Unit 20 SCAN ME for more info
Real−Life Reading
An i m a l
Adoption
Have you ever thought about adopting a dog? Before you adopt a cuddly furry ball of fun, there are some things you need to know. Please read the following information and answer the questions below to show you are 5
ready to be the daddy or mommy of a dog.
Adoption Up, Euthanasia Down In the United States, over one in three households owns a dog. In 2019, 60 million households owned a total of 89.7
Reasons for Euthanasia 2019, the USA Court’s Owner’s Order 1% Request Rabies 17% Testing Medical 7% 35% Aggressive Behavior 40%
million dogs. It’s estimated around 3.3 million dogs entered the 10
3,500 animal shelters across the US, from which approximately 1.6 million dogs were adopted. However, 1.7 million weren’t so lucky and 670,000 dogs were euthanized. While euthanasia, or “mercy killing”, has reduced significantly over the years, we still have work to do.
Three Lessons to Learn for To-be Adopters Lesson 1 : Your lifestyle matters. 15
Think about the type of person you are along with your lifestyle and living surroundings. You should also try to research different dog breeds and their temperaments in order to match up perfectly with a dog. Shelter workers will help you with application and screening processes. Lesson 2 : Expect mistakes. Even if a dog has been well trained, the anxiety of moving from a shelter to a totally new
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environment can cause accidents. The first two weeks are the hardest, so please do expect mistakes from your new companion. If you don’t, it will hurt both sides. Both you and your new companion need to learn about each other’s schedules. Lesson 3 : Understand their language. Understanding how your dogs communicate with you means you’ll be able to recognize when
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they’re feeling confident and happy, as well as times when they might be feeling worried or frightened. So it is important that you take some time, in advance of adoption, to research
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some basic dog body language.
Body Language
Meaning
belly-rub pose
I’m relaxed and happy.
tail between legs
I’m anxious.
upper body down with head up I’m ready to play. tail straight up, wide-eyed
I’m on alert.
