What exactly is a rescue
group?
In the past 20 or so years, small organizations have sprung up across
the U.S. dedicated to saving animals. Ideally these groups work
in concert with larger community shelters and private no-kill shelters,
with the goal of reducing euthanasia stats on a local, regional and
national level.
Philosophies vary widely from group to group. Most rescues choose
one species or breed that they specialize in and some specialize in
mixed-breeds. For whatever animal you are hoping to adopt, there
is a rescue out there, from snakes and iguanas to cocker spaniels, to
help you find the right rescue pet for you.
Why would I want to
adopt a rescue pet?
Most small rescues get their animals from larger shelters or from
individuals who turn their animals in(known as OTI's or "owner turn
ins"). The animals spend a certain amount of time in a foster
home where their caretakers get to know the individual animal.
The advantage to this over pulling an animal straight from a shelter is
that the rescue is better able to find an exact fit between the adopter
(you!) and the animal in question.
The shelter environment can be very stressful on the pet. It is
hard to get a true reading of the pet's temperament and likes and
dislikes. In the home environment of a rescue foster home, we can
tell when the pet is truely housebroken, if he or she is toy or treat
aggressive, if he or she is suitable for a home with small children or
if the pet has any hidden health issues. Rescues are usually
highly specialized, so you will get expert advice concerning the
species or breed.
This is not to say that adopting from the shelter should be
avoided! But if you'd like the extra assurance of having a pet
who has had some time to adjust to a home environment and has been
thoroughly evaluated, a responsible rescue would be the way to
go. It must be said that getting a rescue pet is usually more
involved, more expensive and a bit more bother than just going to your
local shelter and picking out a pet. Both options have their
appeal, it's up to you to choose.
How do I choose a rescue pet?
Assuming that you already know the type of animal that you want to
adopt and have done the necessary research into what keeping that sort
of animal entails, your next stop should be Petfinder.
Petfinder
maintains listings of most rescue groups in the country and has an
easily searchable database. When you find a pet that you like,
contact the rescue group and ask questions. It's important that
you feel comfortable, not only with the pet you have chosen, but also
with the philosophy and methods of the rescue group. If you feel
uncomfortable with this initial communication, it is probably better to
keep looking.
Adopting from Rescue ~ The Process
I've decided I want to
find a pet through a rescue, but I've never done it before. How
does it work?
The first thing you will do is contact the rescue. Are they
courteous? Did you get a "good feel" for who you were dealing
with? Were they prompt about returning your email? If you feel
good about the rescue, go ahead and fill out an application for the pet
you are interested in. Be sure and fill out the entire
application. Many rescues will not even consider an incomplete
application. The rescue will then consider your application and
if all looks well, they will go ahead and check your references. If all
goes well there, an home visit will be arranged. If local, the
rescue will come to your home and sometimes bring the animal to see how
well they fit in with your home and family. If long distance, a
rescue volunteer in your area will come and visit your home and report
back to the rescue. If approved, you will pay the requested
adoption fee and sign an adoption contract. Transport will then be
arranged. You will be involved with the rescue very closely
through this entire process and beyond. Responsible rescues are
always very concerned about how their "alumi" are getting on. If
for any reason, you are unable to keep your rescue animal in the
future, a responsible rescue will be adamant that the animal be
returned to the original rescue.
What's up with this
application? I just want to adopt a homeless pet...not buy a
house!
Many first time rescue adopters are put off by the length and detail of
the standard rescue application. We need this information to
guage the suitability of your home to the animal in question.
Just answer the questions honestly and in as much detail as
possible. We want you and the animal to have a positive bonding
experience. We want the animal to be safe, and we want you to be
happy with your adoption experience. All responsible rescues will
have a fairly long application tailored to the type of animal or breed
that they handle.
My application for a
pet was denied! Why? and what do I do now!?
Please don't take it personally! Usually it just means that there
was some small thing that made this particular animal an
unsuitable match for you. Sometimes there may have been multiple
applications in for the same animal and one of the other applicants was
closer. Some rescues will tell you why your application was
denied. Just keep in mind that this application was denied for
this particular animal. You may get approved for the next one, so
don't give up just yet! Go back to the drawing board, review your
species or breed research and hit Petfinder
again.
I've fallen in love
with this lovely pet but he's several states away! What do I do?
Bear in mind that the cost and responsibility of getting your new pet
to you is ultimately yours. Likewise, if for any reason the pet
needs to be returned to the rescue, that responsibility is also
yours. You will sign something to that effect in your adoption
contract.
That said, there is a wonderful branch of rescue devoted to moving
rescue pets around the country. Volunteer rescue transporters and
coordinators devote weekends to taking "legs" of a journey to get
adopted pets to their "forever homes" and to moving animals from one
rescue or shelter or another. It is easier to move a pet this way
if you choose pets in or next to your time zone. East to west
coast( and vice versa) transports are very difficult to coordinate, so
you should keep in mind in choosing a rescue pet.
Most rescues will attempt to arrange a transport of this nature before
asking you to shoulder the cost of picking up or flying your pet to
you. It is usually customary for you to take the final leg of the
transport.
Rescue ~ Getting Involved
I'd like to get involved
in rescue. How do I go about that?
Helping out with rescue will be the toughest, most pocketbook draining
job you will ever love. It is truly a calling and not something
to be entered into lightly, suddenly or without lots of research.
