made a promise to this animal, and in my mind to the shelter, that I will take care of her no matter what and I take that obligation very seriously. Pets are not inanimate objects that can be tossed away when a person loses interest or finds them too burdensome. 

Bottom line: be informed, take responsibility and show some integrity.