I am so MAD.

[transformed]

I went to the Animal Services in my town specifically to see a couple of dogs from their website and the kennel lady was a total B to us - here was the convo:

dh: we looked at all these dogs but where are the 2 rat terriers from your website?
kennel lady: oh, well I will take ONE of you back to see them but they have allergys so if you have a bunch of money to drop they need allergy shots all the time. (looking my family over - 1 yr old, 3 yr old, 6 yr old, my parents, dh and I) oh and I dont know if they will like kids, they might bite.

(I was thinking - "Thats why we brought the kids lady! to see if they were scared or receptive or whatever")

But she wouldnt let all of us see the dogs so we left.

I felt really dissapointed. I didnt even know what she meant by "lots of money/health problems." The kids were so upset.

Now I cant get them to call me back and the photos have been removed from the website and the dogs didnt show up at a special event today we were trying to see them at (an adoption fair) and I am afraid they killed them.

I am livid. Does this kind of thing happen often? I want to call someone - that woman has no business working at that place. Does she just get a kick out of euthanizeing animals or what?

:::::::: angry

[fek&fuzz]

A lot of times they try to screen out people, so they don't end up getting the dog back in a week or 2. They might have looked at the 3 small children and known that these dogs were not a good fit. They might have also not wanted all the commotion around the dogs if they are new to the shelter and still kind of scared. And she was trying to adequately warn you about their medical needs before you met them and got overwhelmed by their cuteness.

Her job is to make sure the dogs go to appropriate homes, not to make sure that everyone who comes in gets the dog they want.

When my parents used to go look for dogs for us, they would go alone, and then if they found one that seemed good, we'd go back with them. I think that was better for us too, since of course we would think every dog was fabulous and want to take it home, but really it was better to have them screening for us.

[momo7]

Originally Posted by transformed

I went to the Animal Services in my town specifically to see a couple of dogs from their website and the kennel lady was a total B to us - here was the convo:

dh: we looked at all these dogs but where are the 2 rat terriers from your website?
kennel lady: oh, well I will take ONE of you back to see them but they have allergys so if you have a bunch of money to drop they need allergy shots all the time. (looking my family over - 1 yr old, 3 yr old, 6 yr old, my parents, dh and I) oh and I dont know if they will like kids, they might bite.

(I was thinking - "Thats why we brought the kids lady! to see if they were scared or receptive or whatever")


ouldnt let all of us see the dogs so we left.

I felt really dissapointed. I didnt even know what she meant by "lots of money/health problems." The kids were so upset.

Now I cant get them to call me back and the photos have been removed from the website and the dogs didnt show up at a special event today we were trying to see them at (an adoption fair) and I am afraid they killed them.

I am livid. Does this kind of thing happen often? I want to call someone - that woman has no business working at that place. Does she just get a kick out of euthanizeing animals or what?

:::::::: angry

This is the reason I refuse to adopt from the Humane Society. I went to get a cat for my son and wehn I got there...there were cats stacked from floor to ceiling in cat carriers...and all the cat cages were full......basically I was told I would have to interview and my family would have to be interviewed.....I was disgusted. It's an animal shelter..not an orphanage.

It was way over crowded there...which they are always complaining about...I have participated in Humane Society events before and given them money and supplies to help out...but when they start with the nit-picky bull crap....forget it.

So I went out and got a farm cat, and have eventually taken in 3 other strays so....maybe look in the paper for someone who is giving them away...also you can find rescues that specifically adopt out that particual breed with great success and no bias.

Good luck, keep looking and don't give up. www.americanratterrior.com

[transformed]

Originally Posted by fek&fuzz

A lot of times they try to screen out people, so they don't end up getting the dog back in a week or 2. They might have looked at the 3 small children and known that these dogs were not a good fit. They might have also not wanted all the commotion around the dogs if they are new to the shelter and still kind of scared. And she was trying to adequately warn you about their medical needs before you met them and got overwhelmed by their cuteness.

Her job is to make sure the dogs go to appropriate homes, not to make sure that everyone who comes in gets the dog they want.

When my parents used to go look for dogs for us, they would go alone, and then if they found one that seemed good, we'd go back with them. I think that was better for us too, since of course we would think every dog was fabulous and want to take it home, but really it was better to have them screening for us.

yeah but they kill the dogs. in like 3 days. is that better?

[Ola_]

It sounds like the lady had a bad attitude. Did one of you go and meet the dogs though? Then you would be able to have a better idea if they were suitable for your family and you could perhaps set up a time for everyone to meet them. Doing it as a big group might be overwhelming to the dogs though, especially considering the stress they're under already being at the shelter - small groups may be better at the beginning.

I doubt that the dogs were euthanized - they were likely adopted out, small dogs are often in high demand.

Originally Posted by momo7

basically I was told I would have to interview and my family would have to be interviewed.....I was disgusted. It's an animal shelter..not an orphanage.

