rwbeagles-In store adoptions

It can sometimes be a FINE line between practicality and necessity AND resposibility.

Most people who do rescue are volunteers and the turnover is VERY high -- and often among the people actually doing the fostering/working/manning of adoption days, etc. -- personalities can get in the way of it all.  Often rules become a subsitute for common sense -- and rules can bog you down to a point where you never get animals adopted.  Then you turn animals away ... then animals wind up staying at animal control/shelters and get euthanized. 

I've gotten bitter in the past about "home visits" which down here can equate to "ewww, they're POOR -- eww, she's got dirty dishes and ..." that can quickly degenerate into not placing animals in certain sections of town, or with certain ethnic groups.  People may just plain be embarassed to have someone "inspect" their home or can be made to feel like someone's looking 'down' on them when they think they're trying to do a good thing by adopting a dog from a shelter rather than getting a pup from a backyard breeder.

There's a balance to be struck, and honestly I think some groups need to take a real look at their 'rules' and try to figure out WHY they were made. 

 On the off chance that you may catch one person lying (and probably you won't), is it worth offending 10 others? 

I get really jaded here, to be honest, because more and more I see groups take refuge in "rules" and then make REALLY bad calls on what's good or what's bad simply because someone says "the RULES say ..." and no logical, sensible, INTELLIGENT thought is applied.  There's never any substitute for **good** judgment -- and it may simply be that your mother was obviously a good candidate. 

You can tell these things by watching -- sometimes you can't.  But I wouldn't completely discount how well 'screened' someone was because they didn't put enough 'time' constraints on it.  I honestly think *reality* has to have bearing on all of this -- too many shelters and rescues fail because they set up rules and standards that can't be humanly followed ... and then NO dogs get adopted out. 

There does need to be standards ... but I think if you can adequately judge character and if someone has good references, and is solid, I don't think it should be discounted.

When we got Billy the rescue had ALL KINDS OF RULES -- and as it happened -- he was abused.  IN FOSTER CARE!!!!!  We literally became HIS rescue because the people were so overburdened that the wrong people were relying on 'rules' rather than on GOOD sense.

Just following "rules" doesn't always make it right.  Does that make sense? 

It's been a while since I've worked any remote adoptions w/Humane Society but here's what I do remember:  It's pretty easy to discern those who truly want a companion and will take good care of it.  People love to talk and more often than not give themselves away when they don't know any better regarding 'our' adoption  policies.  But let's just say they don't; good poker face.  The questionaire we have everyone fill out is designed to highlight one's ability to care for the pet, such as their history of vet care, where the pet will actually live (in or out; we don't allow out), what kind of food they feed or have fed and the like.  (Example, "What kind of heartworm prevention do you use?"  If they answer, there's usually the follow-up question of "what color is the box" to just kind of verify.)  I have often stood by while some girl begs and begs to get the pup because she'd be such a great parent but we don't go through with the adoption because she lives in an apartment and the office isn't open for us to verify the pet policy.  Same with home renters.  So yes, in most cases various parts of the sizing-up can be confirmed rather than speculated on.  Because the adoption counselor's have done their jobs for so long, they can spot fakers a mile away, trust me, I've seen it happen.  Do some slip through the cracks?  I'm sure they do but due to the sheer number of adoptions that could go to someone who is great and we can't verify everything, we take the chance.

Oh the stories I've heard, both from people wanting to adopt and those who work as a counselor.  Hoarders can be picked out of a crowd immediately.  A worker at NTHS told me that for a short time they had a lady come in daily begging for any Ragdoll cats they had; she was a known hoarder.  Another adoption counselor told me that during one adoption remote at Petsmart, a young man came in with his Pittie puppy.  Puppy was wearing this enormous collar that was clearly too heavy for the pup to even carry and the counselor basically made the owner very uncomfortable about it, telling him that was no way to treat the puppy (he'd been dragging the puppy around the store too).  She wouldn't let him leave without buying a new collar and putting it on the puppy.  On another remote, I had a lady telling me how the dog would solely be a watchdog for her kids while she's not home; it would live outside because of some dog issue she had that I don't recall.  Needless to say, she didn't go home with a dog.

I guess what I wonder is WHY...does the dog need to go THAT DAY? Is it truly so pressing that one week makes a difference? To give the person time to think...to change their minds...to shop for necessities?

We have dogs at different petsmarts on the weekends that are up for adoption. We also bring them to all our events and around the town. However, if you would like to adopt one of our animals, you must go back to the shelter to fill out the paperwork and such. We don't adopt offsite, for the exact reason you are talking about. it's a great way for people to see our animals and get to know them, but I don't think that petsmart is the right place to be getting a dog and going home. JMO.

I also agree that there is a fine line.... some people do have great poker faces... and frankly... im more scared of these people then the people who are more callous in their remarks....

When I was thinking of adopting another dog.... this great rescue had me approved to taking home a dog.... only issue was I couldnt meet the dog before hand because he lived across the country and I had to decide within three days....  Too much pressure for me to decide.... and I didnt feel comfortable making a life long committment on a dog we both havent met....it would have been unfair to the both of us....

So while adopting a dog at an on site place might not seem ideal, is adopting out any dog to any stranger ideal?

I mean.... this rescue agency had nothing to go on... except phone call conversation (in which she said she can tell a lot about the  person), email conversation (I mean... how hard is it to portray someone youre not online?), and a vet check. (I could have given her my neighbor's name, or my cousin's or whatever.)  But yeah.... there's so many what ifs....

 Can't you just walk into most city shelters and walk out with a dog after filling out the paper work?  There are a couple of shelters in our area where you can do this.  I'm not sure what the difference is......

