Dearborn Pet of the Week: $100 Adoption Fee, 6-Week Class

DEARBORN, MI – The best happy ending for Barbie, a pitbull mix, is a home where she can take walks, exercise and play.

The Dearborn Animal Shelter/Patch Pet of the Week, she’s 1½ years old, but “still quite a puppy,” a shelter spokesperson said. Barbie likes to play, and has a passion for squeaky toys.

As a pitbull mix, Barbie qualifies for a special “Luv A Bullz” reduced adoption fee under a shelter initiative to find more permanent homes for pitbulls, “exceptional dogs who need more compassion and understanding than many other breeds,” the shelter says.

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That means she can be adopted for $100, and that includes a six-week training course for you and Barbie to learn how to be great companions.

All adoption fees include sterilization, microchip and age appropriate vaccinations. Adoption applications available online, right from any pet profile in our Adoptable pets section.

• See Barbie and all of the Dearborn Animal Shelter's adoptable pets here.

How You Can Help Barbie Find a Home

Do you know someone who's looking for a pet? Share this post with your friends on social media and help Happy find a home.

Why You Should Adopt a Shelter Pet

There are many, many reasons you should consider adopting a pet from a shelter, rather than going through a breeder or commercial pet store, according to the Humane Society of the United States.

Here are five of them:

2. You’ll get a great pet. Most of the pets in animal shelters are there because of a human problem — for example, a move to a place pets aren’t allowed or a divorce — not because the animal did anything wrong.

3. You’ll get a great bargain. The fee for adoption normally includes the the cost to spay or neuter the animal, vaccinations and microchipping. All animals at the Dearborn Animal Shelter are microchipped before they’re adopted. The fee varies at the Dearborn animal shelter. Adoption fees for kittens are higher than for adult cats. The same goes for puppies and adult dogs. Learn more here.

4. You’ll take a stand against puppy mills, factory style breeding facilities that put profit over the welfare of dogs. Many are housed in shockingly poor conditions, receive inadequate medical care, and are often very sick and behaviorally troubled as a result. If you’re buying from a pet store or online seller, chances are good that you’re financially supporting a puppy mill.

5. Research shows that having a pet is psychologically, emotionally and physically beneficial. Because adopting a shelter pet is a choice you can feel good about, you can add improved self-esteem to the mix of benefits.

About the Dearborn Animal Shelter

The Dearborn Animal Shelter is operated by the Friends For the Dearborn Animal Shelter, a 501c3 non-profit organization. The Shelter is located at 2661 Greenfield Road, Dearborn, MI 48120. View adoptable animals 24/7 online here, follow the sheltr on Facebook and on Twitter.