This may be part of the reason it is seen in shelters in such high numbers. And we believe any of these breeds make awesome adopted pets.) American Pit Bull TerrierĪmerican Pit Bull Terriers are lumped into the Pit Bull or bully breed family. Weiss cautions that although there are certain traits for many breeds, all dogs should be judged as individuals with their own unique personalities. “I have a dog from a shelter that looks just like a Jack Russell, but is actually a mix of a poodle and Chihuahua.”īeChewy put together a list of 10 of the dogs most commonly found in shelters based on data from. “We know that visual inspections are not very good, a dog may look like one breed, but be another,” says Weiss.

Weiss says that potential adopters should also always be aware that shelters and rescues sometimes don’t know the breed history and will list a dog by what predominant breed they believe the dog to be. “The reason you will see any type of dog more than the others is because it is a tremendously popular breed,” says Weiss. The assumption may be that dogs of that particular breed may not make a good pet, or maybe it reinforces stereotypes in the media.Įmily Weiss, vice president of research and development for the ASPCA cautions potential adopters not to make those assumptions. If you visit a local shelter or large rescue organization to check out the dogs available for adoption, you have probably wondered, “Why do I keep seeing that breed? It’s in all of the shelters?”

Feist dog breed pounds