It was way over crowded there...which they are always complaining about...I have participated in Humane Society events before and given them money and supplies to help out...but when they start with the nit-picky bull crap....forget it.

I don't understand - how is interviewing the family nit-picky? I would think that it's a good sign that they want to place the animals with families that are a good match. Since they don't know anything about you, an interview seems like a good way to learn more.

[betsyj]

I would hope the shelter interviews people who come to adopt. Animals are generally in shelters because irresponsible people owned them. It is a big responsibility to adopt an animal and take care of it. Good shelters want to make sure their animals go to good homes.

[Village Mama]

I took my homelearners to the shelter last month to see more about how the shelter runs and see the animals. The shelter workers were incredibly rude to us as well. It seemed like they wanted us to be coming in for an animal instead of taking our time to find a good fit. In my experience finding an animal has taken time... I don't want to make an impulse decision right away. I was surprised that they werent more accepting of this approach. Instead they just felt put out by even having us around. When I was a kid I was welcome at the shelter anytime to volunteer, spend time with the animals and to learn about the issues surrounding humane animal treatment, so I was a little bit surprised.

[CalaRei]

When we were looking for a dog, we went to the local humane society, and they wouldn't let us see any animals at all because we rented. We even had a paper from our landlord that said we were allowed animals, but I guess it's their way of screening things. Like insurance, I suppose. I've also known some shelters who won't allow "living together couples" to adopt animals. I can see both sides of that coin, though.

We finally got our dog from another shelter, and have loved her for 5 years now, so I suppose it was their loss.

[SevenVeils]

My issue with shelters lately, is the huge adoption fees. Good dogs are being put to sleep because the fee to adopt from a shelter is $150-$200. Sometimes more, especially if they think that a particular dog is more marketable.

I am aware of all of the rationalizations for this practice, but I strongly disagree with it. I know of a nice, well run, low (almost no) kill shelter. All areas are very clean at all times, animals are well cared for, staff is friendly.

Adoption fees are $40 for an intact male, $60 for an intact female. In the event that a dog is already neutered when it comes in, the fee is $10. For intact animals, they give a voucher for free neutering after which they refund the extra money over the $10. They enforce the rule that animals must be neutered within 10 days of leaving the shelter.

That area is most definitely not overrun with dogs. The shelter is usually less than half full, I've only seen it at capacity (one dog per cage) once. They haven't put a dog down, except in the case of illness, for over 10 years. The dogs don't stick around in there for ages either. There are not puppies being given away in parking lots or in the local newspaper (usually 4-5 dog ads total, with few being for puppies).

The system is working. I'm not talking about a tiny rural shelter, either. They come at the problem from the opposite angle that most do, and it works.

[HappyMommy2]

I found the shelters to be really rude and restrictive too. It is so annoying. We wanted to adopt/rescue a dog, but they made is so amazingly difficult! We needed written references from 3-5 unrelated people. And we are a good family with a home and fenced yard! We ended up supporting a breeder (at least it wasn't a puppy mill).

But - I wondered if the humane societies were adding to the problem instead of helping! I know they have the animals' best interests at heart. So I guess as long as they can still adopt out all their animals, it is ok. But it is frustrating to me that they were like that if they aren't letting any animals go to good homes, and then still complaining that nobody will help them!

[fek&fuzz]

Originally Posted by HappyMommy2

I found the shelters to be really rude and restrictive too. It is so annoying. We wanted to adopt/rescue a dog, but they made is so amazingly difficult! We needed written references from 3-5 unrelated people. And we are a good family with a home and fenced yard! We ended up supporting a breeder (at least it wasn't a puppy mill).

But - I wondered if the humane societies were adding to the problem instead of helping! I know they have the animals' best interests at heart. So I guess as long as they can still adopt out all their animals, it is ok. But it is frustrating to me that they were like that if they aren't letting any animals go to good homes, and then still complaining that nobody will help them!

what sort of screening did the breeder do?

[gumby74]

Our shelter charges 89 for a dog that has all of it's vax, is spayed or neutered and micro-chipped. When a family comes in to look at a little dog that has a history of being "nippy" towards children, the application is very closely screened. Sometimes too closely, but I guess I would rather have that be the case than for a child to get bit. I think I am little over protective of the little dogs at our shelter because I think that overall they get a bad wrap. We have had a couple of dogs get euthanized because the families who adopted them said they weren't going to allow children near them and then both dogs were hurt by little children, which then meant they bit the children and in the end were euthanized. It was tragic and IMHO, could have bveen prevented. What happened to you at that shelter was wrong. I'm not sure if it's the shelter in your county, but if it is.........you are paying to subsidize that shelter and therefore you have to be allowed to at least see the dogs and fill out an application. They can always reject your application, but you at least have that right to see them. I would strongly advise you to write or call a member of the board of directors and explain what happened. Chances are, they are not aware of the specific policies the shelter is enforcing and they should be. My DH is on the board of directors and even though I am down at the shelter just about every day, there is so much he is never aware of. For example, there was a little pomeranian who escaped from one of the outside run and was hit and killed by a car. They tried to not let anyone know about it because it was pure neglect on their part. All during the winter instead of shoveling the snow out in front of the runs, the staff was just forcing the gates to go over the snow and eventually that meant the gates started to bend and break, which created a hole large enough for the dog to get out of. Had I not said anything to my husband, he might not have ever known.

