How to Get Rid of an Unwanted Pet
For the purposes of this article, I am referring to pets that YOU own… not stray or lost animals, however I have included a small bit about these guys at the bottom of the article.
I will also note that if a person has made the decision that they are NOT the best owner for a pet, it is unfair to encourage them to keep the pet. However because there are more unwanted pets than there are homes, getting rid of a pet is always a risky thing. Put some thought into it before you simply get rid of any pet.
What Not To Do
DO NOT give an animal away as “Free to a Good Home”. Studies have shown that very few of these animals actually get “good homes”. Most never get any veterinarian care. Many never get fixed (spayed or neutered). Many who go missing are not looked for, their owners simply go get another free one. Some serial killers have admitted they started on “free to good home” pets. It is possible for somebody to accept a “free” pet, then sell it to a research lab or use it for snake food (as it is their animal now to do with as they will, dependent on area laws). A “good” owner would buy from a reputable breeder or adopt from a shelter.
DO NOT turn it loose, or dump it in the country. Farmers often shoot nuisance animals, or their own animals fight with the new comer. Many farm pets are not looked after to the extent city pets are used to… Many farm cats are not even fed regularly. You might think all farms need more pets, but in reality this is not the case. Abandoned dogs will run for hours after a owner who has driven away. Dumped pets suffer from the inability to find food or water. They are attacked by other animals, like coyotes. They are at risk for being hit by cars and left suffering for hours without care. In many areas this is a criminal offense known as “Animal Abandonment”.
DO NOT rehome an aggressive or sick pet. If you cannot find somebody willing to deal with its problems take it to the vet for euthanasia. In some areas you could be sued for knowingly passing on a problem pet to another person.
Photo by Author. This cat was left behind when his owners moved away. Although I agreed to keep him, and look after him, the owner did nothing to check to see if I was going to be a good owner for her cat.
What To Do Be Honest
The first thing you need to do is admit why you are getting rid of the pet. Is it because of a condition on your part or something wrong with the pet? For example, many people get rid of cats because the cat is urinating in areas it should not. This is often a medical issue and should NOT be passed on to another owner. If you are not willing to treat the cat, then you should euthanize it rather than dumping it on another person (as mentioned above), or at least be honest about the problem. A new owner who knows of the issues will be more forgiving than anyone who gets a surprise.
If you got the pet from a Reputable Breeder you probably have a contract requiring you to return the pet to them. This contract is usually for the lifetime of the pet. As such the breeder is the first person you should call. The same applies to people who got pets from rescues or Animal Shelters. Read your contract or call them.
Call your local SPCA, Animal Shelter, or whomever deals with unwanted animals in your area. If you are not sure who that is, call a veterinarian. In some areas there are “no-kill” shelters but these are usually full, and this is not always the best option for an animal. They may sit in a cage for years, never getting a home. Other, more adoptable, animals will be euthanized because of your animal sitting in a cage taking up room. If your pet is a problem animal, do not take it to a no-kill shelter were it will only become more of a problem and get more stressed.
Shelters who do euthanize animals after a period of time give animals a fair chance, if the animal is not adopted after a good period of time, it probably will never get adopted and will be humanely euthanized. If your animal is one which is in high demand, they may even have a waiting list and can help find the pet a new home quickly. Be honest… DO NOT lie and tell them the animal is a stray, this will not help your pet. People are more likely to adopt an animal with a known history and some information, than one who comes in as a stray. Shelters are more likely to put an animal up for adoption of they know something about it. When you give them your pet, make sure you give them a few of its favorite toys and its food as well.
If your pet is older, less adoptable, but is spayed or neutered, you “MIGHT” be able to find it a good home. Ask a small fee, and be willing to do home checks. Do not allow a dog to go to a home without a fenced yard. Make sure any prospective owners either own their home or have landlord permission. Are their other pets in good health? Do not be in too much of a hurry to get rid of your pet that you place it in a questionable home. Do not give an animal to anyone who will not give you their name and phone number.
The Truth
The truth is that unless your pet is under two years of age, or is of an unusual breed, it probably wont have much chance at finding a new owner. Small non-shedding dogs are in demand, but an untrained, older, active, big dog will not have much chance, especially if it is not spayed or neutered. Just because you love it (or maybe you don’t) does not mean any one else will love it. Accept the truth from a shelter if they tell you that your dog (or cat) is not adoptable. It will be less stressful to these animals for you to take them straight to the vet for euthanasia.
The reality is that more animals are born every year than there are homes for.
Stray Animals
If you have a problem with animals in your yard and are trying to get rid of them the only thing you can do (in most areas according to law) is to take them to the pound, SPCA, animal shelter, etc, whomever deals with strays in your area. This is too allow an owner a chance to find them, or for them to be put for adoption to find a new owner, or to be euthanized humanely. Picking up strays and dumping them in other parts of your city or country is generally considered Theft and Animal Abandonment.
In most areas if your neighbours pet makes a nuisance of itself coming onto your property you can also take it to the pound or shelter.
