Dissapointed in Rescues

Payge

New Member
Joined
Jun 30, 2005
Messages
87
Likes
0
Points
0
#1
A lot of times I have seen on Petfinder a dog that has stolen my heart, but then it turns out they are at a rescue that screens people a little too well. I'm all for making sure the dogs are going to go to a good home, but a lot of those requirments are over the top. Almost every sigle one insists on a 6ft fence, which I do indeed have, unfortunatly it has one spot where a tree has grown between it and it has an opening to the front fence which is only 4ft. Apparently this makes my home "unsuitable" well pin a rose on your snobby-rescues-nose. Whats odd is a lot also say that if you don't own a house (like you live in a condo etc) you aren't required to have a fence at all. Its so disheartening, we would never have the dog out in the yard by itself anyways, when we had Atlas I took him with me EVERYWHERE. When I couldn't take him with me(like to the grocery store) i'd drop him off with Patricks parents so he could have company for the hour I was away.

At this point i've narrowed my search down to Animal Controls (which have waaaay too LITTLE amount of screening, they didn't even check that we were allowed to have a dog when we got Atlas) and the humane society, which has reasonable screening imo, they make sure you own your home or have landlords permission and they have an adoption counseler discuss all aspects of dog ownership.
 

Fran27

Active Member
Joined
Mar 15, 2005
Messages
10,642
Likes
0
Points
36
Age
45
Location
New Jersey
#2
I totally agree with you. It's just ridiculous how picky they are. I guess they just don't want to take risks with someone leaving their dog outside alone if the fence is too low, but still... I can understand that they don't adopt to families with young children though.

And I agree that others have way too little screening. At least your humane society asks you to talk to a conselor. Here the SPCA does nothing, just check that you are the owner of your house and asks you for the money :(
 

Gempress

Walks into Mordor
Joined
Aug 12, 2005
Messages
11,955
Likes
0
Points
0
#3
Poor Payge! I know what you mean. I tried some animal rescues, and some were rather unrealistic. Some of the more unbelieveable requirements I came across:

The dog can't be left alone more than 4 hours a day.
A 6-foot fence required for all breeds. Even a chihuahua!
No yard, no dog.
If you've ever rehomed a dog for any reason, no dog.
If you have children under 15, no dog.
If you have any other pets, no dog. (the dog should have your full attention)
If you've never owned a dog before, no dog. And this was an all-breed rescue, not one for just difficult breeds.
If you own a pit bull or bulldog, no dog. The pit bull will kill it, obviously.
And, most unbelieveably, if you don't own your home, no dog. They say you can't offer a stable future for the dog.

I ended up going to the Humane Society and animal shelter too. Don't feel bad about it at all. Those dogs deserve a home just as much as the ones in rescues. I have to say that I don't regret it. Their screening process was ok, not excellent, but the people were much friendlier, and went more by the adoptor than the figures on paper.

Edit: I forgot to mention another really good source. Keep an eye on your newspaper classifieds for your dog. There are some truly wonderful older dogs out there that the owner has to rehome for some reason they can't help, like overseas deployment, illness, drastic change in livestyle, etc.
 

Irish

New Member
Joined
Feb 15, 2005
Messages
673
Likes
0
Points
0
#4
I know a woman who started her own cat rescue in her house. She goes and gets feral cats/kittens, gets all their vacs/health care and brings them home and then "screens" people. She turns down more people than she allows to adopt! She has like 25 cats all living in her house and she is turning down homes for them for ridiculous reasons. As if living in THAT enviroment is good for them! Yes, screening of homes can get way out of hand.
 

Doberluv

Active Member
Joined
Dec 31, 2004
Messages
22,038
Likes
2
Points
38
Location
western Wa
#5
Some of those reasons ARE ridiculous. What do they think? Are the dogs better off living in a shelter with no family? Good heavens! And kids not under 15? Kids and dogs have gone together like bread and butter for eons!
 

Zoom

Twin 2.0
Joined
Jul 11, 2005
Messages
40,739
Likes
3
Points
38
Age
41
Location
Denver, CO
#6
I guess I had a really good case for wanting an Aussie, because I've never owned one before, they never even came by for a home visit and I have four-foot fencing on all sides but the one facing the road. That is 6ft. At the time I didn't have a job, so I would be home all day which was a big plus I guess...although the lady who did my screening is a reasonable lady. She owns an Aussie and works 9 hours a day, so she knows that having to leave them doesn't automatically make you a bad choice.
 

