August is National Dog Adoption Month! During the month of August, National Dog Adoption Month is promoting one very simple, very important message: 'Dogs in rescue shelters are not damaged goods. They are normal, happy, fun filled dogs who simply need a new home with a new family'. National Dog Adoption Month aims to prove to all would-be dog owners that the dog of their dreams is in an adoption shelter somewhere. All they need to do is look.

More than 100,000 dogs await new owners in UK adoption shelters.

For many, the idea of adopting or 'rescuing' a dog carries with it a certain image. A notion of doing a good deed, taking on a problem dog or an ill treated animal with a multitude of behaviour and psychological issues is a common perception of dog adoption. The reality is very different.

Dogs end up in adoption shelters for a wide variety of reasons such as former owners no longer having the finances to keep a dog, ill health or death of previous owner or a major change of circumstance. Within the UK animal welfare system are literally tens of thousands of dogs who would - and indeed do - make superb, lifelong family pets. In fact, choosing a dog from a shelter has many advantages over and above buying a puppy. For one, new owners can often get a great appreciation of the dog's personality, likes and dislikes. Secondly, adopting a dog enables owner to hone their selection criteria to ensure they are taking home the perfect dog for their lifestyle.

One of the major reasons why dogs actually end up in a shelter is because people often select the wrong dog for their particular lifestyle. Any dog adoption centre will work hard to avoid this happening so owners and dogs are very carefully matched.

National Dog Adoption Month is an initiative run in conjunction with the UK dog adoption website DogsBlog.com and Butcher's Pet Care, manufacturers of healthy, natural nutrition for dogs.

One of the common reasons owners turn their dogs into shelters is because they are not prepared for dogs who get unsettled when being left alone. National Dog Adoption Month is as much about preventing more dogs going into shelters in avoidable circumstances as it is getting more dogs out of shelters and in to new, loving, permanent homes.

During the month of August, National Dog Adoption Month is promoting one very simple, very important message: 'Dogs in rescue shelters are not damaged goods. They are normal, happy, fun filled dogs who simply need a new home with a new family'.

The campaign aims to completely dispel the myth that 'rescue' dogs need pity or sympathy or that dogs in shelters are somehow there due to problems in their makeup, physical or emotional. The national dog adoption website www.dogsblog.com shows, clearly, that adoption centres are full, literally to bursting point, with all manner of different dogs of different backgrounds of various personality types. National Dog Adoption Month aims to prove to all would-be dog owners that the dog of their dreams is in an adoption shelter somewhere. All they need to do is look.

Adopting a dog is a concept supported by a growing list of celebrities including Lily Allen, Holly Madison, John Barrowman and Drew Barrymore. Sky News presenter Charlotte Hawkins says, “Many shelters are reaching capacity, so desperately need the space to be able to take in the ever increasing number of dogs that need help. It takes a few small changes in your life to give a dog a home, but the rewards will be more than worth it, as I know from my rescue dog Bailey. So if you think you can offer a second chance to a rescue dog then please, please get behind National Dog Adoption Month.”

Throughout the month of August there will be a number of dog adoption success stories, local fund raisers/open days held by rescue shelters and various events designed to promote the benefit of adopting a dog.

You can download posters from www.dogadoptionmonth.co.uk to take along to local open days, pet stores and veterinary surgeries to promote the message and encourage people to adopt, or why not download some of the free graphics to add into your signatures and spread the word online.

For more information on National Dog Adoption Month visit www.dogadoptionmonth.co.uk