They have outgrown the high energy craziness of puppies and they already know what are demanded of them. When adopting from a shelter or any rescue organizations, it is always advisable to go for the adult dogs, not the pups. Because adult dogs' behavior are already 'fixed' to make them suitable for domestic environments. Giving A Puppy A New Home If you don t mind chew marks on your furniture or your carpet becoming the toilet, having a puppy is a day at the beach. Otherwise, you should probably stick with a more mature dog. They are cute, yes, but labor intensive as well. It could take as long as 3 years before they fully mature. Having a busy schedule does not work very well alongside taking care of a dog. If you think you don t have enough time for yourself, you probably shouldn t adopt a dog. Most dogs, even puppies, end up in animal shelters because their owners lack the time to take care of them. Should You Choose A Puppy Or An Older Dog? Adopting A Dog Going Through The Adoption Process Adopting a dog does not end and begin with picking your future best friend at an animal shelter or a rescue group. It's more than giving a homeless dog a home either. There are plenty of things that go into the adoption process, which could define your long-term relationship with the dog you want to adopt. Without that energy is pent up and they could potentially be destructive inside the house. For athletic and active people though, no dog breed is as good. Intelligence Who would not want an intelligent dog? The sad thing about this is that you cannot have all the characteristics that you want written down to one dog. Also, they often accept mixed breed dogs or mutts who possess unexpected characteristics. If you are not a big fan of surprises, you can look into the selection of dogs rescue groups have. Rescue groups are, in general, the best sources for dogs that are good for adoption. These keep tabs of their dogs' history and the dogs' previous owners.