County Shelter vs. Pet Rescue

I plan on adopting a dog this month and have decided with rescuing a Labrador from a shelter / rescue group! While my family and roommates have owned dogs in the past; this will be my first dog that I own. I have been doing research for the past 1+ month and think am ready! I just wanted to see what your opinions are from adopting a dog from a county shelter vs a rescue group?

I know every dog is different but are there any major behavioral / health issues when adopting from a county shelter vs a rescue group? From my own research it seems that rescue group spends more time getting to know the potential adopter by having them fill out lengthy applications, checking references, and doing home visits. On the other hand it seems like you can take home a dog from the county shelter the same day as your visit. Also, I have noticed that it seems like some county shelters takes the time to learn more about a dog’s behavioral aspects than others. On their county shelter websites some just list dogs as “pen 143’ etc.. while others give a brief description of the dog’s background and known behavioral issues / habits.

Personally, I am leaning towards adopting a dog at the county shelter (one of the ones where it seems like they spend time getting to know the dog). Are they any huge disadvantages of getting a dog at the county shelter vs. a rescue group? Lastly, what would you say is the average time dogs spend in a county shelter? I see there are some dogs have been there since November; does that mean it might not be the best dog to adopt?

Thank you in advance for the help!

If you have your heart set on a Labrador a rescue group might be more likely to have a specific breed or mix that looks like a specific breed. At a shelter many dogs are totally guessed at mixes. A good rescue group will know the personalities and health of dogs in their care. Shelters as you say give them a number and maybe shots otherwise the dogs are there until they get adopted or euthanized. You also have to weigh the issues of a home check that some rescues require. Is there anything a particular group requires that you don't have? Some groups are big on fenced in yards for instance. In comparison a public shelter is pretty much fill out a short application and if you rent a note from your landlord that they allow a dog, and the adoption fee n' you got yourself a dog. No home check and many don't even glance at the application.

Yes, if you get a puppy from a shelter, their guess could be way off. This happened to me. I got my puppy from a no kill shelter in town. They were great. Clean, checked out potential owners thoroughly, made you sign contracts promising so many things, and etc. etc.

They assured me my puppy was Lab and BC and he'd be 60 pounds. This is perfect for me and he was a love at first sight puppy, so I grabbed him up and did all the paperwork etc. and took him home. I was thrilled... until he began growing faster than a 60 lb adult should.

Fast forward almost two years later, turns out my puppy who was supposed to be 60 lbs and Lab and BC was a Lab and Great Pyrenees and is currently 91 lbs. Honestly, though I'd NEVER give him up now... I'd have gotten a different puppy had they told m his REAL final size.

They just messed it up, they guessed and were WAY wrong. He has mild hip dysplasia as well. The vet thinks he's a deliberate mix of these two breeds only and the puppies turned out dysplastic and goofy and thus was a failed litter and ended up in the shelter.

Getting an adult dog reduces the chance of this type of epic fail. I was not prepped to feed a dog this big, house a dog this big, get flea drops etc. for a dog this big, or own a dog this big. It wasn't what I had planned. Oh, well! He's here to stay now.

I'm going with the same option next time, though I think I'll avoid shelters that do the unethical early neutering. That did bother me, since it can cause a lot of problems in dogs. I don't get my dogs from high kill pounds. I know those dogs need homes more, but I've done it before and regretted it. Those dogs are usually there for a reason, and they never have small puppies, they get adopted too fast.

As much as I encourage people to consider shelter adults I think since it's your first dog you should go with a rescue. Adopting from a shelter can be a total crapshoot. If you don't know exactly why the dog was surrendered you're taking on whatever physical or emotional issues it might have. Both of my dogs came from shelters and both have had dog aggression and human aggression, panic disorder and joint problems that will eventually need surgery. But I'm a senior citizen with the time to work with them so it worked out for us. You sound much younger, I feel a rescue would be your best bet. Perhaps too you might want to research breeds. Maybe there are some others in addition to labs that might be good for you.