Always think carefully before getting rid of a pet, once you have signed it over to somebody else you may not be able to get it back. To avoid being upset, it is best to plan carefully BEFORE getting any pet.
Related Reading
Tips on Surrendering a Dog to a Shelter
Tips on Surrendering a Cat to a Shelter
What Happens to Free Kittens
The Reasons Why People Abandon Their Pets at Shelters
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We gave our home to a beautiful Cocker Spaniel that we got from
the Dog’s Trust 18 mths ago. She sadly had to be euthanised
due to being very poorly 2 mths ago but she had been dumped by her
previous owner in a remote village. She suffered terribly until
being picked up by the Dog Warden & taken to the Dog’s
Trust. We may not have had her for very long but we gave her a
loving home and made her last months happy ones.
We adopted 2 cats recently from the RSPCA that also had been dumped
in a remote village. They were found in a cardboard box.
What drives people to dump their pets is beyond us! It is
unnecessary & extremely cruel.
We have a female boardcolly mix she is about 5 years old and we
need to find a good home for her we just have to many dogs in this
small house she loves to cuddle she love kids and adults and is ok
with cats i dont know what to do i need to find a home for
her…
to Mac, comment #9
your dog isnt hyper, he is SMART – you are correct, you didnt
research the breed nearly enough.
My husband did research on dogs for over a year and finally went
and got one, we have a 3 month old boston terrier and just dont
think we made the right decision. The dog is uses my 4 year olds
body as a chew toy and we are even starting to think our son is
allergic to him…what do we do??? I am so concerned for this
dog and for my family!
We have cats that we have owned for over 10 years and now my
brother who was living with my dad is coming to live with us with
his dog. We cannot afford nor do we have the room for 2 cats and a
dog and since it’s my brother’s dog we will have to get
rid of them .Nobody wants them as they are too old and even if they
did they are so used to being with us they would probably run away.
We have decided to put them to sleep as this would be the best
option for both of them. But alot of friends are saying it’s
not right although the bottom line is they have to go and to sleep
is the only option. At the end of the day a family member comes
before pets. And my brother will only come to live with us with the
dog . We have a small 3 bed house and the cats and dog dont get on
it would be too stressful , expensive and time conuming . What do
you think ?
here are a couple of links that might help
I have writen a whole article on how to help cats with litter
box issues…
We are looking for home for great cats that need a loving home,
different ages, very friendly. NY please email if
you’re interested in one or multiple, a small fee will be
charged because we love our pets and need to know they will go to a
good home as we can no longer keep them.
My mother passed away and left 2 eleven-year old cats. They are
obviously stressed and have taken to peeing all over the house. We
keep the litter box clean every day, but I think there is more to
this problem than that. We need to find them homes, but
wouldn’t pass them on without revealing this problem. Is
there any way to stop them from doing this and what suggestions can
you give to finding them a home. Thank you.
Lisa – this is a sad situation. start looking for rescue
groups that specialize in older pets. if any are purebreds their
breeder will want them back or there are some purebred rescues
worth checking out.
And to euthanize a cat with a peeing problem right off the bat?
That’s horrible. Not all peeing problems are life
threatening.
We have to move and cannot afford to buy a home so we must rent.
We are moving to a small area and finding someone who will rent to
us is impossible. We cannot find ONE place to rent. No one will
take 2 cats and 2 dogs. We cannot afford to offer to pay a large
monthly fee per animal to a landlord either. We are at a loss as to
what to do. They are all older pets and mean the world to us. I am
just sick over it. We have never rented and I had no idea how hard
it would be. It is very stressful. No relatives can take them and I
am so afraid of giving them to a stranger. Plus two not very
adoptable. The other two which might be adoptable belong to our
daughter and she does not want to give them up, she has special
needs and they are great therapy for her and she is too attached to
make her give them up. We just love our pets and are just sick over
this.
I AM TRYING TO FIND A HOE FOR MY POMERANIAN. HE NEEDS INDIVIDUAL
ATTENTION AND I DO NOT SPEND ENOUGH TIME WITH HIM. SINCE I GOT HIM
5 YEARS AGO I HAVE HAD 2 MORE CHILDREN AND THEY GET ALL THE
ATTENTION THAT HE USED TO GET. HE HAS LONG RED HAIR AND WEIGHS 5
POUNDS. HE IS ADORABLE AND HAS CHARACTER. HE IS VERY VERY LOYAL. HE
IS A YIPPER THOUGH. DO YOU HAVE ANY SUGGESTIONS.I AM DESPERATE TO
FIND HIM A HOME
I am NOT suggesting to euthanized a cat because it is peeing..
however I worked at a shelter and MANY cats were
“DUMPED” because of peeing, I am only saying that if
you are going to dump a cat for this issue, you should euthanize
it, rather than pass a problem on to some unsuspecting person, OF
COURSE you should try to fix the problem first. I know first hand,
a cat taken to a shelter because of this, will NOT do well,
shelters euthanize hundreds and thousands of healthy cats every
month already, to me this is NOT a good reason to get rid of a pet,
saddly it is a common reason, none the less.
