The Protectora helped us with how to adopt a dog in Málaga. It was a simple process with a very happy conclusion. We introduce you to Dino!
I didn’t have a clue how to adopt a dog in Málaga. The truth is that the only experience I had with pets was with my cat, Brownie. When I was 8 years old, after months of pleading and begging and behaving very, very well, my parents gave in and said that we could adopt a pet. I still remember when we went to the Humane Society in my town in Pennsylvania and out of all the cats, I chose a female that they had found abandoned in a nearby alley. She was my faithful companion during my childhood until she died of old age when I had already moved out of the house and was living in New York City.
So, when Pedro and I decided to adopt a dog in Málaga, we knew that we wanted to go to the Humane Society (Protectora de Animales de Málaga). Neither one of hus had much experience with how to take care of a dog or how to train a dog, so we were really up front with the lady at the Protectora. África helped us by asking a lot of questions to figure out what kind of dog would be best for us. She wanted to know if we were looking for a big dog, a medium sized dog, or a small dog? If we wanted a dog that was more active or calm? How much time did we have to dedicate to the dog for walks, playing with him, etc. But that wasn’t a problem since we both work from home and are available to take him out at lunchtime or give him his food.
Once África had an idea of the kind of dog we wanted to adopt, she showed us the dogs that were looking for a home. As we approached the first cage, we saw a little brown dog that was sitting apart from the others. He didn’t bark when we got close and when we took him out of the cage, he followed us without question and we fell in love with him! We kept looking for a bit more, but Xino (that was his name in the Protectora) had already wormed his way into our hearts.
We did the paperwork in the office. We have to admit that it isn’t free to adopt a dog in Málaga. It costs 90 euros, but that fee pays for the vaccines and spaying the dog. It’s mandatory to spay/neuter a dog that you adopt from the Protectora de Animales because they want to make sure that there aren’t more dogs without a home in the future. They made a little passport for with all our contact information, as well as the number of the chip for Xino (along with his new name: Dino!)
The only thing left was to take him to the veterinarian at the Protectora because he had kennel cough and needed medicine. (Luckily at the Protectora they could help us with that!) They explained how to give Dino his medicine and how to take care of him. África even gave us her cell phone number in case we had questions the first couple of days. It was a really comforting process and from the Protectora we headed to the pet store (TiendaAnimal).
Just like us the new member of our family deserved the best and most modern things, haha! So we bought the basics: a bed, food, a collar and leash, his dishes for food and water, as well as some toys and treats. Of course, we also wanted Dino to be able to travel with us, so we bought him a travel kit with a dog carrier, hair remover, portable dishes and a bed to use when he slept in a hotel.
The first night at home for Dino was wonderful. He slept alone and didn’t have any accidents. And just like that, we were the owners of the sweetest dog in Málaga. If you want to know more about how to adopt a dog in Málaga, we’ll leave you with this video (in Spanish) from the Protectora de Animales that is sure to resolve any questions you might have.
