trying to adopt a dog from a rescue

[kdtexas]

My husband and I had to have our family companion of 13 years put down last Thanksgiving due to cancer. He (Echo) was my 12 year old mini geldings companion also.

Well we have sorta casually started looking at getting another german shorthair pointer. I found a beautiful female, 1 yr old at a rescue organization near St. Louis, Mo. (I'm in Houston). Well I filled out the paperwork for adoption application and they called the house and talked to my husband about our expectations and living arrangements for her.

Then I get an email from them stating they are sorry but they only adopt out rescue dogs to homes where the dog will reside inside.

I think that is so strange for a large breed dog like the pointer. I explained our 1.5 acreage and fenced area and that if weather were bad she would be in the house with us. We truly spoil our 1 chihuahua and 2 minis. We provide routine vet care and we have no kids. Our yard in my opinion is any large breed dogs dream.

Has anyone ever heard of this policy with rescue organizations? It was called onpoint rescue; I think they mainly take in rescued pointer breed dogs.

anyway I was so sad when I got their email and quite surprised.

I have never tried to adopt from a rescue so this may be standard policy and if it is I think's it's a stange policy.

 

[Shelley]

Yes I have...my best friend was refused her first rescue greyhound, not because the greyhound was going to live outside (he was going to be a indoor bed dog!), but because she had a kennel in her yard where her Akitas resided. Akitas usually DO live outside! I can remember she got a very hateful letter telling her that they would never let her adopt one of their hounds for fear that it would be banished to her kennel..that she should bring her Akita inside to live if she wanted an inside pet. Didn't matter that she had a fenced yard and was a responsible dog owner, just that she had dogs of another breed that lived outside.

She was devastated..she is a wonderful home and that was uncalled for.

I convinced her to go to another rescue organization and they let her adopt a dog. She later became involved in a greyhound rescue organization herself, taking in the old, sick dogs that were unrehomeable.

We are in the process of placing one of our adult male Salukis in a wonderful home with a man who has much experience in the breed. He has has taken care of them in Saudi as a young man, and has owned two..both died of old age. He can't imagine owning any other breed. Yet he was turned down by the national Saluki rescue group because - he doesn't have 6 foot fencing ATTACHED to his house. With the way his house is set up there is no way he can attach it. They agree he is a good home but will not make an exception. So we are taking Fiddah to him this weekend and he is just thrilled.

The rescue organizations set up rules and they usually will not deviate from them. They do not tend to place dogs based on individual's circumstances.

I'm sorry about your being turned down for the dog.

Shelley

 

[minisaremighty]

From what I've heard that is VERY common with rescues. Very ridiculous, in my opinion, when it comes to large breeds. There are some breeds that just do better living outdoors primarily. We looked into a Great Pyr rescue when we had a pyr and they would not even consider us because we didn't agree that they should be indoor only dogs! They were bred to be MOUNTAIN dogs, have double coats and whenever we had our pyr in the house, she would get much too hot and insist on going back outside.

 

[USMCshamusmom]

I was a humane investigator here in Illinois for several years, not only for horses but also qualified and certified for small animals. Some of this policy would maybe depend on the humane laws in your state or the one with the animal for adoption, but I believe it is standard policy for most shelters to insist that the animal is an inside animal and that it have a fenced yard. This is some sort of guideline which I believe was set by the ASPCA and most shelters seem to adhere to it. A couple of times I have seen the local shelter make an exception, but the potential owner had to work hard to prove their case, often having an on site inspection before the adoption was approved.

Why not contact a few breeders and see if they have a pet quality dog or pup, or a retired brood dog available to be loved? There are thousands of dogs out there available for adoption, and not all of them are in humane society keeping. Good luck.

 

[Lisa-Ruff N Tuff Minis]

Itis common and stupid to really IMO my advice is tell them the dog will be inside.. if you know you have a great home and can provide for it.. the dog will be better off t hen in a kennel at a rescue place

 

[Miniv]

Yep, it's pretty standard for most humane society shelters to require both dogs and cats to be indoor pets. I learned that several years ago ......so, since then I have adopted a wonderful Maine Coon cat AND a Lab mix from the humane society.....and you know what? For the first, they never ASKED and I never VOLUNTEERED what the living arrangements were! For the second -- I LIED. (Bad girl, bad...bad....)

Both of our adopted critters (plus all of the rest, except our horses!

) are indoor AND outdoor pets and I believe much happier that way.

MA

 

[Josh]

This seems to be the normal thing with most all shelters. I have tried to adopt in the past as well but was unable to for this very reason. The guidelines for adopting dogs and cats has gotten very rough the past few years. I truley believe this is the main reason there are so many homeless animals living in animal shelters today, because you have to go through so much to adopt.

 

[Minimor]

We adopted our Sheba from the local SPCA in 1998. At that time they didn't have a problem with us as a home, as the "house dog" requirement wasn't in place at that time. Sheba spent her nights in a stall in the barn, and her days were pretty much spent outside with us--with our horses & the amount of yard work & such that we have here, we are outside so much that our outside dog gets plenty of time to have our company each day!

Now, though, we simply do not qualify as an acceptable home for an SPCA dog, only because if it's a large breed dog we would not be keeping it in the house. We have a small trailer house, with no room for a big dog to be in here, and besides--we have horses that need to be protected from coyotes & stray dogs & such. What good is a guard dog that is in the house with us when the coyotes come around??

If I wanted to get a dog from the SPCA now....I would lie about where I will be keeping the dog. Maybe I shouldn't admit that, and I'm not normally an advocate of lying, but for something like this, yes, I would lie! Our dogs are well looked after, they do not go hungry or cold, they are well trained & do not run at large. We are a good home. As it happens though, there's rarely a dog at the SPCA that would even interest us--they adopt out so few animals that they seldom have room to take in new ones, and they have several dogs there that have been there for 2 or 3 years now. I don't even bother with them--I watch the pound, & there you can go & "adopt" a dog for $20, and in that case you are truly saving the life of the dog, because the pound euthanizes most animals after 72 hours.

 

[Cronewolf]

Yes every rescue has guidelines as to who can adopt their charges. I worked for years with several rescue groups and you would be broken hearted at the problems which arose with adopted homes. Animals tied to trees with no shelter. Half starved, no water half the time. Animals killed by other animals in the home, or by kids let to run wild. The purpose is to rescue and put in a great home. They don't know you and your home so they have to go by guidelines which most often put these lives in th best hands possible. They don't mean it personally. I've been turned down because I have in the past bred dogs for sale. Would never do that again but they can't know that. Cut rescuers some slack it is a thankless task, and a heart breaking one . they are just trying ti do the best they can for these critters.

 

[runamuk]

Hmmmm I have had no problems to date...my biggest problem is rescues and kill shelters trying to place WAY TOO MANY in my home. I just adopted an aussie from the shelter to be trained and used specificly for working sheep.......no problems......admittedly he sleeps on the pillows between me and hubby and is indoors unless someone is outside walking/working with him. I also ask a whole lot of questions on my adoption forms when I am placing dogs and some may seem out of line BUT I learn more about home often by HOW they answer the questions than what the answers are.

I suggest contacting a breeder who does rescue/placement and tell them what you are looking for often they will be better able to place a dog that fits your situation.........if all else fails contact me privately and I can see if I have contacts down your way