Adopting A Rescue Dog

[afrancis]

Let’s see if I can address some of the issues that have been raised in response to my vent (and, yes, in looking back with 20/20 hindsight, I will concede that I was probably venting more than I was thinking rationally).

 

Bustopher,

I am only sorry that I didn't post this earlier in your defence.

I also thought some of the responses to your post were a bit terse and at times, insulting, which really surprised me since not only have you been here a long time but also have contributed unwaveringly with humour and compassion.

I knew at the time that you were probably writing out of emotion that was no doubt clouding your brain , and I did wish that you had actually contacted NEBCR personally first before posting, since several people from that rescue are active on this board and would, in fact, read your comments and perhaps take offence to them. That being said, they did respond and were very polite and helpful.

I just wish that you had been cut a little more slack by those in rescue that seemed to have amnesia in regards to your history here.

JM2cents.

Ailsa

[BustopherJones]

Thank you, Ailsa. Your support means a lot to me.

[Lenajo]

I just wish that you had been cut a little more slack by those in rescue that seemed to have amnesia in regards to your history here.

 

That's the nice thing about this Board - it's real.

 

You are only as acceptable as your last post. If you act like ____ , you get called ____

 

I find a lot more gets aired on this Board that's helpful and of value; than 10 other Boards where strangled politeness is valued before honesty and protection of the breed we all love.

 

RDM said it clearly enough about Rescue's position. If you don't like that you can pick up a dog at the shelter or pound locally. The dog may not suit, you may be in way over your head because you don't have the years of experience a good Rescue does to select and match a dog and owner. You will get a dog with shelter shock - and it may be a totally different dog after 2 weeks of rest and decent care. A foster home would have found that out - no big deal... but you get what you get.

 

All this is ok though, because it's *your* dog. And we know that's way more important to these dogs than having the right home.

[Bo Peep]

Buster-

If you want- I can find a perfect dog for you. Train her in obedience and you just pay the shipping- much cheaper than adoption. You are a great dog owner. I have seen all you have done for Missy. I would not require one piece of paper except if the dog did NOT work out, you would send her back. Pick the age, sex, coloring, etc... they are a dime a dozen here and I can put manners 101 on the dog. My gift to a truly dog lover. Only through posts on the board, I KNOW that this would be a good home- no questions asked- fence? kids? whatever!!

[kajarrel]

Bustopher,

I don't know what your resources are or what you're looking for but my neighbor has a REALLY nice non-working, adult border collie that they need to place. The family has a severely sick son who needs treatment in another state and they would like to find a good home for the dog.

 

If you PM me your contact info, I can pass it on to the family. They will do the screening and, of course, you will need to get the dog from CNY (Syracuse/Utica area) to your place, if you could work this out.

 

Kim

[Ooky]

That's the nice thing about this Board - it's real.

 

You are only as acceptable as your last post. If you act like ____ , you get called ____

 

I find a lot more gets aired on this Board that's helpful and of value; than 10 other Boards where strangled politeness is valued before honesty and protection of the breed we all love.

 

RDM said it clearly enough about Rescue's position. If you don't like that you can pick up a dog at the shelter or pound locally. The dog may not suit, you may be in way over your head because you don't have the years of experience a good Rescue does to select and match a dog and owner. You will get a dog with shelter shock - and it may be a totally different dog after 2 weeks of rest and decent care. A foster home would have found that out - no big deal... but you get what you get.

 

All this is ok though, because it's *your* dog. And we know that's way more important to these dogs than having the right home.

 

Well, I'm not sure that's totally fair to all shelters, or shelter adoptions. I myself have been the happy adopter of several shelter animals in my life, and DH worked for one of the premier US shelters (Denver dumb Friends League) for years. They also help a lot of animals and a good shelter will also make a person go through a vigorous screening process. My husband would take hours and possibly require multiple visits to adopt animals. He turned down a LOT of people b/c their philosophy was also to place animals in forever homes that were good fits. He would redirect people to breeds and individual dogs that would actually be good for them after interviews. He took time to counsel people on basic ownership responsibilities, costs, and issues, and would not adopt out to homes where the animal was going to be outside a lot or declawed or home alone too much. They called references, landlords, etc. He did have dogs returned to the shelters, but I'm pretty sure this happens to some degree with all rescues. He placed over 1000 animals in his time there, and got many more out to breed-specific rescues, especially when the animal was not doing well in the shelter environment. Also, our local SPCA is a very wonderful organization and does a lot of good for animals in need in this area.