We participate in offsite adoption events with three different Petsmarts in our area. We keep cats at two stores all of the time and we bring dogs to at least 1-2 stores each weekend. The cat adoptions are left to the discretion of the store - we pretty much just ask that they call landlords (if applicable), that they not adopt to anyone who is going to make the cat an outside cat, and that they generally use their common sense when deciding if it is a good match.

 
We just started doing offsite same-day adoptions for the dogs, which I have mixed feelings about. I feel that if you really want a dog/puppy, you should not only be willing to wait another 24-48 hours, but that it should also be a planned event. While I love the exposure we get at Petsmart, my biggest concern is that we get a good deal of people that see a cute puppy and start saying things like "Oh I'll take her home - just don't call my wife" and "I don't really want another dog, but look at how cute this one is!", both of which send up warning flags for us. Puppies should not be an impulse purchase at the register, like a package of Snausages, but I find myself being more stringent with people that seem to be making an "in the moment" decision and have, on occasion, required families to go home and wait 24 hours to really think it through.

Unfortunately, sometimes going home same day DOES make a difference; because the Chicago-land area is so big, some families have traveled 45 minutes from home when they happen to see a dog at Petsmart. Our adoption policies require that all members of the family be there (other canine included) to meet the dog they are interested in adopting. If the entire family is there to meet the dog, the decision seems to be well-thought out, and the application otherwise looks good (landlord checks out, etc.) we would rather send the dog home than deal with the inevitable "Well I guess I'll just go to my local shelter when I get home..."

The other issue is that shelter/rescues get ALOT of grief for having policies that are "too strict" and take too long to send an animal home. The reason we got one of our adoption partner Petsmarts was that the previous rescue group made people wait 2-3 days to adopt and (generally speaking) people that want to adopt at Petsmart want to adopt NOW. Petsmart wants to keep their customers happy and facilitate as easy a transaction as possible, so there is some pressure from that side as well. On the other hand, we hear that we are too lenient and don't make people jump through enough hoops to get an animal. The bottom line is that at some point, we have to trust that what the people are telling us is true, and educate educate educate the new owners.   

sillysally

Can't you just walk into most city shelters and walk out with a dog after filling out the paper work? 

Yep and I imagine the return rate is testament to that.

rwbeagles

I guess what I wonder is WHY...does the dog need to go THAT DAY?

I think it depends on where you are and what org you are dealing with. A rescue company might have the time to wait for home inspections, etc. And look at all the good that did for the org that adopted out a dog with Ellen Degeneres. The dog still wound up in another home that they had not interviewed, etc.

And at some point, you're just going to have to take a chance on the person adopting.

With Sherman Animal Shelter, there's not much time. They have a 7-day schedule, after initial evaluation. As in, if the dog is not adopted in 7 days, they take the final walk. I think they stretch it a little bit, though. If the shelter is not overcrowded, they might wait another day or two. So, when they have the mobile adoption thing at Petco every Saturday, it is often a same day adoption. There are only so many ACO's and so many resources. Even the mobile climate-controlled adoption kennel for the cats and small dogs was a complete donation from a private citizen.

And I've seen that scenario work out well, indeed.

Plus, the economy here is stretched. Most people can't afford a lot. And taking a chance on sending a dog home with people you just met is better than waiting for the needle. I know that sounds dramatic.

But I have also met some of the people from Lezee's Legacy, a rescue org that takes their time with adoptions. They are the ones that had the brindle Rhodesian Ridgeback with aggression issues that I have mentioned before. They couldn't just adopt that dog to anyone. But then, I don't know many people personally who could handle such a dog.

What are some of the requirements and hoops one must jump through to adopt from a rescue org? I might not be suitable material to a Husky org. I work 8 to 10 hours a day, sometimes 6 days a week. I have a 4 foot tall chain link fence that a truly determined Husky could jump.I have a cat in the house. And, horror of horrors, I feed Nutro.

But if the dog's time is up in a day or two, is it better to send the dog home that day and hope for the best or make the potential adopter wait, while risking losing what could very well be a good home (just because someone does not want to wait for a week and undergo the 3rd degree/home visit, etc, by rescue workers does not automatically mean that they will make bad owners) while the shelter fills up and more potentially adoptable dogs run out of time?

Time is up...doesn't apply to in store adoptions...almost 100% of the time...which is why I ask...why the rush? The rescue's doing these in our Petsmart are foster based meaning the only have available dogs in foster care...not in shelter..not in life/death situations.

rwbeagles

Time is up...doesn't apply to in store adoptions...almost 100% of the time...which is why I ask...why the rush? The rescue's doing these in our Petsmart are foster based meaning the only have available dogs in foster care...not in shelter..not in life/death situations.

Yeah, but a lot of these rescues pull from shelters/dogs who are on death row (I've seen some that will only pull from shelters).  Therefore, if they only have so many foster spots, every day they wait there is another dog whose time is up. 

I guess I see both sides of it.  i understand why people would be questioning it, but I understand why they might be inclined to do it....

In all honesty I would not be comfortable with a bully breed rescue doing this just because of all the extra stuff that comes with owning the breed (legislation issues, insurance issues, proper breed education, the creepy people that the breed can sometimes attract, etc). 

My rescue org has an adoption process that includes an interest being expressed, interview, the entire family meeting the dog, vet reference check, home inspection, contract, and followup.  We say we don't adopt off the floor but I guess if all pieces are in place it is possible.  But the soonest a dog can be transferred is a minimum of one week. 

Its different for the cats we house at Petsmart.  An person just has to complete an application, be interviewed, and then take the cat home.