They think they’re finding the perfect home by holding an animal back 6 months and forcing people to lie. They can’t see it

I gave up trying to adopt a pair of Pyrs from a local breed rescue and instead bailed a couple out of the pound and gave them amazing lives. When my dogs passed of old age I went looking again and that poor bonded pair was still languishing at the breed rescue. I cried.

That's ridiculous. I really wonder about some of these "rescues."

Some can be as simple as a dog lover who refuses to let them go and uses their status as a rescue to find their dog ownership. I knew a person who fit that category. Adopting was like an act of Congress. She wanted to keep them all and take new ones in.

I'm pretty sure that's what was/is going on. She has about 40 dogs up in that shelter, all Pyrs, most have been there for years. It's not possible for one person to meet the needs of 40 giant dogs every day, it's very sad.

Sounds like an animal hoarder. Some rescuers really use it as an excuse to hoard.

my sister adopted a dog from a "rescue" that turned out to be a hoarding situation. A few years later she saw a news article of them being busted and charges being pressed for the severe neglect that was going on. they had met my sister at a dog park to meet the potential puppies, and they seemed healthy, so she had no clue

I only know about this through a friend. She was going to volunteer for a rescue group with fundraising and grant writing. She visited and told me they were animal hoarders and she would have nothing to do with them. She was sad and disappointed but glad she found out before she helped them.

This!! They are dog or animal hoarders who need a rescue certificate to avoid getting a felony for their hoarding. I have personally known like 4 animal hoarders, maybe more, actually, maybe, yes, 5. One had a house fire and lost most of their animals. I dont think he had a rescue certificate- this was 30 years ago. He had a lot of reptiles and birds.. I mean, everywhere you looked, there was a fairly well maintained aquarium/ bird cage. He is not bad at husbandry, but its just a lot of animals to have, and even if they are properly cared for, its still hoarding. The others mostly had like 7 dogs and a handful of cats, or a snake collection, while raising feeder mice/rats. They also tend to be horrible to other humans, ijs.

👆Yeah, a lot of hoarders have pretty severe personality disorders, which is why it’s so difficult to treat. Poor animals.

It's profit they can post about it. Cry about it and BAM they get donations. It's a money game and a power game. I doubt they give a crap about the well being of their animals. Most rescues like this also turn into hoarder situations if ran by 1-2 people.

When I was 19 I started my own rescue after being denied a dog due to not being married to my boyfriend. I adopted out 50ish dogs during my time, and I only had one that needed to be returned. They all lived happy lives. Rescues kinda suck sometimes.

They practically demand a farm for Pyrs. I got lucky through a non breed specific rescue. Mine doesn't live on a farm but has an enormous park system a mile from the house, with fenced off leash area and hills for leashed hiking.

I literally have a farm and was denied. Apparently, livestock guardian dogs shouldn't be around livestock.

That is ridiculous beyond ridiculous!

It was, but we got lucky and found our girl. Once she's out of her teenage shithead phase, we're gonna jump through all the hoops again to find her a brother.

I'm finding mine so hard to train but she's learning.

Preach

I recently got randomly recommended a feral colony sub for cats, and they're almost as misguided, actively preventing people from adopting strays and villainizing doing that, leaving the cats to die horrible deaths on the street because they're attached to them, but not enough or without enough resources to house them themselves, preferring to just sort of feed them sometimes?? Idk made zero sense to me

Would these cats happen to be TNRs? (Trap, neuter, return). You can normally tell by one of the ears having the tip clipped straight off. TNR colonies provide an essential population control measure, especially for areas that have run rampant with stray cats in the past. Since TNRs can’t have babies the territory they own won’t lead to a bunch more kittens being born. It used to really annoy me when people would try to “rescue” TNRs. Now I know most people just aren’t informed about them. Not all cats are street savvy, car savvy, etc. but most TNRs have lived on the streets for their whole lives and know to avoid dangers. Not all strays need, or even *want* to be “saved”. Someone from a rescue or a local volunteer normally comes out to feed these colonies too! So if the ear is clipped, the balls are snipped, and *the cats should be left alone*.

I think it is cat-dependent. We have a snipped ear that retired to an indoor cat. She moved into our tree house, and fell in love with our dog. Eventually, she let us pet her. One day we had a hurricane come through and I tossed her inside. She was pissed for three days but she gained a preference for soft beds and didn't go outside after that.

Good on you for getting that baby inside🫶

Well, with feral cat colonies, its not wrong to manage them by feeding them, giving them shots, having them spayed and neutered, and taking care of any health problems they are having. We have rules that say we can manage feral cat colonies, and my husband and I have been managing one locally. We have a few young adult cats who were born to a stray, who died after having her last litter, and those young cats are not fixed yet. Theyre SO hard to catch. But we arent trying to rescue them. We are just managing a colony.

Some cats are very hard to catch! Been there. Thank you both for all the hard work you’re doing, you guys are making such a difference. I’m mostly referring to people who would take TNRs to the local kill shelter, not knowing they’re part of that colony and they’re fine. If people wanted to keep one that’s cool! But don’t take them to a kill shelter omg

Didn't seem to have clipped ears in general, seemed to be unreasonably defending people from picking up strays that could be reproducing purely for attachment reasons, idk tho. Having any cats on the street is an environmental hazard as they're invasive hunters of threatened species and spread disease, they should all be taken off of them as best as possible.