 

Animal Control is another matter, although I believe a lot of good people are even trying to help in those circumstances. And I have seen so-called "rescues" in my search for a pup this summer that would make your hair crawl. But they were the ones that DIDN'T have a good screening process.

 

But even after some naive posts I've made myself, I feel that I understand the tone of the board, and agree it is on the whole nice that people are so forthright. Probably everyone who spends any significant time here will get offended on some point, at some point. Or at least it seems like that to me. Occasionally people are extremely rude (it CAN be spicy here, I'll admit), but in this thread I really don't see any one rising above the level Bustopher set in his original rant towards other board members' rescue organization. That being said, I hope you'll just give rescues a break in the future and not take the board's reaction as an indication you are disliked or your history of posting is out the window or something. People here are in general very forgiving, if a bit rough sometimes.

[Lenajo]

Well, I'm not sure that's totally fair to all shelters, or shelter adoptions. I myself have been the happy adopter of several shelter animals in my life, and DH worked for one of the premier US shelters (Denver dumb Friends League) for years.

 

There are no absolutes, though I would point out to your DH that my friend still rants about the mess DDFL caused in when they adopted a Siberian Husky with seperation anxiety to her 20 something year old nephew who lives in an apartment by himself and works 12 hours days. Yes, that worked out well - NOT They did take the dog back, but not after he caused untold amounts of damage, alienated his owner to dog ownership, and the apartment owner to allowing pets.

 

Overall, shelters are understaffed, underfunded, and the screening is poor of both dog and owner. Rescues have a much better chance because they can get more individually involved with each dog and adoption contract.

 

There are bad Rescues and Shelters - that is accepted. NEBCR however, has a *great* reputation. Which is why all that knew them objected loudly to seeing them trashed without cause.

 

I fail to see how all of this can be fixed by offering an unknown person (and yes, someone you only know on the boards is pretty much unknown) a dog long distance. Hopefully some screening is planned here though please <stage whisper> don't make the OP fill out any forms.

[Ooky]

There are no absolutes, though I would point out to your DH that my friend still rants about the mess DDFL caused in when they adopted a Siberian Husky with seperation anxiety to her 20 something year old nephew who lives in an apartment by himself and works 12 hours days. Yes, that worked out well - NOT They did take the dog back, but not after he caused untold amounts of damage, alienated his owner to dog ownership, and the apartment owner to allowing pets.

 

Overall, shelters are understaffed, underfunded, and the screening is poor of both dog and owner. Rescues have a much better chance because they can get more individually involved with each dog and adoption contract.

 

There are bad Rescues and Shelters - that is accepted. NEBCR however, has a *great* reputation. Which is why all that knew them objected loudly to seeing them trashed without cause.

 

I fail to see how all of this can be fixed by offering an unknown person (and yes, someone you only know on the boards is pretty much unknown) a dog long distance. Hopefully some screening is planned here though please <stage whisper> don't make the OP fill out any forms.

 

I will mention this to him but also would reply that they do move a lot of animals into permanent homes - way more than rescues in the area. Not every one that works for them is perfect and he did tell me stories of them firing adoption counselors for slipping up like this. But it sounded hard to get really good people in many ways as it might be a possibly tougher job (emotionally) than foster-rescue, so if some one slipped up now and then due to understaffing/underfunding, I wouldn't be shocked. Again, I'd point out that even great rescue organizations have dogs come back sometimes, and misjudge applicants even after a long screening process. (Which I also agree is very necessary! By all means I believe in screening.)

