Considering bringing a new furry friend into your home? Be sure to check out the MEGA Adoption Event taking place at the Bob Carpenter Center on June 20 & 21 in Newark, DE and stop by our booth to say hello to one of the cuties from Humane Animal Partners! Adoption fees for dogs and cats (of all ages) will be $35 – with all animals spay/neutered, vetted, vaccinated, and ready to be loved.
But as excited as we are to introduce our furry four-legged friends to an enthusiastic crowd of adopters, we know this decision won’t be everyone’s favorite, and if you’re someone who questions why we participate in large-scale adoption events, please read on…
Before agreeing to participate in this year’s Mega Adoption Event, one of the biggest questions we asked ourselves wasn’t about the event at all… It was about you.
It was about the supporters who have stood beside us for years, the adopters who trust us, the volunteers who give their time, the donors who believe in our mission… The people who care deeply about animal welfare and aren’t afraid to share their opinions about it.
We knew some people would be excited to see us there, but we also knew some people wouldn’t… And when you care about your community as much as we do, that’s not something you brush aside.
The easy thing would have been to avoid the conversation altogether.
Instead, we decided to ask ourselves a different question: “What is best for our animals?”
And every time we came back to that question, we arrived at the same answer:
Being there gives them a chance.
The reality is, thousands of people will attend the Mega Adoption Event looking to add a pet to their family. They’ll spend the day meeting dogs and cats, talking to adoption counselors, and hoping to find a connection that tells them they’ve found the one.
Whether we’re there or not, those people are coming; whether we’re there or not, those families are searching; whether we’re there or not, homes will be found.
If one of our dogs could meet their future family there, why wouldn’t we give them that opportunity?
If one of our quirky cats could finally be noticed by the person who’s been looking for them all along, why wouldn’t we let them?
At the end of the day, this decision isn’t about us. It’s about them.
The senior who’s watched younger dogs come and go… The cat who’s been patiently curled up in her condo bed… The puppy who’s never known what it feels like to belong to a family and run free through a home every day.
The animals in our care don’t know there’s debate around adoption events, they don’t know what people say online, they don’t know anything about differing opinions in animal welfare…They just know they’re waiting… Waiting for their person, their home… their turn. And we believe they deserve every opportunity to find it.
But for those who may be wondering, our approach to adoption doesn’t change just because the setting does.
Our team doesn’t leave its values at the shelter door when we load up the vans.
We have the same thoughtful conversations and follow the same counseling procedures… Our commitment to making good matches never waivers. We’ll still be doing what we’ve always done: helping people find the right pet and helping pets find the right people, so we can do our best to ensure Happy Tails.
Successful adoptions aren’t built on a fee or a facility’s location. They’re built on preparation, support, education, and a commitment to helping families succeed long after adoption day.
And that’s why HAP invests in the resources that help keep pets in loving homes. From low-cost veterinary care and vaccine clinics to behavior support, training resources, and our free pet food pantry, we’re committed to helping navigate life’s challenges without having to lose the pets we love.
And perhaps our most important reasoning? When the rescue community comes together, the animals win… in a big way.
We choose to take every opportunity we can to work with our partners, because one single organization can’t solve pet homelessness alone. Every adoption creates space for another animal in need, every partnership creates another opportunity for a pet to be seen, every successful match changes a life.
We know not everyone will agree with this decision, and that’s okay.
What we hope people understand is that it came from the same place all of our decisions come from… a deep love for the animals who become our family once they’re entrusted to our care. And when we looked at a room that will be filled with people hoping to meet their next best friend, we couldn’t stop thinking about our dogs and cats who deserve to be in that room, too.
So that’s where we’ll be…Helping them get their chance!
We hope to see you there.
