CREDIT: DANNY4213
Deciding to get a pet is great, but knowing whether to purchase from a breeder or a shelter is a whole other story that takes a good amount of research to come to a positive conclusion that's best suited for you.

Pets are a wonderful addition to many families. Finding the perfect new addition to the family can be hard for some, but easy for others.

Many have turned to searching online for their furry friends. Although that can be a great place to find a family pet, potential owners may want to consider animals in need of homes at local shelters.

Heather Brown, the animal care manager at the London Animal Care Centre said she thinks people should try adopting through animal shelters first.

“Adopting from shelters is really important because that there are so many animals there that are healthy, friendly, wonderful companions that need a home,” Brown said.

Brown said that getting animals online is promoting an industry that subjects animals to mistreatment.

“Buying kittens or puppies online, you’re just supporting an industry that is creating more of these animals. When there are animals sitting in shelters that need homes. It’s just not fair to continue bringing more into the world,” Brown said.

Brown said she encourages potential owners to make informed decisions and to do their research before adopting online. “When people are looking online, I would recommend first of all looking at the source where the animal is coming from. So whether it’s coming from somebody that’s just looking to rehome their family pet or, if it’s a rescue group or shelter that is advertising. Or even if it’s specifically a breeder,” Brown said.

Many websites like Kijiji have ads offering animals for free. Brown said that that can be a concern.

“Giving away an animal for free isn’t bad in itself. It’s just where a proper screening doesn’t come into play,” Brown said. “If people are giving away their animals for free, on let’s say Kijiji or Facebook marketplace or other sites like that, we strongly recommend that you’re screening potential new owners carefully so you are finding good homes for them.”

According to Brown, there can be some concerns when animals are given away for free online.

“Some of the dangers of people adopting free animals are people who are going to be using the animals for purposes other than a loving family pet. They could be using the animals for specifically breeding farms, bait animals for fighting rings, and for resale,” Brown said.

Brown said having websites like Kijiji as a source to sell animals can promote puppy and kitty mills.

“There’s a lot of people that use Kijiji to sell animals they’ve bred. Whether they are a large scale breeding operation or even a backyard breeder, just people who are breeding animals to make a profit and do not take proper care of the animals or have the animal’s health in mind. These people are breeding with not the best intentions,” Brown said.

If you decide to go the breeder route, there are ways to make sure to ensure you have a proper breeder, such as looking at breeder registries online.

Be sure to do your research and to get a hold of the animal’s medical records, and those of its parents (when from a breeder this shouldn’t be an issue). However, you may want to see what the local animal shelters have to offer first. Who knows what furry friend will catch your eye.