 

I do feel bad for your nephew's experience, and agree the dog should not have gone to him, but does the DDFL really bear all the responsibility in that case? Shouldn't your nephew also have known that was too long to be gone every day and still have a dog, probably any dog but especially a high energy breed like that? I did at that age. And no offense, but if he really wanted a dog badly enough he could have supplied some misleading information.

 

I fully agree NEBCR should not have been attacked, and that no one's response to Bustopher was out of line - especially when he set the original tone. I'm just "putting on the cape" for what I believe are *great* shelters, including DDFL, that I think definitely do a lot of net good in finding homes for homeless animals. I wouldn't want everyone to think all shelters are automatically a worthless avenue for adoption compared to rescue, or that all people that work in shelters are all unskilled idiots doing more harm than good.

 

Mmmm, spicy!

 

ETA sorry - I realize was your friend's nephew. apologies.

[BustopherJones]

I am tempted to respond to some of the posts above, but I will resist that temptation. I have swallowed my pride and openly admitted I was wrong, and have apologized. Those who were condescending and malicious in the first place are unwilling to accept that apology, and seem to feel that they must continue with their insults and attacks; so be it. I have said all I am going to say on the topic. So for those malicious, small-minded individuals who cannot graciously accept my concession and apology and feel that they must continue their derision, flame away all you want; I will not give you the satisfaction of making you feel that I place any value on your opinions by continuing to debate the topic.

[Shetlander]

Then there is Bliss, who I got off Craigslist, who was not getting any attention and was afraid of everything. Her previous, previous owners must have hit her with objects and she went into panic when balls or frisbees were involved. She is now playing and hopefully will someday retrieve and learn to help someone in a wheelchair.

 

 

Good work with Bliss. Isn't it incredibly heartwarming to see a dog come out of its shell and really start to enjoy life? This is going way off tangent, but I just wanted to comment on her fears of balls and Frisbees. While it is entirely possible her previous owners did hit her with objects, there is often no way to know this for sure. I had a dog who came to me at 7 weeks old, spooked and terrified of pretty much everything. He not only didn't want to go outside, he didn't want to get down off the sofa (which was kind of useful actually -- I used it as a sort of playpen when I needed to run into another room). Through a lot of work he came around to be be "almost normal" and my favorite dog ever. In his early years, I can't tell you how many times people who didn't know us would look at him cowering and say "He had to have been abused!" Not sure what they thought when I told them, "I sure hope not, since he's lived with me his entire life."

 

That's the thing with rescues and strays when we don't know their history. We try to fill in the blanks for behaviors but there is always that element of guess. The good news is that in the end, helping the dog over their fears is pretty much the same regardless of the cause of those fears.

[bc4ever]

IIRC, exactly two people responded 'negatively' to your post and I don't think it's exactly haunting you. Bringing it up repeatedly just reminds people of it, and I guarantee you it was so minor that no one really remembers it. Maybe try letting it go, and donning a thicker posting sweater.

RDM

 

Haunting me? No. Makes me cautious about expressing my opinions, yes. Bringing it up repeatedly?! This is the first time I've said anything about that minor thing that no one really remembers. And, IIRC, you were one of the "exactly two" who responded "negatively" to my post--so you either remembered it or searched for it. I've obviously let it go, or I wouldn't still be on the boards. Thicker posting sweater? Hell, I'm wearing an insulated coat! I don't know why you feel the need to be so sarcastic. (No Smiley)

[beachdogz]

there is often no way to know this for sure. I had a dog who came to me at 7 weeks old, spooked and terrified of pretty much everything.

 

I would like to share something that an old friend who was a long-time GSD breeder once told me. The GSD breed has a long reputation for producing what we call "spooks"; dogs that will spook at anything - objects or people. Her thought was that many times it was not a temperament problem, but perhaps a VISION problem. While there are tests for genetic eye diseases, there are no "vision" tests (20/20) for dogs (unless they've recently developed one) and no way to tell if the dog really sees clearly....no way to know what the dog actually "sees." I have always kept her belief in the back of my mind when a dog reacts abnormally for no apparent reason. We can't really tell what they are seeing, and they can't tell us if they don't see things clearly (and anyone who's had a blind dog knows how they eventually can compensate for the disability).