[BunnySlippers]

If its a kill shelter, they probably also sell the dogs to research labs.
There was a local shelter like that. however the women working there, while not a dog person, was kind.

[tree_hugger]

Originally Posted by fek&fuzz

what sort of screening did the breeder do?

Yeah, I thought good breeders were very selective about who adopts their animals.

[mom0810]

Breeders are very selective, but we are also reasonable. Shelters, rescues, etc. often are TOO selective, and very nearly ridiculous about what they will adopt out and to whom. They really do not do themselves any favors, or the animals. It's gotten worse in probably the last 5-10 years. Rescues think they know it all, and will not accept many people for really stupid reasons. And then they end up supporting breeders or pet stores or backyard breeders in the process, because people get so annoyed that they just go out and get something. :

[Ola_]

I think there are a lot of generalizations being made in this thread. It seems like it really depends on the individual organization. Also, generally "shelters" can be divided into 3 groups:
- animal services (a.k.a. the pound) which takes in all strays, is often over crowded and kills animals frequently, due to lack of space
- shelter/humane society, which is often a regional organization that may take in dogs from the pound or owner surrenders, not breed specific
- individual rescue groups, often though not always breed specific, usually has foster homes, sometimes does not have a physical location

In my experience as you go down this list the adoption restrictions get more strict. We got our first dog from the pound for $75 and a show of our ID. We rented at the time and the person was sceptical about whether our dog would do well in an apartment but they did not prevent us from adopting her. We were in for quite a learning curve though! I think it was just from their past experience, you have to realize that many pet owners out there would not go to the trouble of posting on an internet website about their pooch and having seen so many negative outcomes can really take a toll on them. Our second dog was adopted from a breed rescue organization, which was just as laid back but I know that's not the norm (we were still renting at the time). Anyway, I like to tell our adoption stories because it seems like there are so many negative ones out there.

BTW, our first adoption fee was $75, the second I believe around $300. However the second dog was vetted and neutered, which actually ended up being cheaper after we paid for the first one to be spayed and vaccinated (didn't know much back then ).

[Kerrie]

We adopted our puppy from a local shelter last summer. We were happy for the most part with the experience. We went once without the kids and found that we liked quite a few of the puppies available. The application process was quite long and specific and it was about $400 to adopt her. She did come up to date with her vax and spayed. I was not happy that they were insistant that they knew exactly how big she was going to get - "we've been doing this for YEARS!!!" She will be no bigger than 50 pounds - she is 70+ pounds and still growing. It seemed like once we were approved they just wanted us to take a dog - any dog. It did feel like we were interviewed when we were playing with her in a small fenced in area - I think they like to do it in a more round-a-bout way. She just came with us saying that she needed to stay with the dog. It was pleasant enough.

I'm sorry that you had such a bad experience. I hope that you are able to find a dog that fits with your family soon!

[Irishmommy]

We adopted our second dog from an SPCA in Pennsylvania (yes, we drove to PA from Ontario). $30, unspayed dog. We were all allowed back to meet her (we already had her picked out from petfinder), fell in love, filled out a form, handed over the money and left. They didn't ask about other dogs (no. 1 was in the car waiting, we brought her in case they needed to see her), they didn't ask anything. The form was basically name, address, stuff like that.

[*Aimee*]

We've been going to the shelter here for a few weeks now looking for a puppy. They puppy adoption fee is 150.00 which I don't mind because it comes with a spay or neuter. But to adopt a smaller dog is 300.00.

I felt so bad for a family there the other day because they were pretty much begging the lady to take less than 200 dollar for the lab they wanted. She said the price was non negotiable and they had to leave. I know having a pet is expensive but I often wonder how many people go on to find unscrupulous breeders because it's less expensive than the shelter.

[2xy]

Originally Posted by CalaRei

When we were looking for a dog, we went to the local humane society, and they wouldn't let us see any animals at all because we rented. We even had a paper from our landlord that said we were allowed animals, but I guess it's their way of screening things.

The problem with that is.... renters move more frequently than home-owners.

So, if something happens that you have to leave your current residence, who's to say your next landlord will be as accomodating?

I see it on Craigslist all the time...."free to good home....we're moving and can't bring our dog/cat/chinchilla."

One of the goals at a shelter is to ensure that the animal doesn't wind up back at the shelter. KWIM?