A rescue that uses foster homes instead of a kennel environment can give you a better picture on temperament and anything medical or behavioural that the dog may have since they are in a home where they will act more like themselves than in a kennel. A shelter dog may not have all of these assessments and sometimes have the bare minimum in terms of vetting. Also, some of the testing shelters use to determine temperament is a joke.

It doesn't matter where a puppy comes from; shelter or rescue, breed guesses will never ever be 100%, so don't count on them to give you answers. Puppies are so hard to determine breed as they might end up looking like a completely different dog as they grow. I had a tiny puppy (foster), I swear he could fit in the palm of my hand and he grew to be 100lbs, then i've had other puppies which were a bit bigger and they ended up being around 60lbs. If you are looking for a specific size limit, maybe an older puppy or adult dog will be a better way for you. If you don't have a size requirement/limit, then it opens more options for you if you choose to go puppy.

Just because dogs find themselves in a shelter does not automatically mean they have issues. There are too many reasons why they end up there; neglect, stray, owner doesn't ant the dog anymore, tragic life changes, etc. At the same time, some could have issues which need to be worked just like some dogs in a foster home might exhibit too.

There are no black and white answers for your questions. The best thing to do is go to your local shelter and check out how they run things and get in contact with rescues you might be interested adopting from and get to know how they run things too. Then, you can make your decision based on what your research takes you.

Good luck on your search, just remember to do your research first. We cannot stress this enough.

Wow! Thank you all so much for all sharing your opinions and past experiences. It has helped me a lot, I think I am going try to look at adopting at the county shelter first. Also, you have all put my mind at ease on adopting a dog that has been in a shelter for several months. In fact, one particular dog I found is a rather large (59 pounds) mixed bread black Labrador so now it makes more sense why it has spent a few months in the shelter.

Here is the posting for the dog, http://www.petfinder.com/petdetail/31441677. It seems like the shelter has at least a decent idea of the behavioral aspects of the dog. Plus the dog is already vetted (neutered, microchipped, and fully vaccinated). My one concern is that it mentions that it has been out for ‘out for a day’ dog program several times. My understanding is that program is where potential adopters takes the dog out for a day. Makes me think there might be an issue with the dog where people decide not to adopt him after participating in the program.

In the end, I know the only way to know for sure is to go see the dog and ask questions at the shelter. Just trying to do some basic research and reach out for some opinions before I go on Saturday.

Thanks again for all the help!!

Nelson is beautiful Just a thought,if the rescue runs "an out for the day"programme why not see if they'll agree to let you do that?.You are a potential adopter after all Will help with any concerns you may have,get to spend some time with him and see how you get on
Fingers crossed for you both xx

Long ago, I adopted a dog from Fulton County Animal Control. I'm in Dekalb county. Howdy neighbor, btw. They told me he was great with other dogs. They lied. He was six months and attacked my resident dog immediately upon meeting him. Resident dog fought back, and puppy was beaten up pretty badly.

Mind you, Barker was 55 lbs already at 6 months, and Brownie was 65 lbs fully grown. The only dog we ever had to return came from them. They also ban you from adopting another dog if you bring one back for any reason. Bear all this in mind before agreeing to anything.

I'd have never adopted from them anyway, and I believe jurisdiction rules now prohibit it anyway, but I was vastly disappointed with the description of the dog as the dog attacked immediately, and then they kept my money and only after months of threats did they give it back.

With that being said, the out for a day thing and the dog still being there may hold more meaning than you think.

Howdy neighbor! Sorry to hear about the misfortune you had with your rescue from Fulton Animal Shelter. Am hoping your case was more of a one time thing then the norm. Also I hope that they were mistaken then purposely lied. I have checked the reviews they had online and they seemed mostly positive.

However when you say 'jurisdiction rules now prohibit it'. I currently live in cobb county, does that mean I can't adopt from Fulton county. I just moved from Fulton to Cobb country about a month ago.

Thanks!