 

I just throw that out there as yet, another, piece of the puzzle that could be considered. It is so true that when dealing with adopted dogs, we are always trying to solve puzzles that have pieces missing.

[Liz P]

I don't think our policies are difficult at all. We look at the individual adopter and fit the best dog to the best family. We are extremely reasonable as rescues go and don't require a fence for every dog, just the ones with such a strong prey drive that they are at risk of being hit by a car. Also, we are not asking that Bree's adopters pay for her surgery, but a donation would be lovely.

 

Bree's co foster parent,

 

Liz

 

ETA: Because we are a group of volunteers we can't get adoptions done in hours. Depending on our own personal busy schedules we can sometimes get adoptions done in a week or two.

[Liz P]

Was my rant unfair to NEBCR?

Hindsight says yes. I recently encountered someone in Maine who had adopted a dog from NEBCR, and was very complimentary. But her adoption was several years ago, and apparently the process was easier in those days.

 

Nope. I've been with NEBCR from the begining. Our policies are pretty much the same in regards to adoptions.

 

We even have a seniors for seniors program for older adopters. In fact, Sunny is available through that program and has been desperately waiting for the right home to come along for quite some time. She is a love bug with no major issues and just wants someone to cuddle with. I had the pleasure of caring for her for a month and have to say she was one of the easiest foster dogs ever.

 

http://nebcr.org/closeups/Sunny01.html

[MrSnappy]

There are no absolutes, though I would point out to your DH that my friend still rants about the mess DDFL caused in when they adopted a Siberian Husky with seperation anxiety to her 20 something year old nephew who lives in an apartment by himself and works 12 hours days. Yes, that worked out well - NOT They did take the dog back, but not after he caused untold amounts of damage, alienated his owner to dog ownership, and the apartment owner to allowing pets.

 

To be fair to DDFL, the staff is only as good as the management allows them to be, and the management is (or at least was) not, ummm, very animal welfare oriented. They are, however, VERY PR and fundraising oriented! My BFF worked there for a good chunk of time, and she referred to her supervisor as The Kill Nazi. At least as recently as two years ago, they were mandated to euthanize any dog that any issues that the average Joe Dog Owner could not manage, which meant that only puppies and very docile dogs made it to the adoption floor. Their euth-to-adopt ratio favoured euthanasia Many a dog got smuggled out the back door by staff who couldn't bear to see perfectly good dogs killed. Additionally, they were encouraged to adopt the available dogs liberally, so as not to create "bad PR" from people who were turned down. In one instance, a staff member was reprimanded for not adopting a very young puppy to a young gal who wanted to 'put a scarf on it so it could ride around in her convertible looking adorable.' Admittedly, I do not know how it's run now, but when I tried to save a border collie that had been surrendered to them for "dog aggression" (by surrendered I mean "dropped in the Night Drop Off box") - to which there was a significant back story - they opted to euthanize it instead.

 

Makes me cautious about expressing my opinions, yes. Bringing it up repeatedly?! This is the first time I've said anything about that minor thing that no one really remembers. And, IIRC, you were one of the "exactly two" who responded "negatively" to my post--so you either remembered it or searched for it. I've obviously let it go, or I wouldn't still be on the boards.

 

bc4ever, you misunderstand my reply. In a thread in the rescue section I corrected a statement you made that I disagreed with and you replied that you'd apparently been posting all sorts of things people disagreed with lately, or something to that effect. I recalled no controversy about your posts at all so I looked it up. I wasn't involved in the thread you got some "flack" for, actually.

 

I'm being serious when I say just move on and let it go, not sarcastic. Repeated referencing to it just doesn't help you do that. I figure on these boards there are people that don't like anything I say, and people who like everything I say, and people who have no clue who I am, and people who respond to strictly to the content of my posts, and not to me. I think that's the case for most posters, and that it's to be expected. So when I say develop a thick skin, and don't dwell on posts that maybe weren't well received, I'm being serious. You get way more out of the whole thing if you accept that some of the things you say will be disagreed with, but treat every new post as a new day and don't worry if some people get offended, or heated etc. Certainly it's a real shame if past disagreements stop you from posting what you think or know or feel today.