Irish

New Member
Joined
Feb 15, 2005
Messages
673
Likes
0
Points
0
#7
Another complaint on rescues: When we got Murray he had a tag on his collar with the name of the rescue/shelter and their phone number to contact in case he was lost. In the contract we signed, one of the many stipulations listed was that we would leave their tag on him for one year! WHY would I want THEM contacted if MY dog was lost??? So they can charge me more money to return him? Sorry, I immediately got my own tag with my name and number to contact and theirs went in the garbage!
 

Melissa_W

New Member
Joined
Jul 26, 2005
Messages
4,290
Likes
0
Points
0
#8
Yeah, some of the things they require are outrageous. I don't think I will be eligible to adopt until I'm like 30. :rolleyes:
 

AnimalsAreforMe

Saint Bernard Mix Slave
Joined
Sep 4, 2005
Messages
296
Likes
0
Points
0
Age
35
Location
Ohio
#9
It IS ridiculas I know my mom and i were turned down alot before we got Pixie. It was mainly because of the nonfenced in yard.
 

yoko

New Member
Joined
Aug 4, 2005
Messages
5,347
Likes
0
Points
0
Age
37
Location
Oklahoma
#10
i wasn't allowed to adopt from one rescue group because the vet reference i got. the guy wasn't a vet any more he retired. but he was the vet when i, well really my family, had our last dog. and because i rented from a lady who owned a dog.
 

RD

Are you dead yet?
Joined
Aug 1, 2004
Messages
15,572
Likes
0
Points
0
Age
34
Location
Ohio
#12
"If you've ever rehomed a dog for any reason, no dog." -- That is the reason I do not and will not be able to rescue a BC from a breed rescue - shelters only. God FORBID they ask me WHY I rehomed my dog in the past. Could it be that I actually made a responsible decision to rehome my dog, that I wasn't just trying to dump her off on someone else?

I hate most rescues because of that. Apparently they don't realize that there is no such thing as the universally perfect dog owner - just like there is no such thing as the universally perfect dog. I just feel very sad and sorry for the homeless dogs that are missing out on GREAT homes because of the rescue's close-mindedness.
 
Joined
Sep 5, 2005
Messages
32
Likes
0
Points
0
Age
47
Location
Angola, IN
#13
While I can totally agree that some rescues go to far with their screening process, I can assure you it is only because they have the best interest of the dog in mind. There are ones out there that carry this TO far! I am a beagle rescuer, and we do have a screening process...but at the time I applied to do this...I had a 4 foot fence, 4 kids under 11 and a beagle of my own. I guess I never should have been approved! Just want to assure everyone that NOT ALL rescues are like this. The beagle rescues that I woek with love kids in the home, and other dogs of similar size. They do PREFER a fenced in area in the yard, but it is NOT required!!! Renters are also welcome.
 

juliefurry

Rusty but Trusty
Joined
Mar 16, 2005
Messages
6,209
Likes
0
Points
0
Age
40
Location
United States
#14
It is ridiculus what some places expect. We tried to adopt a poodle and they wouldn't adopt to us because we had another dog, a kid, no fence in the yard. They didn't even look at our application barely and said no. They want these dogs to get loving homes but they don't understand that someone without a fence, or with another dog, or with a kid, can give just as much if not more love than someone with a fence or with no other dog or no kids. It's just ridiculus sometimes I think.
 

Payge

New Member
Joined
Jun 30, 2005
Messages
87
Likes
0
Points
0
#15
Its just really disheartening. Another thing I hate is when I see a dog too far away to rescue. Maybe we should revise our plans and just get a dog from a breeder, but I was so set on rescuing one. Ah well, at least in the meantime I can spend my time reading dog training books. I hate that we missed the Walk in The Park Dog Day. Maybe i'm being too picky about the type of dog I want, but I don't see that as a bad thing. It took over a month to find Atlas, so I know there are dogs I want out there, its just finding them in time. Yesterday I stopped by the Humane Society to see what they had and missed by twenty minutes a Great Dane / Lab mix. I *really* want a dog by Halloween, but I can't let that influence my decision because well..that would be stupid. Animal Control has lots of puppies right now, all of them labs or pit bulls, all very well behaved I was amazed, but they just didn't tug at my heart like the "giant" breeds do, does this make me unrealistic or a bad person for not wanting to compromise on the breeds I love? If it were up to just me i'd adopt a Saint from the local rescue, the woman who runs it goes to the vet I used to work at and I had previously spoken to her about adopting one of her Saints, but Pat has put his foot down, he just doesn't like Saints so no go there.
 

