Michael SchneiderFounder, Executive Director & Chief Pilot aka "Top Dog", Pilots To The Rescue · Top Dog @ Pilots To The Rescue

Abandoned Pets Take Flight ✈️ #adoptdontshop #aviation

22 Mar 2025 · 1 min

Watch on YouTube

1:07

In this YouTube monologue, Michael Schneider shares his personal background of growing up with rescue animals and explains how his family always adopted dogs and cats from local shelters rather than purchasing them. He highlights the value of adopting older, senior, or previously abused animals, noting that they typically have known temperaments, are already spayed/neutered, and are up-to-date on vaccinations, making them low‑maintenance companions. Schneider challenges listeners to prioritize adopting animals that are at least one year old, emphasizing that senior pets are less likely to damage belongings and that many abused animals, when given patience and care, become docile and rewarding companions. He concludes with a philosophical observation that if humans behaved more like the pets they adopt, many societal problems could be alleviated.

Chapters

It takes a lot of heart to do this type of work. I grew up with rescue animals. I did not even know that you could buy an animal. My parents, whenever we wanted a dog or cat, we went to our local shelter and we picked out the sad puppy or the sad kitten or adult dog. And that's just what I grew up with. And there are other stories about animals that have been abused and neglected. And those, looking back, like, those are the best animals to adopt. Everybody wants a puppy and senior animals, for example, and senior animals start at 5 years old, they won't chew your favorite shoes or eat your bag, and they— you already know their temperament, they've had all their shots, they've been spayed or neutered. So I would challenge all the listeners to adopt at least an animal that's 1 year or older and not focus so much on puppies. Even animals that have been abused and neglected, if you're patient and you have the bandwidth to work with these animals, they're, they're some of the best, most docile animals. I always— a lot of people say if humans could be more like the pets we adopt, we would also solve a lot of problems in this world, and I truly believe that.