I have named rescues. These are mot meant to be a public bashing, simply sharing my individual experiences. After I lost Moon, I was desperate to rescue again. I looked at Battersea but gave up quickly, my friend works there and said unless you are semi rural and home all day, no chance of getting a dog.
I was told that Many Tears would find the right dog to fit the person. So I applied for dog through Many Tears and was turned down because I work full time (have a neighbour who can pop in and a ADPT dog trainer who walks dogs individually lined up to come in at lunchtimes for walks). I was told to "try and different dog" so I applied for a few others, again got turned down because I work. I finally got told "we don't generally rehome to people who work more than 4 hours a day". I tried to ring and speak to someone but I didn't get much help. I asked for help via email, advice to which dogs they had which were ok to be home. The reply was "we don't pick the dog for you, you apply them we decide".
By this point I was frustrated and furious. I sent a fairly abrupt email back. I explained that I had come to Many Tears because I had been told that they didn't have blanket policies and would help find the right dog to fit the owner. However so far I had no help at all. I said they had 100s of dogs on the website and it was unreasonable to expect me to just keep applying randomly, with no gudence, getting rejected until I happened across a dog who could be left home alone. I pointed out that I had not asked for a puppy, I was happy with a quiet middle aged dog. I reminded them that I had experience in the animal field, qualifications in animal behaviour and was willing to take on a dog with behavioural problems (aside from, obviously Seperation Anxiety). I said I was more than willing to be guided by them to find a suitable match. Aside from that fact I worked, there didn't seem to be any other reason that I couldn't be a good dog owner. I had a very competent dog walker lined up and I found it hard to believe that not a single dog in there kennel was happy to be home alone for some of the day.
I recieved an apology back and was told someone would ring me to discuss what dogs are suitable. For me, it was too little too late. I decided to go elsewhere. I knew working did not make me a bad owner but if they couldn't see that, it was there loss. I know a lot of people think highly of Many Tears, I'm just sharing my personal experience. Which wasn't great.
Wiccaweys collie rescue was great. We passed he home check with flying colours. We only had to repair a broken fence panel then we could look into adopting.
In this time however, Cain had popped up before we heard that we had passed Wiccaweys home check. By this point I was SO frustrated with the rescue system that I accepted him without a second thought. The private rehome route was a lot easier, I was basically given a dog. I did feel really bad when I rang Wiccaweys to tell them, I think they thought I was a time waster
I can see why, but I was serious about one of their collies but Cain was not planned. Fate I suppose.
Frankly though, the whole thing nearly put me off rescue dogs forever. I nearly said "stuff you all, I'm buying a puppy", simply because it appeared that I wasn't good enough to get a rescue dog. Which really offended me. I know that I am not a bad owner, yet to be repeatedly dismissed on paper because I have to work.... It mad. How else am I supposed to afford vet treatment etc for that dog if I don't work?
Many people who stay home all day are
Unemployed (possibly have problems covering vet bills)
Students (see above)
Retired (some may be unlikely to be able to take out high energy dogs or strong dogs etc)
Stay at home mums (many rescues won't rehome to those with young children)
The sick (again, illness may have limitations and odds are they won't want the bigger or more difficult dogs)
Ok, I know these are generalisations and there are 1. People who stay home all day for other reasons and 2. People in these categories who of course can adequately care for a dog. But many would have some limitations on the type of dog they could rescue. So then you knock out the vast majority of the public who work and I seriously wonder.....who exactly is left to adopt these dogs?!
I'm not surprised so many dogs are languishing in rescue. The criteria is often too high. I DO understand that they want to give these dogs the best second chance but is it ok for a dog to spend months and months in kennels waiting for the perfect person? Rescues almost seem to make lived more difficult for themselves. Dogs need to go to home. It's not good for dogs to be in kennels forever and it makes space to help new dogs.
Of course they should not drop their standards too far and of course dogs need to go to suitable homes. But in my opinion, Many Tears missed out of a good home for a difficult to rehome dog because no one could see past my tick box that said "works more than 4 hours a day". It was incredibly frustrating.
I wonder how many other people did what I did...got a private rehome because it was easier without the vetting process? I wonder how many were also ill informed about the dog and recieved an unassessed dog who was very difficult or unsuitable for them? I wonder how many of these people subsequently put these dogs into rescue because they couldn't manage them
So not only have rescues missed out on homes, they have potentially increased numbers as people look elsewhere and end up with unsuitable dogs...
I can completely understand why people would give up and just go and buy a puppy too. It not just laziness, frankly it's offensive to be told repeatedly that your "not good enough" to rehome a dog. You start to wonder why you put up with that... Sadly a lot of people would go to a BYB, because they don't know any better and again potentially making the rescue situation worse.
This is no good for anyone. People in here know how much time and money I have spent on Cain, but I simply struggled to get a dog through rescue channels. In the mean time, difficult dogs who had been in kennels for months, ones I was willing to work with when no one else was, just stayed there
I know that most dogs, at Battersea for example,getting max 10 mins attention a day while their kennel is being cleaned. They might get out for a short walk a few times a week. The staff have too many dogs and not enough time. So surely these dogs end up coping with being left alone for periods far longer than they would be in a working house hold with a dog walker? I think rescues need to be more realistic with their homing requirements.
On the other hand, I was even more disgusted with Mayhew. I went to see a collie which specifically said it could be left home alone. They dumped the poor dog in the room with me and left. I appreciated not being watched over, but the dog was really scared
they then told me to walk her. So we went out, totally unsupervised, on the streets
If had given false details, I could have so easily stolen her! She again was so scared and kept pulling back towards the centre. I gave up and took her back after a few minutes. They said they knew she was like that, so why keep subjecting her to it? I had a short interview and they said I could have her as long as I put down a non refundable deposit of £100
so no cooling off period. No time to think "is this really the right dog for me?". And if I changed my mind I had the choice between losing £100 or feeling pressured into taking a unsuitable dog. I said I wanted to think about it and I got back "well she's not reserved, don't blame us if she's gone when you come back..'. I was appalled that they would pressure people this way into such a big decision
I'd only been there 15 mins when they wanted a deposit. I walked away and didn't go back. In that case, despite offering me the dog, I think they need to increase their standards!!!
So overall, my experiences with rehoming criteria has been nothing but stressful and I can completely see why people give up and walk away. I know rescues put dogs first, but unless they handle the humans better, they are going to constantly struggle to rehome dogs into suitable homes
Ok and breathe. Rant over