Posts Tagged ‘dogs’

Things to Consider Before Adopting a Pet

posted by on May 22, 2013 Leave a comment

Here at Kijiji, we love pets. The pets section has given many people the opportunity to re-home pets they can no longer care for, but we hope any pet re-homed once finds their forever family! The best way to ensure that you and the animal you bring into your life are a good fit is to do your research and consider the following factors beforehand:

Lifestyle – whether you prefer a night in snuggling on the couch, or like to spend your spare time doing sports, you want to make sure your choice of pet matches your lifestyle. If you like to go out after work frequently, that should definitely enter into your decision.

Living arrangements – do you live with room mates, family, or alone? If other people are living with you, how do they feel about a pet and taking on some of the responsibility? Allergies and schedules can also be big issues, and should be discussed beforehand, as the entire household should be on board for a new pet acquisition. How settled are you in your location? Some pets are stressed by frequent moves, and having certain pets can make finding new rentals more challenging in some areas. You also need to take into account what sort of outdoor space you have access to (balcony, fenced backyard, or a nearby park) and consider if they are appropriate for the species or breed that you are considering.

Time & Timing – the amount of time that different pets require every day varies. Consider carefully whether you actually have the spare time to devote to exercising, walking, training, and playing with the breed or animal that you are considering. Also think about how long you realistically can commit to having this amount of time free daily. A pet can be a major complication in future plans such as travel, so think long term when considering the future of pet ownership, including whether you are planning a family. If you know you want a baby soon, but don’t think you will be able to handle both, consider waiting until the timing is better for your family to adopt a pet.

Lifespan – how long does the pet you are considering live? Most cats and dogs live about 15 years, but some animals live even longer. Can you commit to caring for an animal for the next 15 years? If you can only be sure about the next 5 years, consider adopting a senior animal instead. There are many great pets available in shelters that may be overlooked due to their age.

Money – pets cost a lot of money. Do you have the funds to spay or neuter, and to stay up to date on vet visits and vaccines? The Calgary Humane Society reports that the average cost for dogs annually is $1,550 and the average for cats is $850 annually – and these numbers do not include the one time costs such as adoption fee, spaying, microchipping, and unforeseen large vet bills. If your animal has any destructive tendencies, that can also lead to many surprise costs as well. Do you have the money available for both the predictable and the unforeseen costs associated with pet ownership?

Handling – dogs can pull four times their body weight, and the largest breeds can overpower even the strongest people. If a large dog got into a fight or attacked a person or animal, it would be difficult or impossible to pull them off – do you have the knowledge and skill required to ensure that your pet is properly socialized and trained so they are not a nuisance or danger to others?

Personality – the personality of you (and any other co-adopters) should match the animal! If you are always on the go and exercising, an energetic companion will suit you. If you love to play, or prefer to stay in and snuggle, the best match will be an animal with similar preferences.

Source – you want to ensure that the animal has been properly cared for. Research the source of the pet as well as the breed to help avoid unpleasant health surprises later on. We recently partnered with the Ontario SPCA to create a video on safe pet adoption.

Pet ownership is extremely rewarding, but should never be entered into lightly. When you adopt an animal, think of it as gaining a new lifelong friend.

Do your research to ensure that your new pet is a great match, and that puppy or kitten will grow old at your side!

Do your research to ensure that your new pet is a great match, and that puppy or kitten will grow old at your side!

Categories: Kijiji Pets, Kijiji Tips

Search for Pets from Animal Shelters on Kijiji

posted by on Jun 15, 2011 37 Comments

We’re pleased to announce a new feature on Kijiji that lets you search and sort for pets only from Animal Shelters.

As a way to increase the visibility of our friends and partners at Animal Shelters, we’ve teamed with Petfinder and started importing their shelter ads into our site. This partnership allows us access to Petfinder’s 13,000 animal shelters from across North America and import ads from shelters in local communities.

You can find the attribute ‘Shelter‘ under the ‘Offered by‘ section in the left sub-navigation of the site. When you choose it, you’ll be taken to a page that shows just shelter ads, as shown here.

The Shelters information will be listed on the top right under ‘Poster Contact Information‘, and you can view all of the ads posted by that shelter on Kijiji.

Here’s an Example of Golden Rescue’s Page which shows all of their current ads:

New Pet Shelter page - The Shelters Phone Number and Address Appears at the top

 

We hope that this feature will increase the visibility to Shelters and animals that are in need of rehoming. These special animals need our attention and we’ll be working to add more ads and shelters to our site where possible.

As an extension to this, last week we added a new tab on all ads appearing in ‘dogs, puppies for sale‘ and ‘cats, kittens for sale‘. This tab shows a section called ‘Rehoming & Adoption‘ and features some general information to consider before taking on a new animal. We also feature some of our Animal Shelter Partners on this page, and will be working to add more information about this topic into the tab as we build it.