Sirius

Imagination ROCKS.
Joined
Sep 22, 2005
Messages
1,877
Likes
0
Points
0
Location
In a chair, on chaz
#16
Yeah, my friend tried to adopt a GSD mix from the shelter and they made a stink about it because her fence was only 5.5 ft tall. (She got the dog in the end though) The way they think, none of the dogs in those shelters are ever going to get adopted :(
 

Fran27

Active Member
Joined
Mar 15, 2005
Messages
10,642
Likes
0
Points
36
Age
45
Location
New Jersey
#17
My fence is 4 feet tall. I just can't imagine my dogs jumping over it, they don't jump over anything at all. If one day they start wanting to jump over stuff, I may fix that.

I agree that not all rescues are so bad though. We got Tips even though we only have a 4 feet fence.

Payge I'm sorry it's so hard for you with rescues. I don't think you're a bad person at all, we all have breeds we love and breeds we don't love as much, and we should all choose a dog that we really like, in my opinion.
 

dani12

New Member
Joined
Jul 15, 2005
Messages
200
Likes
0
Points
0
Location
Eastern Shore
#18
We adopted Jedi and Daisy from the Humane Society and have a 5 and a 6 year old. They were with us when we went and filled out an application and this shelter doesn't frown upon people with kids adopting. I understand why they wouldn't want to but if you have responsible parents there is no need to deny a family a wonderful pet.
The one thing I didn't like though is they give you the application and make such a big deal out of it and then never follow up. We were told we would get a call within a month to see how everything was going and to make sure we followed up with all their shots, etc. Well we have yet to receive a call and adopted the very beginning of July. So I think it's just funny how they show such a fuss in the beginning but then just seem to let go of the dogs once they are "out of sight".
 

mwood322

New Member
Joined
Jul 19, 2005
Messages
198
Likes
0
Points
0
Location
MA
#19
I have someone who runs a rescue out of her home across the street from me. It started with cats. She has at least 12 feral cats living in her basement who will not be rehomed, in addition to her 6 "personal" cats, and various rescues. Shs is also violently allergic to cat litter, so all these cats have been trained to go to the bathroom in shredded paper with a small amount of litter sprinkled on. Her house smells wonderful...

Recently she branched out to dogs, only the dogs that don't get along with other dogs, chase cats, and are pit bulls, or elderly male beagles. It is funny since she is afraid of dogs, very afraid, but she has more dogs listed for rescue than cats. She has 3 beagles and a border collie living in her front yard. Those dogs drive me nuts, as they bark all day long, and are all tied to their own cable, yet her backyard is completely fenced. One of my other neighbors complained and now all 4 dogs are wearing bark control collars. Which I am not impressed by at all. They don't work, so they bark, which sets off my dog, which sets off every dog in the neighborhood, which makes me have very unkind thoughts about her.

She is also the rescue that all my local pet stores give money to, so I don't donate to their drives either, as I feel she does not run the rescue in a way that makes the animals adoptable, or well cared for.

And yet I would never be approved by her to adopt anything. I have too many pets.... The fact that I returned a cat to her for attacking both my cat and my dog probably has something to do with it. I gave her a month to find him a new home, but not many people want a cat who bites and attacks other animals, and people when the mood strikes him.

She would not approve me because I have 1 dog, 1 cat, 5 geckos, 4 snakes, 1 frog, a cockatiel, and lots of fish tanks. Mind you everything is well cared for, and I'm planning on rehoming one of the geckos, as three male leopards is too much (I was hoping for a female.) And the only free range animals I have are the cat and the dog. But it doesn't matter. She seems to believe that living on the end of a 20 foot cable in her front yard is better than living in a fenced yard with another dog to play with.

So even though there is an animal rescue across the street from me, I'm probably going to put in an application with ARPH for a female aussie, or mix in my area. Their standards aren't too insane. Though two personal references who aren't family members can be tough for me. I spend too much time with the dog to have loads of friends... :D

--Mia
 

Members online

No members online now.
Top