[QUOTE=IdahoRider;5809945]
I have been involved in rescue for many, many years. I even worked in a large, open admission humane society as the foster program coordinator for years.
I have worked with other rescues over the years, helping top transport or as the shelter contact person when they want to pull a dog. I can honestly say that there are some KA-RAZEE folks involved in rescue. Which is unfortunate, because in order to actually do a decent job at it, you need to be very grounded in reality.
But having a special brand of crazy involved in rescues shouldn’t detract from the fact that the common rules so many rescues hold to are there for good reason.
The “No Outside Dog” rule? Rescues and shelters are inundated every single day with dogs that being surrendered and abandoned because they were left to live outside. A dog that lives outside is much more likely to engage in behaviors that will cause a frustrated owner to surrender it. Nuisance barking is just one. Yard destruction is another. A roaming dog is another. If an owner keeps the dog inside the house, unless someone is home to keep an eye out, those behaviors are a lot less likely to occur and the dog is a whole lot less likely to be rehomed at some point.
A good rescue or shelter should match the dog to the best home possible…and that is sometimes not the first home to put in an application. As a foster parent, I have held a dog for an adopting family until they return from vacation. I have done it more than once. I want the best home possible, not the one that is more convenient for me. Or the home that settles the most ruffled feathers.
I think one of the things that is the hardest for a non-rescue-involved person to understand is that we have all had experiences with an adopter who swore up and down that they were the one and true exception to the reasoning behind the rules. The fence-less adopter who swears they will exercise until the cows come home is the same adopter who surrenders that cute dog to a neighboring county’s animal control because the dog has spent all winter crapping in the house and they have had ENOUGH. It was a wetter than normal winter, or colder, and the reality of walking a dog in bad weather was somewhat different than the promise. Or their work schedule changed and they didn’t have time any more. Have that happen a few times and it won’t matter how much someone promises to step up to the plate.
It is impossible to tell who will actually be the real exception once you have been burned a few times and seen the dog pay the price for it. I know it is hard not to take it personally, but it isn’t meant to be personal. It really isn’t about you.
If you get turned down by a rescue, find another one to work with. If you come across one that has crazy rules that can’t be explained, walk away. For every nut job hoarding dogs in the basement, there are three well run rescues that are doing it right. Do your homework, establish a relationship with the group you decide to work with and be PATIENT. You are adding a dog to your “family”, not dropping in at the 7-11 around the corner for a soda and a bag of chips. I have dealt with potential adopters who spent more time deciding on what brand of purse to buy than they wanted to spend on finding the right dog to adopt.
Adopting from a rescue or shelter works far more often than it doesn’t. It is such a shame that we don’t hear more of the success stories.
Sheilah[/QUOTE]
Sheilah,
There are a lot of success stories, but there are also a lot of homeless dogs that are stuck in less than optimal conditions with a foster. I have rescued a number of adult dogs myself, and they lived with me until they passed. My last rescue was a starving adult Dane that weighed about 80 pounds after being tied in a basement for weeks on end while its recently divorced owner neglected it. Thankfully the owner’s father “stole” the dog while his son wasn’t home, and got it in a better place where it would be up for adoption.
Rescues have to get realistic. Not all of them are bad, of course, but there are way too many that will find a foster and screen the foster less than they screen the permanent home. I agree with screening owners, but I don’t agree with ruling out good homes because the owner doesn’t have a fenced yard, isn’t home all day, blah, blah, blah.
I remember talking to an elderly, retired gentleman that was trying to adopt a small dog. He was repeatedly turned down because he lived in a condo and didn’t have a fenced yard. He finally got frustrated and bought a dog. I know of elderly people who adore their small dogs. These dogs live like kings and couldn’t be happier as they live in an indoor home with love and round-the-clock attention.
For every dog up for adoption that doesn’t get adopted out because of stringent “rules”, another homeless dog gets destroyed. I cringe every time I read about another dog that is on its final hour.