 

I don't think our policies are difficult at all. We look at the individual adopter and fit the best dog to the best family. We are extremely reasonable as rescues go and don't require a fence for every dog,

 

Interestingly, the "fence" issue is the one that seems to make applicants hate rescues so much. It's the one hot button that comes up most often (second only to 'they wouldn't adopt to us because we have young kids') on various internet boards where people are complaining about rescues and shelters. We also don't require fences, because I don't think a secure fence makes a good dog owner in and of itself, but there are rescues and shelters that are immovable on that issue. Do I think good adopters get left in the cold because of it? Absolutely. However, is the rescue entitled to make that blanket policy? Also absolutely. I think MaryP mentioned earlier the culture of entitlement that applicants seem to have and I have to agree with that. I still think that a good percentage of the dog owning public thinks they are doing rescue a favour by deigning to adopt one of our dogs, but they don't necessarily know that they're thinking that, and it's kind of frustrating.

 

RDM

[beachdogz]

I fail to see how all of this can be fixed by offering an unknown person (and yes, someone you only know on the boards is pretty much unknown) a dog long distance.

 

As for Bustopher Jones, well, I think if you read his posts it gives you some insight into the type of dog person he is. True, after reading posts, you still don’t REALLY know him…but then, who really does? Unless you move in next door to him, you certainly won’t know him that well, and even then, people lead private lives behind closed doors.

 

When I read his initial letter, I did not perceive him as a bitter man who is attacking a rescue group….I thought him to be a sensitive man who was very hurt at the prospect that someone might deem him not good enough to own a rescue dog. And even if that was something only he “perceived”, well, the point is that is what he believed after reading the website. He is certainly not the first person who ever felt that way.

 

Use your heads, people! Look at this board! I would venture to say that EVERYONE on this board is an exceptional dog owner. If you weren’t, you wouldn’t spend your time here sharing stories and seeking information to make your dogs’ lives better! I see story after story of people who truly love their animals…and I believe Bustopher Jones is the same. I would go out on a limb and say that I would probably deem every person on this board a potentially excellent home.

[bc4ever]

IIRC, exactly two people responded 'negatively' to your post and I don't think it's exactly haunting you. Bringing it up repeatedly just reminds people of it, and I guarantee you it was so minor that no one really remembers it. Maybe try letting it go, and donning a thicker posting sweater.

RDM

 

You know what? I must have let it go. I was mistaken (wow, that almost never happens!)--it wasn't you--it was SoloRiver who was unhappy with my post. Donning my extra thick posting sweater for this one....

[BustopherJones]

MaryP, I apologize for prolonging this thread, but some reason I missed the full content of your post in my original reading. Of course, the point you raise has definite merit with respect to matching a dog to an owner. But how does one reconcile this with counsel that has been given repeatedly to people on this board? Prospective owners who have sought advice on this board about finding the right dog from rescue have been told that they should go and spend time with their dog; with direct contact, they will find their "heart dog". Yet, on the other hand, here we are saying that even if they find their ideal dog, they have no assurance that the rescue organization will agree that this is a match the organization endorses. One can try to look at the situation from an aloof and objective standpoint, and it would seem that this is what the rescue organizations feel that they must do in order to provide the best possible home for a dog. But is there not at least some empathy for the now-heartbroken prospective owner who thought he/she found the ideal companion, only to be spurned for reasons that may not even be explained? One might argue that reason should prevail; but humans are (for the most part) emotional beings, and will respond emotionally.

 

It seems to me that there is merit to both perspectives, and I understand the desire of rescue organizations to protect the best interest of the dog. It must be incredibly difficult to make the kinds of decisions you have to make, and I commend you for being able to do that. Personally, I would never survive working in a rescue situation; I could never tell a person who fell in love with a dog that even if he/she could provide a very good home, that person was going to be denied a particular dog because they can't provide the best possible home (from the rescue organization's perspective), while someone else can.

 

In the end, those who abandon these dogs do far more damage than they can imagine, not only to our canine friends, but also to their fellow human beings. I can only hope that Dante was right about their fate...

