This Mega Adoption Event is being held at Bob Carpenter Center, located at 631 S College Ave, Newark, DE 19716.

We encourage you to give your new pet at least two weeks to adjust to a new home before deciding it’s not a good fit. Your new pet will have had a very busy and stressful couple of days at the Mega Adoption Event and will need some time to get used to the new family and environment. If, after some transition time, it’s still not working out, please call the organization from which you adopted your new pet. They can give you advice on any problems you are having or can schedule a day/time for you to bring the animal back to their facility. (Please keep in mind that the $35 adoption fee is considered a donation and is non-refundable.)

Please call the organization you adopted from right away, and they will give you information on next steps. Each shelter or rescue group has a veterinary team responsible for exams and care of the animals prior to the event, and there will be a team at the event itself to keep an eye on rudimentary symptoms. Each organization will do their best to adopt out only healthy animals, but it is inevitable that some animals may not show symptoms until days after they are home. This is why it is important that you call the organization from which you adopted right away if you notice that your new pet is starting to get sick.

All participating shelters and rescue organizations will have same-day adoptions during the Mega Adoption Event, and these groups will provide screenings for individuals interested in adopting one of their animals. We promote Open Adoptions, a philosophy that focuses more on finding the right home for animals as individuals rather than adhering to strict adoption policies and unnecessary paperwork. This approach is consistent with the practices recommended by all the majority of national organizations working towards no-kill communities. It is important to note that an essential aspect of Open Adoptions is the right to say no – no shelter or rescue organization is required to adopt out any animal to anyone that they feel would not be a good fit. The first priority is the safety and well-being of the animals.

We plan to have puppies and small dogs at the event. They tend to get adopted quickly, so arriving early will help you find a match. You can also purchase a Fast Pass for early access Saturday morning to have first pick of the available pets.

We never know for sure the breed mix of our dogs since they are rescues. We do often receive dogs that appear to be a specific breed, and they will be listed in our website adoptables listing. These are typically the more commonly found breeds like Shepherds, Huskies, Hounds, Beagles, and Chihuahuas. For less common breeds, you may be best to check with a rescue specializing in the breed, such as Golden Retrievers, Doodles, French Bulldogs, Boston Terriers, Irish Setters, Poodles, Bichons, and Schnauzers.

We never know a breed mix for sure, and which dog will impact allergies is often different from person to person. We can’t guarantee that any of our dogs are hypoallergenic. Your best bet is to stop by and assess whether a dog could be a match for your family.

We are guests of the University of Delaware’s Bob Carpenter Center. All event attendees will be required to enter through security. Prohibited items include weapons and firearms.

The Mega® Adoption Event strives to help families make the correct match for their homes. The environment of this event is not conducive to follow best practice guidelines for safe and accurate first dog meets, so we ask families to leave their owned animals at home. Staff and partners can talk to adopters about facilitating safe first introductions at home, and behavior support is available to all BVSPCA adopters.