Hillsborough County, Florida has launched a new project at the Pet Resource Center called ADOPT where it’s claimed pets can be reunited with their owners faster and adoption will be simpler and more transparent. In other words, the pet of your dreams or a lost pet may only be a click away.
A December 11 newsroom media release stated
“PRC has launched its new online kennel, a system that substantially increases the amount of information available to residents on the pets in PRC’s care, whether it be adoptable pets, lost pets, or rescue-only pets. The online system, called ADOPT, features individualized pet profiles, real-time updates on which dogs and cats are at the shelter and their status, and detailed search options for those looking for specific characteristics in a pet such as breed, sex, or age. A resident can now filter search results to find, for example, only female dogs less than 2 years old, or look online to see if their lost cat is at the shelter.”
The online kennel system will individualize the pet profiles to include characteristics people are looking for in a new pet. Things like whether a cat is good with other cats, dogs or around children are invaluable and should help lower returns because the adopter will know what they’re dealing with before taking the new pet home.
The online system can be accessed by both mobile devices or computer and status are given in real time.
This would be a good system for all shelters to put into place. The only worry I would have is whether lost cats who are turned into the shelter will be labeled as feral when they’re just very scared. ADOPT needs to take this into consideration when posting new cats who arrive terrified and unmanageable.
I looked at the site and several cats have been pre-adopted. This is a good feature, a backup in case the owner doesn’t show up at the shelter to claim their lost cat.
I hope those who have used the system will comment on how well it’s working. Also feel free to add any information I’ve left out of this article. Especially any ‘downside’ to the virtual adoption webpages.
Sources 1 and 2.
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