Even helping on the periphery of rescue is very expensive. You
will first need to closely examine your resources, time and finances to
figure out exactly how much you can help. If you want to open
your own rescue, you should be prepared to lose quite a bit of
money. All reputable rescues operate on a non-profit basis
whether they have legal non-profit status or not. Negative-profit
is probably a more apt term.
Your Local
Shelter...Contacts, Contacts, Contacts!
A good starting place is your local shelter. Volunteering
at your local shelter will give you a good idea of who near you is
practicing rescue. It will give you the necessary contacts with
the shelter that you will need if you are going to help out or start
your own rescue. Rescue friendly shelters keep lists of who
is reliable and responsible in rescue locally. This is very good
information to have if you are involved in rescue.
Making good and civil relationships within your local shelter will
carry you far in rescue. Not all shelters are rescue-friendly,
but these are in the decline now that sheltering is considered a
profession rather than an appointed local government position.
Fostering 101
Fostering is the life's blood of small rescues. It allows a
rescue to keep in a home environment more animals that they would
normally be able to keep responsibly. Basically you keep an
animal in your home providing shelter, food, nurturing and trips to the
vet. You may be asked to provide training in the way of
socialization, housebreaking or any other minor training issues.
You will be relied upon when it comes time to place the pet in a
permanent home to give an accurate appraisal of the pet's
temperament. The rescue shoulders any veterinary bills.
You can offer to be a foster parent for an established rescue. If
you've already volunteered at the local shelter, you know who is
trustworthy. You would fill out an application with the rescue
and indicate that you are interested in fostering. Look for
established rescues to foster for who have a proven track record of
dependability, placements and longevity. Many rescues fold within
a few years of starting up and if you are fostering a dog for them, you
may just end up with a permanent pet and all the vet bills.
Always visit the rescue at its home base. If the rescue will not
allow this, you should assume that they themselves are not able to keep
the same standards of care that they are asking of you.
Don't be afraid to ask the rescue you are considering for
references. Talk to their other foster parents to find out if the
vet bills are being paid and if they are generally happy with the
fostering arrangements. If they are taking care of special needs
pets, are the medications being provided? Also ask to talk to the
rescue's veterinarians. Some larger rescues use more than
one. Ask if the vet feels that the animals in this rescue's
charge are being properly cared for.
Get your fostering agreement in writing. Know exactly what will
be expected of you beforehand.
Fostering is a wonderful way to help out in rescue. It should not
be regarded as a cheap way to keep a pet around the house. Don't
enter into it lightly and you will be rewarded many times over with the
knowlege that you are helping an animal that might otherwise be
euthanized.
You will sometimes hear a rescue volunteer refer to "failing" Rescue
101. This just means that you started out as a foster parent but
fell so in love with your foster that you couldn't bear to part with
them. That's happened to all of us. Some of us, a time...or
two...or three.
Transportation...Hitting the Road!
Helping pets move from rescues to their "forever homes" is one of the
most rewarding jobs in rescue. To help out here, you will
need a reliable vehicle capable of carrying a pet in the cab or chassis
with insurance and a cell phone. A crate is a good thing to have
and absolutely necessary if you are transporting cats or some
dogs. Some transporters work with large animals like horses and
they need a good trailer and a vehicle large enough to pull it.
The needs will vary from species to species.
There are many excellent Internet mailing lists devoted to rescue
transport, some of which I've listed in my Links page. Some of
them have very strict rules about who can join and your level of
experience in transport. A good place to start here would be to
ride along with an experienced transporter to understand what is
involved in safely transporting a pet from point A to point B.
The transport starts with the coordinator. The coordinator maps
out the route, divides it into "legs" of about 80 to 100 miles,
promotes the run to fill the "legs", and then sometimes acts as the
transport "monitor". The coordinator should have good geography
skills and an understanding of traffic conditions throughout the
route. A normal transport day should be finished in eight legs or
less. Sometimes an overnight is required for a particularly long
transport. Each leg should last about an hour and a half, so
expect to spend three hours of your Saturday or Sunday on the road if
you are filling one of the "legs".
The transporters pre-arrange the drop off points with each other and
communicate these to the tranport coordinator beforehand. The
animal is handed off between each transporter at these pre-arranged
drop off points. A transporter should be trustworthy, reliable
and always punctual. They should be fully aware of any special
needs of the animal they are transporting and the animal must either be
in a crate or securely "rescue tethered" at all times during the
journey.
The "transport monitor" is the point person during the transport.
This person spends the transport day on the phone and computer making
sure all of the legs are running on schedule. Sometimes the
transport runs early, sometimes late. The monitor calls ahead to
the transporters to let them know how the transport is
progressing. Because of this possibility of a change in the
schedule, a transporter should make sure they have a few hours on
either side of their "leg" in case they need to meet earlier or later.
If you are a highly organized person who is always reliable and on
time...transport could be the ideal place for you to help out in rescue!
Our Support
Rosie's Cocker Rescue Referral is
supported by the artwork of
Rosie Griffeth, the delicious jams, jellies and goat milk fudge
produced at Old Maid's Aerie Farm and
Jammery, Rosie's hand-crafted all natural soaps and the kind
donations of people just like yourself. Please consider sponsoring
one of our special needs dogs or donating pet supplies to RCRR. If
we don't have need of it, we are happy to send it on to another
responsible rescue who does!
