---
title: Creating Your First Search Page
description: "This guide walks you through creating a WordPress page that displays adoptable animals from your shelter management system. ## Prerequisites Before you begin, make sure you have: - PetMatchPro installed and activated - Your shelter system API credentials entered (see…"
url: "https://petmatchpro.com/docs/creating-your-first-search-page/"
updated: "2026-10-26"
category: Getting Started
---

# Creating Your First Search Page

This guide walks you through creating a WordPress page that displays adoptable animals from your shelter management system.

## Prerequisites

Before you begin, make sure you have:

- PetMatchPro installed and activated
- Your shelter system API credentials entered (see [Connecting Your Shelter System](../connecting-your-shelter-system))

## Step-by-Step Setup

### 1. Create a New Page

1. In your WordPress admin, go to **Pages > Add New**.
2. Give your page a title, such as "Adoptable Animals" or "Available Pets".

### 2. Add the Search Shortcode

Add the following shortcode to the page content:

```
[pmp-search]
```

That's it! This basic shortcode displays all adoptable animals using your default search template.

![WordPress page editor with the pmp-search shortcode entered in the content area](https://petmatchpro.com/wp-content/uploads/create-search-page-shortcode.png)

### 3. Publish the Page

Click **Publish** and then **View Page** to see your search results.

![Live search results page displaying adoptable animal cards with photos and details](https://petmatchpro.com/wp-content/uploads/create-search-page-search-results.png)

## Basic Customization

You can customize the search display by adding parameters to the shortcode:

### Show Specific Fields

Use the `details` parameter to control which animal fields appear:

```
[pmp-search details="Name,Breed,Sex,Age"]
```

### Filter by Species

Use the `type` parameter with the `species` filter to show only specific animals:

```
[pmp-search filter="species" type="adopt"]
```

### Choose a Search Template

If you have a Junior or Preferred license, you can select a different template:

```
[pmp-search template="adopt-search-carousel"]
```

**Requires Junior license or higher.**

### Enable Search Filters

Let visitors filter results by species, breed, and other criteria:

```
[pmp-search filter="enable"]
```

## Example Shortcodes

**Basic adoption search:**

```
[pmp-search type="adopt"]
```

**Adoption search with custom fields:**

```
[pmp-search type="adopt" details="Name,Breed,Sex,Age,Photo"]
```

**Dogs only:**

```
[pmp-search type="adopt" species="Dog"]
```

## Adding to Your Menu

After publishing, add the page to your site navigation:

1. Go to **Appearance > Menus**.
2. Select your search page from the Pages list.
3. Click **Add to Menu**.
4. Click **Save Menu**.

## Next Steps

- [[pmp-search] Reference](../pmp-search-reference) -- Full parameter reference
- [Creating Your First Detail Page](../creating-your-first-detail-page) -- Set up individual animal profiles
- [Common Shortcode Recipes](../common-shortcode-recipes) -- Copy-paste examples for common setups

 Creating Your First Search Page ultima modifica:  2026-03-24T11:15:32-04:00 da PetMatchPro