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    Advice For Your Visit To The Dog Shelter (Part 1)

    So your off to get your new puppy from one of the local shelters that you have on your list . However, before you zoom off to those places, please vow to yourself (and make the rest of your family vow, too, if they're coming along) that these will be look-but-don't-touch visits. This isn't the part of the search where you fall hopelessly in love with a puppy or dog, brush aside your better judgment, and whisk her home with you to live happily ever after. We know that's easier said than done, but if you adopt too hurriedly from a shelter you haven't checked out thoroughly, you could be in for trouble later.

    Your purpose during this initial visit is to evaluate how well-kept and well-run the facility is. Start with the obvious: Is the shelter an inviting place? Is it clean and well-lit, or is it dingy and dim? Are the employees friendly, interested and willing and able to answer your questions? Do they greet you and offer their assistance, or do they ignore you or seem anxious for you to leave?

    Introduce yourself as a potential adopter and ask whether you can see the kennels where the puppies and dogs live. (The staff may want to ask you some questions before you meet the dogs) And prepare to have your senses assaulted: The smells, sounds and sights of the inside of an animal shelter can be a little overwhelming at first.

    Look around. Are the kennels clean? You shouldn't see more than a couple dogs sitting in cages with feces or urine on the floor. (Be understanding, of course, for the fact that dogs aren't always the tidiest animals in the world, and even the most fastidious shelter can't keep all the cages spotless all the time.) Even a clean shelter is probably going to smell like, well, dogs, but if the odor of the place is enough to make your stomach turn, that may be a sign that the cages haven't been disinfected recently or thoroughly enough.

    Do the dogs have ample room to stretch their legs? They should at least have room to stand up and walk around a bit. There shouldn't be more than one dog in a single pen, except in the cases of puppies or litter-mates, and sick animals shouldn't be housed alongside healthy ones. Check the floors of the kennels: Do the dogs have clean bedding to lie on, fresh water to drink and toys to play with? Is there an outdoor area where the dogs can romp?

    Most importantly, do the animals look healthy and happy? Are they well-fed and groomed, energetic, and eager to interact with you as you pass their cages, or do they lie listlessly, with dull fur, glazed runny eyes, sores on their skin or deep coughs? Every shelter is likely to have one or two depressed or unfriendly residents, of course, but if you see miserable dog after miserable dog, you might well suspect that this isn't the best place for you to find a chipper canine friend.

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