Shop vs. Adopt: Through the Eyes of a Foster
In the mid-1980s, Last Chance for Animals (Los Angeles) created the campaign “Adopt, Don’t Shop” to combat the growing number of puppy mills in the area. Fast forward to 2026, and the phrase is still widely used by rescues, shelters, and animal advocates speaking out for animals who are improperly bred, surrendered, or abandoned.
Growing up, I had an Australian Cattle Dog. She was incredibly smart, and my family was devastated when we had to put her down due to health issues. From that point on, I fell in love with the breed and dreamed of having one of my own as an adult.
After rescuing two mixed-breed puppies who had been dumped and left as strays, my husband and I put our Cattle Dog dreams on hold… until 2019.
At the time, I didn’t realize how much my understanding of where dogs come from—and where they end up—would eventually change or how fostering would challenge all of my previous beliefs about dog “ownership.”
That year, my husband came across a Facebook post advertising Australian Cattle Dog puppies for sale. You read that right—for sale. If you had asked us back then, we would have told you that the only way to get an Australian Cattle Dog was through a breeder. With my 30th birthday approaching, my husband jumped on the opportunity and paid $350 for a male Australian Cattle Dog—our wonderful Baker.
Now, the breeder Baker came from wasn’t one of the horror-story puppy mills you see on the news. They weren’t producing multiple litters from the same mama every year. They weren’t stacking crates or hoarding hundreds of animals. They weren’t physically abusing their dogs. And not every breeder is like that. I’m well aware that many breeders take excellent care of their animals, providing proper shelter, veterinary care, adequate nutrition, and even genetic testing.
While this breeder wasn’t a puppy mill, they also weren’t what I would now consider reputable. Baker was well fed, had received one round of Tractor Supply vaccinations, and was socialized with people. But he was also covered in fleas and had been living in a barn with his littermates and mama.
At the time, we didn’t think much of it. Because the breeder didn’t resemble the horror stories we’d heard, we felt justified in our decision. After all, we believed that was the only way to get an Australian Cattle Dog.
We were guilty of using all the familiar clichés, too:
“You just don’t know what you’re getting with a shelter dog.”
“It’s hard to adopt from shelters—they have strict requirements or limited selection.”
“There aren’t any purebred puppies in shelters.”
While some of these statements may hold a grain of truth, they aren’t always accurate.
Fast forward to 2026—and a perspective I never expected to have.
We began fostering two years ago and have fostered 36 dogs in that time. Out of those 36 dogs, guess how many were Australian Cattle Dogs?
Nineteen.
Nineteen out of 36 of our foster dogs were Australian Cattle Dogs—or Cattle Dog mixes.
And this isn’t unique to this breed. It’s estimated that up to 30% of dogs in shelters and rescues are purebred.
This isn’t meant to be an “I adopt, so I’m holier-than-thou” message. I get it—sometimes people want a specific breed for a specific purpose: hunting, retrieving, K-9 work, service animals, and more.
But the majority of people searching for that “perfect” pup still overlook shelters and rescues. I know—because I used to be one of them.
Now, as someone who has fostered dozens of dogs that were once overlooked, surrendered, or discarded, I see the other side of that choice every day.
So before you scroll past the shelter listings or assume your breed isn’t there, I ask you to pause. Look. Ask questions. Visit a rescue.
Your next best friend might already be waiting—not because they weren’t wanted, but because they’re still hoping someone will choose them.
Dedicated to Bauer—the one we couldn’t save.