Rehoming & Adaption tab - Ownership information and Links to Animal Shelters

We’re pleased with the progress we’ve been making in this space, but there’s still lots to improve on. This week, we have two of our staff meeting with the OSPCA and industry partners to better understand things like breeder legislation and help with the creation of a industry code of conduct that we can use as guideline toward policies and practices on the site.  We feel that working with the Animal Shelters to understand and use their standards around adoption and ownership will be a great way to ensure we adhere to industry leading best practices, ethics and integrity in this space.

 

 

Categories: Kijiji Pets

Kijiji Photos from Woofstock 2011

posted by on Jun 14, 2011 14 Comments

This years Woofstock was another amazing event, growing to a whopping 250,000 people and over 100,000 dogs on the weekend of June 11-12th.

This year we took 722 photos at the Kijiji Pet Portrait Photo Booth of owners and their furry companions. You can find all the photos on our Facebook Page, under photos. (If you want to download your photo, open it and choose download from the bottom left side, and don’t forget to tag yourself).

Dog owners that came by the booth also got Milk bones and a dog bandana, which became quite popular as we started seeing them spread all over the St. Lawrence Market.

Kijiji staff were on site to talk to dog owners about responsible ownership, Kijiji policies around posting, adaption, and share stories about how they found their pet on Kijiji. We’ll be using some of this content for some upcoming videos with our Animal Shelter partners about Rehoming and Adaption as a way to educate future pet owners about choosing a breed and ownership in general.

Thank you to those who gave donations to our Animal Shelter charity this year.

Here are some photos from the event:

Categories: Awesomesauce, Kijiji Pets

Free Pet Portraits & Bandanas at Woofstock 2011

posted by on Jun 03, 2011 23 Comments

Kijiji is pleased to be participating in Woofstock again, held at St. Lawrence Market, Toronto on June 11-12th.

'Chips' sitting proud with his Kijiji Bandana

This year we’ll be doing another photo booth where owners can take professional photos with their pet on a green screen, as well as giving away dog bandanas.

We also have stop ins from local animal shelters that will be helping answering questions about pet ownership, and filming short videos with different dogs on adaption and breed information.

 

Come by and say hello, meet the pets team,
take a photo and grab some free swag!

 

 

Categories: Awesomesauce, Kijiji Pets

Everything You Need to Know about the Pets Category

posted by on Apr 20, 2011 6 Comments


Kijiji Guide to Responsible Pet Ownership

 

Kijiji Pets Code of Conduct

All ads posted in the Kijiji pets section must comply with the Kijiji Pets Policy and the Pets Code of Practices set out below.

As an advertiser you must comply with all federal, provincial and municipal legislation related to animal protection. Check the relevant government sites for clarification. Any ads found to be breaching applicable laws or by-laws and reported to us for breaching these laws will be subject to removal from Kijiji immediately.

For more information on the Kijiji Pets Code of Conduct, please visit our help page.

 

What are the rules when posting a Pet on Kijiji?

Please respect the following rules when posting a pet on Kijiji:

  • The Animal Pedigree Act makes it a federal offense to sell an animal of a recognized breed as, purebred, registered, or eligible to be registered if it is not.
  • The term “purebred” is a confirmation of genetic background and adherence to breed characteristics, in accordance with the requirements of the Act and the by-laws of the authorized breed association.
  • The term “registered” is confirmation that all the rules of eligibility of the authorized breed association in Canada have been met.
  • If an animal of a recognized breed is sold as purebred, registered or eligible to be registered, the seller is obligated to provide a duly transferred certificate of registration to the buyer not later than six months after the sale.
  • Kijiji does not permit any type of Breeding service (such as stud services)

Kijiji does not condone the unethical treatment of animals. We will listen very closely to our community for any reports of unhealthy animals that were offered for sale or purchased. Accounts may be suspended if the complaint is deemed legitimate. Thereafter, if appropriate documentation (e.g., health inspection) is not provided within 3 weeks, Kijiji reserves the right to ban the account. Kijiji prohibits the sale of puppies and kittens under 8 weeks old. Date of birth for these animals must be clearly stated in the ad. Please do not post for sale any animals that are on the endangered species list, Environment Canada CITES website, are wild animals, or animals that are not permitted to be owned or sold in any city in which the ad is being posted or could be considered dangerous to others.

Kijiji is not intended to facilitate uncontrolled breeding or irresponsible commercial pet trading. For this reason, dog breeders are permitted to post a maximum of three(3) breeds only on Kijiji (including mixed breeds).

 

Prohibited Dog Breeds

There are many dogs, that while they are good breeds, can easily fall into the hands of bad owners or breeders. The following dog breeds are not permitted on Kijiji anywhere in Canada:

  • Dogo Argentino
  • Cane Corso
  • Presa Canario
  • Fila Brasileiro
  • Wolf Hybrid
  • Pit Bull Terrier
  • Staffordshire Bull Terrier (Staffy)
  • American Staffordshire Terrier (Amstaff)
  • American Pit Bull Terrier
  • Any dog that is a mixed-breed of these breeds, and has the characteristics substantially similar to pitbulls

As we cannot provide the proper screening and education required to the potential owners of these animals, Kijiji only accepts ads for these breeds posted by recognized animal shelters and rescues anywhere in Canada.

 

Categories: Kijiji Pets