Please Remember . . .
Many shelters are adopting a "no-kill" policy, but most are still the sterotypical "City Pound." Before going to a pet-store or even an ad, please check out your local SPCA and other non-"no-kill" shelters to find a pet. Also please keep this in mind when rescuing a stray or feral cat; consider taking it to a good vet who will find it a home, even if it means putting in a bit more time and money to cover the vaccinations. At a shelter, animals have only a limited time to be adopted before they're put down, and ferals/strays are even harder to get adopted. You can save a life.
Tip #2 -- Most people go for the cute and cuddly baby animals, but adopting an older pet has advantages too. Most are already house-trained, their personalities are clear, and their gratitude for being given a loving home will equal the "imprinting" that a baby animal achieves with a human. Also, older animals (anywhere from two to fourteen-plus years) are often the first ones to be put down at a shelter precisely because the cuter babies get all the attention. So when adopting a pet, remember: oldies are goodies!