 

Postscript: beachdogz, I must have been still writing when you made your post, and it would be (at best) ungracious of me not to express my appreciation for your understanding, and for your kind and supportive words. Certainly, there are many on this board who have expressed tolerance, understanding, and forgiveness. And as much as I have discovered that there are a very few who delight in belittling others, I have also found that I also have far more friends and supporters than I would have imagined, from both the open posts in this thread and from the PM's I have received. I will try not to disappoint my many friends by allowing such a lapse in judgment to occur again; but then again, I'm only human, and there are no guarantees...

 

PPS: bc4ever, have you tried Gingko Biloba?

[bc4ever]

bc4ever, you misunderstand my reply. In a thread in the rescue section I corrected a statement you made that I disagreed with and you replied that you'd apparently been posting all sorts of things people disagreed with lately, or something to that effect. I recalled no controversy about your posts at all so I looked it up. I wasn't involved in the thread you got some "flack" for, actually.

 

I'm being serious when I say just move on and let it go, not sarcastic. Repeated referencing to it just doesn't help you do that. I figure on these boards there are people that don't like anything I say, and people who like everything I say, and people who have no clue who I am, and people who respond to strictly to the content of my posts, and not to me. I think that's the case for most posters, and that it's to be expected. So when I say develop a thick skin, and don't dwell on posts that maybe weren't well received, I'm being serious. You get way more out of the whole thing if you accept that some of the things you say will be disagreed with, but treat every new post as a new day and don't worry if some people get offended, or heated etc. Certainly it's a real shame if past disagreements stop you from posting what you think or know or feel today.

 

RDM

 

Read the above post after I sent mine. That's the problem with the written word sometimes. Hard to tell, without hearing the person's voice, what was actually being said. That's why I much prefer to talk to someone face to face. I won't stop coming and I won't stop posting. You're right. I was being too sensitive. I've enjoyed the interaction with the people here and will continue to. Thanks for clarifying some of your previous comments. We're all here for the same reason--we love our Border Collies and love to talk to other people who understand how special they are!

[beachdogz]

Certainly, there are many on this board who have expressed tolerance, understanding, and forgiveness. I will try not to disappoint my many friends by allowing such a lapse in judgment to occur again; but then again, I'm only human, and there are no guarantees...

 

Sorry, Bustopher, but I really don't think there is a need for forgiveness, here. You were expressing your opinion, and you have that right. I believe this is America, after all. :0)

[stockdogranch]

Certainly, there are many on this board who have expressed tolerance, understanding, and forgiveness. And as much as I have discovered that there are a very few who delight in belittling others...

 

I really don't think anyone here "delight in belittling others"; what I see are a group of people with different viewpoints (which is totally normal), and who feel very passionately about what they are writing about--the dogs. It's hard, as a loving, caring dog owner, perhaps to imagine the garbage and the ridiculous notions and the incredibly "dark" side of humanity that rescues see all the time. And it may be difficult, for someone who has done rescue for a long time, to come from a position to believe that everyone who "wants" a dog is going to be a wonderful home. Seems to me, it's a matter of perspective,

 

A

[lrayburn]

I think it is important to realize that meeting a potential dog is like dating - it may work out, it may not. The issue may come from the potential adopter's end or from the rescue's end. I don't think that people should be "heartbroken" over meeting a potential dog. It's just not reasonable. You are there to meet them. It is the potential beginning of a relationship, not the end of a long-term committed relationship. In other words, it's a first date that didn't lead to a second date - not a divorce or loss of a partner!

 

Likewise, someone adopting from a shelter need not feel that they have to take a dog home TODAY or that they have to save every dog in the shelter.

 

A person looking to adopt from rescue needs to take into account the fact that rescues are committed first and foremost to their dogs and aren't eager to just get their dogs out the door. Reputable rescues also know their dogs far better than a perspective adopter does. If a rescue tells you that they have a better fit for the dog, please recognize that they probably DO. You may be a great home for a dog but not the best fit for that particular dog. If the rescuer felt that you were the best fit for a particular dog, they would have happily and gleefully placed that dog with you!

