Spin Off-Rescue's, what do you expect

Them to do bare minimum...and extra mile?

We often talk about what you consider reputable from a breeder standpoint..and surely there are some basic things a rescue should be held to also...so let's chat about 'em!

Bare minimum...what is it you expect from those you consider a reputable place with the dogs first in mind....tests, vaccines, care?

extra mile...things that aren't strictly necessary but you'd be impressed by?

Bare minimum: Shots, s/n, necessary tests/treatments for worms and HW, temperment assessment, basic obedience work
Extra mile: Crate training, bath/groom before they go to their new home.

Adding to Zoom's list... I'm thinking more of breed-specific rescue than general rescue, though.

"Extra mile" - joint x-rays done at the time of spay/neuter. I speak of this from a performance standpoint, some people (esp in border collies) buy dogs in order to do agility and such with them and they want to know that the dog is sound. Personally if a rescue did this I would gladly reimburse them for it in the adoption fee, if it meant knowing the dog I'm adopting is sound.

In my breed, I'd also consider the "extra mile" to be exposing the dogs to sheep, determining which ones have the drive and interest to be a working sheepdog. I get so tired of seeing rescue pages tout how great some dogs are at "herding" when all they do is stalk and eye the other dogs in the backyard, lol

well im not a rescue though I have rescued several dumped dogs and I do my best to find them all good homes. this is what I personally do. They get S/N before going to there new homes. they yhave all up to date shots and come with a health certificate.

I raise sheep and goats chickens ducks and geese and turkeys. so I slowly introduce them. If they are ok with them they can go homes that have such livestock. If not. well then I have to find them non farm homes.

I teach them the basic sit stay come skills. I house train them and crate train them. as well as get them used to cars. they are also very socialized by my family. from the littlest 3 year old to my parents.

Follow ups, nothing worse than a rescue that places dogs and then doesn't do any follow up visits etc. Rescue support, if you have a problem with the rescue and seek their help that they at the very min. have a list of trainers or other people that are willing immediately to help, not months down the road.
I am working with a rescue now with his people, the rescue (according to them has never done a follow up), this dog was rescued at 5 months, he was to neutered by the new owners and they were to suppose to take obedience classes with him. They did neither and the rescue didn't enforce it. 2 yrs later, they had some RG problems, an untrained dog and he wasn't neutered.
I pushed for the neuter, they did it, we also had a long haul with this dog in some behaviour modifcation and training. To date he has improved a bunch, but I am worried, the people espcially one really is inept and ALWAYS excuses him. Personally I wouldn't have adopted a dog to this person when I did rescue.............

We as a rescue make sure all dogs are vet checked, vaccinated, neutered, microchipped (in the rescues name) and treated for worms & fleas. We assess all dogs to determine the type of home they will need and match the applicants to the dog.
We do have policies that we stick to, to make sure our dogs go to the right homes. We dont home to people who work full time or mae the dogs live/sleep outside, or home to people who breed/have entire dogs in the house.

We first ask people to fill in a form to apply to adopt, after this we will speak to the over the phone for a bit of a chat, then we will arrange a homecheck, if the applicant is succesfull they will then be invited to meet the dog (if theres a dog they are interested in) or we will find a dog that fits them best. If the meeting goes ok then an adoption contract must be signed & a donation is asked for. After 24 hours we will ring to check all is going well with the dog, then a couple of weeks later we will do a follow up visit to make sure all is ok.
We ALWAYS take a dog back no matter ho long it has been in its new home, they are chipped in our name so cant be rehomed elswere, we keep in contact with all of our dogs for the rest of their lives, we do a yearly 'fun day' were everyone who has adopted from us is invited along to a fun dog show etc which is a great day out

FOHA neuters, does all required vet care before adopting a dog/cat out, and follows up with the new owners. If the owners are unable to keep a dog/cat, the animal is to be returned to us. We are a rescue shelter, so we have volunteers that come out and walk dogs on weekends. Some volunteers walk dogs on weekdays, and the dog-friendly dogs get put into playgroups during the week. FOHA does NOT euthanize for aggression, and it really frustrates me to see our few problem dogs spending their lives behind bars because some people can't look past their fat heads.

But we do good work, and most of the dogs/cats are perfectly adoptable. Rarely is a dog returned for an aggression problem. Most of the time its stupid reasons, like the older dog who was returned this weekend because the husband got deployed and the wife was moving in with her parents who already had two dogs.

Extra mile: microchipping, adoption events, follow up visits, basic training (I really DON'T see some rescues doing this, it should be basic though), etc...

And one thing you all may not agree with me about... and probably will cause some controversy... I believe another instance of going the extra mile is euthanizing dogs that have no chance, whether it is physical or mental, and not letting them crowd up the rescue's space for adoptable dogs or take up massive amounts of their funds. For instance, a dog that has very little to no chance of recovery from a physical problem... or with a problem that is going to cost thousands+ to fix... that sort of thing. Sometiems we have to admit it's a lost cause... and that there are hundreds of other dogs out there you can be helping instead.

I agree...


I dont have anything to really add, everything that I thought of has already been said...

Thanks guys! I'd say I agree with most...and whether it be a single person or group there are some very valid things brought up. The question of follow up I hadn't even thought of but that is SO important...home checks too!

no argument from me on that. i've never understood the phenomenon of saving a badly broken animal, investing thousands of dollars in surgery/medication/etc, when there are completely healthy dogs out there being killed. i understand there are times when rescues can raise a whole lot of money that more than covers the surgeries by advertising the sob story, but still.

one thing that frustrates me is that we'll not see a client's pets for years and years (cats, mainly) until they need vaccines updated for a new adoption. but because the pets are up to date on vaccines, they'll adopt to them.

i wish fervently for more follow-up from the rescues.