New Pet Store Sparks Debate Over Buying Versus Adopting Pets

I have a confession: I bought my Chihuahua from a pet store in Wallingford, Connecticut. Does that make you angry?

Was I wrong to buy a dog from a pet store? Based on the response to the news of a new one opening up in Danbury, a lot of people seem to think so. Danbury's first new pet store in years is called FurEver Friends, and it's just opened for business on Newtown Road. This weekend, folks are organizing to protest in front of the new store, even suggesting the messages that you should put on your signs.

Why? The most common response that I see is that any dog in a pet store comes from a 'Puppy Mill', quickly followed, or preceded by 'Why would you buy a puppy from a factory when so many other dogs are waiting in your local rescue?" Allow me to explain why I did what I did.

In September 2020 my wife and I were driving and passed by All Pets Club in Wallingford, we had just lost our last dog, so we stopped to see cute puppies. Wouldn't you know it, they had a baby chihuahua that was born on our anniversary, and damn, the little guy sure looked lonely. So, after being denied the chance to adopt a rescue in Waterbury due to our living in an apartment, we bought my 9-week-old new best friend.

Could I have made an effort to call more shelters? Sure, but if you've ever tried to adopt a pet, there are restrictions and rules of adoption that you may not know about. It's not easy, and it shouldn't, everyone who takes responsibility for a life should be vetted, but we found that the standards for adoption were not in our realm but geared towards homeowners. Whatever. We were both employed, we had the income and the savings to purchase our pet, and we did.

When people asked where I got RayRay, I told them, and I was met with mixed responses. Some said 'Good for you', while a few asked if I tried to adopt. We did, I assure you. 5 years into our lives together, and my wife, RayRay, and I are so happy. We've given him such a good life, he gets to come to work once in awhile as you can see in the pic above, and he has not been sick once in all the years we've been together. Did he come from a puppy mill? According to his AKC papers, no. If he did, would I love him any less, or take better care of him? No. That's my experience with a dog from a Connecticut pet store.