We have two black cocker spaniels that we are wanting to find a
good home for. Our three children love the dogs, but my husband and
I do not feel like we as a family spend enough time with them
because of activities that we are all involved in. The dogs spend
most of the day outside, and love to have the attention that they
so deserve. We do not get home until around 8:00 each night, and we
just feel that the dogs shoud be in a home that the owners spend
more time with them. Can anyone make a suggestion of where, or what
I can do with the dogs. They are 19 months old. Thank you
if your daughter is disabled there are laws saying that they can
keep therapy pets, at least in the USA there are.. there was a link
on this site about it too.. somewhere..
to John above.
I was confused if you were thinking of putting all 3 pets to sleep?
I feel this is not the right solution, and may be one you
regret.
The dog is your brothers responsibility. He should look to rehome
it, old dogs (especially obedient ones) have a fairly good shot at
finding homes. look for a nokill shelter ideally.
2 cats have plenty of toom in a 3 bedroom house. I have 4 cats
myself in a 3 bedroom house.
Some people look at animals as family members too, and would be
horrified by your actions for these purposes (as opposed to health
issues in the pets, causing them pain or discomfort).
So I suggest rehoming the dog, keeping your cats. You said you
cannot afford the dog and cats, but the dog isnt yours to afford or
not afford, it is your brothers responsibility. He took on that
commitment.
Good luck.
to Laycee Webb #5
An adult Border Collie is going to be very difficult to rehome,
contact shelters and rescues to see if they have anyone looking for
a dog, is she spayed? if so this may increase her chances.
If you have too many dogs, perhaps she is one you should
consider keeping and think about rehoming one of your more
adoptable ones? good luck.
It would be easiest to tell you to honor your commitment to your
pets, and cut back some of your other activities. Contact the
breeder you got them from – most breeders require you return
an unwanted pet to them. Or contact a Cocker breed rescue group.
Contact your local shelter to see if they have a list of people
looking for a cocker. If your dogs are friendly they will probably
have a good chance at being adopted through the shelter – who
can screen new owners better than you can, make sure you give a
donation to help the shelter help your dogs, rather than looking to
“sell” them for a profit.
to be blunt – next time think more before you get a pet
– they really are a LIFETIME commitment.
This is true, but no one should GET a pet if they can’t
take care of it.
Come on, people, morals!
Kathy
You should have talked to the SPCA first before you advertised that
you would take peoples pets and give them to the shelter.
Or told people to take their unwanted pets there first
themselves.
I worked at a shelter and we always accepted peoples pets even if
they couldnt pay. But every shelter is different.
We have a 4 year old Blue Heeler Cross. We’ve tried to
train him but he is way to hyper. We can only keep him outside or
in our basement because all he does is pee and poop in our house
and chews everything up. We had to rip up our whole entire kitchen
floor because he peed so much underneath the fridge and stove that
the tile literally came up. It is not a medical problem rather than
a “habit” of his. We let him downstairs in my daycare
room one time the other day and he pooped on the rug and peed
literally inside the toy kitchen for the kids and the kids found
it. I want to get rid of him its been 4 years and no change. Hes
way too much for our family. We didnt research him enough. Any
suggestions??
you need to keep the females and males seperate, fix one or the
other when you can
but although you had good intentions you ultimately also got
yourself into the bad situation.
give the kittens to the shelter – they have a better chance
at finding homes.
its easy saying you shouldnt get pets if in the end you have to
get rid of them but life changes i have 2 white boxer dogs and at
the moment im concidering giving them a new life and family we find
it so hard to spend the time they need they are the best pets in
the world so that why i think i should give them a new life they
deserve more
I am in agreement with B Nelson above – I have rehomed 2
wonderful cats. Putting an animal to sleep rather than re-homing
them is NEVER an option as far as I am concerned!
Wow this artical is not very truthfull. I do not believe that
all these animals should be put to sleep without really trying. I
think this is a cruel artical that is giving the message kill your
pets!
I am a Community Organizer in the Parkside area of Camden,New
Jersey. We ran an article in our neighborhood paper, asking
neighbors to please “not turn unwanted cats loose in the
neighborhood, since there are so many trays running around already,
but to please bring them to me, and I would give them to the SPCA.
Well I ended up with a house full of Cats. When I called the SPCA
to turn them in, they said “no way”. They wanted me to
pay $78.00 for each of the Cats. I cannot afford that. So I got
stuck with all these Cats. I can’t hardly feed them, and I
cannot afford any medical care at all for them. Every room in my
house is loaded with Cats. I tried to keep the boys from the girls,
but it did not work, and they have reproduced. I have so many
I’m not exactly sure of the count right now. Every penny I
make, goes for Cat food or Cat Litter. They are destroying my
house, and all my time is spent cleaning up behind them. Some have
that upper respertory infection in their eyes, and I’m sure
will need to be put to sleep. Where can I turn? What do I do? I am
desperate. I do want to put them on the street, since that would
defeat the purpose. I need help and fast.
Kathy
I would like a source for these “studies” that were
conducted about getting animals a new home.
your dog needs a home with more time to take him to agility or
something more than he is getting now. Good Luck