 

Rescues do have perspective that potential adopters do not simply because of the number of rehomings that they deal with.

 

Lisa

[vaporflowers]

I do want to add that on 2 occasions, my family or I adopted dogs from rescues that had blanket fence policies for young dogs, even though we don't have fenced yards.

 

The rescue groups were confident enough in our ability to provide exercise and stimulation. My dad got a great, rescued Cairn Terrier to be his therapy dog, and I got a great BC mix who works aggression cases and socializes timid dogs.

 

It is always worth speaking to the rescue about a dog you're interested in and listening to WHY they have the policies they do. I've never encountered a rescuer who wouldn't listen to what I had to say (although I'm sure they're out there).

[Jo&Tex]

Just a comment from someone who has adopted three dogs from rescue. Two of those dogs just happen to have special needs.

 

Sometimes when disabled dogs become available, they really tug at your heartstrings. Rescues make no secret that the dog will require a little more accomodating from the adoptive family. What isn't always apparent at first glance is that the dog might have bigger issues than missing a limb, or it's sight or it's hearing.

 

I had to wait in line to get interviewed when I tried to adopt my blind Tex. Everyone wanted to help the 'poor blind dog'. Tex has adapted fully to being blind - what made him hard to adopt was that he was a fear-biter. He has terrible aim but even after 4 years with me, he'll still nail me once in a while.

I was his 5th adoptive home in a year. The 'poor blind dog' kept getting returned to rescue from what seemed like border-collie savvy homes.

 

Loki is deaf but Loki is also very weird from spending the first 8 months of his life penned up. He's turned into an awesome little farmdog, but he'll never be fully socialized. He came into my life because I wanted a dog with a soft, suitable temperment to be a good companion for Tex. The fact that he was deaf had little to do with it other than the rescue knew I wouldn't consider it to be a big deal.

 

My advice is to get to know the rescue and let them get to know you. Two of my dogs are the kind that must certainly should have a fenced yard, but not having a fence did not make me less than a suitable home for my dogs.

[Shezrie]

Sorry folks but I must agree with the OP. Rescuing can have administration that borders on the rediculous and takes an eternity. Unfortunately this can and has turned off many potentially excellent owners.

 

That is why I have always gone the back route and gone out there and rescued my own dogs. Generally through a vet that knows of a dog in need. Our vet put us onto our Scot who was in line for shooting because he was a failed sheep dog in the Falkland Islands. The half wild baby who had survived on the occasional raw leg of mutton thrown to him became our beloved BC who lived with us for 13 years before passing away from old age.

 

I went to the local SPCA and picked up a little boy BC, Gus, who was due to be put down because he had a few epileptic fits according to the owner that put him in the SPCA. They let me foster him straight away and then let me adopt him. He is now my brother's beloved BC because they bonded straight off and Gus has only had one minor seizure since.

 

Our Zachary was rescued from a negligent breeder. He was 6 months old, starving and the vet who put us onto him was sure he wouldn't make it with that heart anomaly. He is now ten and a love bunny. My mother's best friend.

 

Chelsea, my brother's other BC was rescued through the vet too.

 

I had lost my beloved Scot and decided to go to a BC rescue center for my next dog. I spotted a little girl and fell in love, I filled out an interminable amount of forms, was told the process would take a few months, that I was the only one interested, I was interviewed ect. After a month of waiting I was told the little girl had gone to a more appropriate family. I asked why and was told that the dog was better suited to a family and not a single person. Rediculous!

 

I went to my vet and purchased my beloved Sky, the love of my life through a breeder. Sorry but I won't go through a rescue center again. After Sky passed away I moved to France and the vet here put me onto a working farm with puppies, where I got my newest treasure and companion, Emma. The farmer had met Zachary and my mother in town and had been impressed with Zachary so much that he had no trouble giving me my little BC.

 

That is just my experience with it.

 

While people may flame me for not doing it all through a rescue center, there are just as many dogs in need out there. All of our dogs were facing death when I or the family rescued them, with the exception of Sky.