Pet Goddess

As you begin looking at pets available through rescue groups, keep in mind some of these animals have had very hard lives. You may find a dog that was abused by its owner and so has some lingering issues.

You may find a female cat that has just given birth.  Many of the animals offered by rescue groups have been relinquished by their owners because they are moving or can no longer care for them.

In addition, some of these groups take animals that live in kill shelters, or as strays living on the streets. Some programs also offer spay and neuter release program for wild cats.

Some cats can be taken off the street and can get good homes, but need time and patience, and to be carefully screened for disease before they can go near any other animal, or even people.

Rescue groups do quite a good job of screening animals before adopting them out to new homes. They also screen potential pet owners. If you find a pet offered through a pet rescue group, you will be asked to sign a contract saying that you agree to care for the pet long term. You will also be asked several questions about your home, your children and other pets you may have. This is not to be nosey–it is simply to help match an owner with the right pet.

If the animal suffers from a medical condition, such as diabetes, the new owners will know this up front before adopting. Having the animal’s health history at the time of adoption helps the animal find a permanent home with owners willing to cater to their special needs.

When you adopt, you might also be asked for a letter of reference from your vet.  Again, this is to determine if you are a responsible pet owner. There is nothing worse for a shelter or rescue group than dogs who just keep coming back in because the adoption does not work out for one reason or another.

Posted May 14, 2008 Comments(0)

Animal rescue organizations or groups offer you a great place to get your next family pet. These groups are all different in terms of how they are run and their adoption procedures, but they do have common goals. These groups work hard to locate a permanent loving home for unwanted or misplaced cats and dogs.

Many of these rescue groups rely on volunteers and donations to care for these pets while they are between homes.  They often rescue them from shelters, including kill shelters, and they also take animals which have been surrendered for various reasons and need a permanent, loving home.

They usually specialize in a particular breed because each dog breed is different, and has particular characteristics. Often when dogs come in to one of the rescue groups, there is no past history, so people experienced with the breed can usually identify any issues quickly and build up a profile of what type of home the dog will me most successful in.

When you begin looking for a rescue group to work with, you will find that most of these groups do rely on their hard working volunteers and support from the local community to operate.

You will also find a wide variety of animals available through these private shelters. Many of these shelters handle all types of animals and you will find kittens, puppies, and even older pets available for adoption. You might be surprised to learn that some groups even offer exotic pets such as reptiles, pot bellied pigs and even guinea pigs.

For the breed-specific rescue groups, you might also find other types of dogs. There are many pets available at petfinder.org; when you do a local search, you will see pets listed from many local shelters, and often, if it is a case of saving a young dog from being put to sleep because there is just no room (all too common thanks to the recession these days) these breed groups will step in even if it is not the breed they usually handle.

Posted May 13, 2008 Comments(0)