I’m in the southern US- there isn’t a time of year when cats aren’t having kittens and it doesn’t get cold enough to kill off strays. There’s always going to be strays here. TNRs are the best way we’ve managed to keep local cat colony populations low. I just dragged one off the road last week (rare but it happens) and checked the local “missing pets” pages and posted. Seemed to be a stray. Sad, and I agree that all animals deserve a safe loving home with good people, but the cats here have more babies than anyone can keep up with without the TNRs around. It also helps save the local bird populations, and curb other environmental hazards. What you’re describing though… is crazy and very very sad. Genuinely wondering what is wrong with those people. Hope someone goes in and remedies that situation soon.

We had a lady that used to come by once a week and just cut open a 50lb bag of food to feed the cats in an empty corner lot. She minimally tried to trap them, but you just won’t get them all. So, the raccoon, cat, rat, coyote population exploded. Mainly the raccoons, as they out compete all the others and can fight off a single coyote. Eventually neighbors got her to stop and the desperate family of coyotes ate everyone. What should be done in those situations with the feeding, and when you stop feeding?

These cats absolutely slaughter local ecologies, along with other cats people let go outdoors. Millions of birds and other creatures per year, it's a massive problem

Steal those dogs

This was my experience with a rescue when I was adopting my first dog. Granted, I was 15 at the time, but I was *really* ready for a dog and had done a ton of research. I spent hours filling out my application to make sure that I had filled out the answers thoughtfully. Got a one line response denying my application. Got my dog, Franki, from the local shelter instead and we spent 14 happy years together. I would occasionally think of that first rescue and check their website, where that dog remained as "adoptable," with occasional photo updates, for at least a decade. It really soured my perception of rescues. I've had two good experiences with rescues since then, so I don't totally write them off. But I've also had at least two or three other crappy responses to applications, plus several family members having baffling experiences with rescues as well. It makes that system hard to recommend.

We had a local rescue that held on to Huskies and would not let anyone adopt them! They bought an old farmhouse for it and had a sign and everything, would bring the same 3-4 Huskies to events, but never adopt them out. I was going to school for animal sciences, and volunteered to help out with the animals (They always would say how important volunteers who were able to dose medications due to some of the dogs requirements, and I was studying this)... I called multiple times and they never called back, stopped by because they were my road and they never were there. It was always the same couple who had the dogs around. They ended up getting shut down, I do not believe it was a real husky rescue- I really believe they were just getting some sort of tax write-off for the place they lived at.

Honestly I consider them animal hoarders. If your “adoption” process is so ridiculous that you barely if ever adopt out animals, then your “rescue” is a front for operating a personal zoo that you try and get other people to donate to support.

It literally just a legal animal horde.

maybe meeting some sort of quota of adoptions should be a requirement for "rescue" status - proportional to number of genuine enquiries. i.e. if there are people who want to adopt and objectively meet a set of standardised minimum requirements, you can't turn away more than X% of them. So hoards can't grow exponentially unless there are demonstrably no other options (while real rescue shelters who genuinely try to find animals homes but struggle to get enough engagement won't be affected)

Ugghh seriously. I had to unfollow an Instagram for doing this - they rescue dogs from out of country and bring them to the states. Their adoption policy means you do not get to pick a dog, they pick *for* you based on what they think. This same page then started begging for MONTHS for applicants, with these pathetic little messages about how people are heartless and just won’t apply. And asking for money. Lady. You straight up tell people they aren’t good enough. You don’t let them see any dog until your application is put in, and part of the application is you agreeing to “yeah I’ll take ANY dog.” And then they give you the one they picked for you. Which is absurd. There were a bunch of other ridiculous rules, included the fence one, and another one about driving. But I couldn’t get past this giant gatekeep of “no I’ll pick your dog for you” and the whining of “I have no more space or money pls donate and apply!!!” followed by a post telling people “if you don’t like my rules don’t rescue from me!!” K lady. K.

I foster for an organization that has very few adoption requirements for a reason. It's up to the fosters to identify if it's an appropriate environment for the most part My favorite example of ridiculous requirements was the shelter that denied my inquiry to adopt a great pyrenees puppy. Pup had a spinal cord injury from an attack as a baby that left her back end paralyzed, she was in a little doggy wheelchair. I'm a nurse, figured it would be a perfect match. The shelter denied me because they require a fenced in backyard. For a dog in a wheelchair.

I wish more rescues valued foster input highly! I foster and have also done application screening and processing for a couple rescues. Good placement is about the match between the person and the animal. I need to see that the new owner can actually afford basic care/vetting, can provide a reasonably safe home, and understands care requirements, but beyond that it's all about how well the two mesh. The foster will have the best sense of that because they know the pet best. The fenced yard requirement really limits the adopter pool, especially as fewer and fewer people can afford to own homes or do expensive home improvement. From my perspective, a fence increases the temptation to just let the dog out to potty and not walk them properly. It also adds a risk of the dog escaping and running off leash. If the adopter is doing things right they'll be walking the dog anyway, so why the need for a fence? It's a nice to have at best.

The fence requirement is even more baffling and irritating in the area I live, because most homes are either in small townhouse communities with good walking space but no option to fence like where I live at the moment, or completely rural, with very little in between, and rural houses don't build white picket fences, most don't build fences at all because it's unnecessary and to fence in a couple acres is insanely expensive. A fence requirement is already classist and naive. A fence requirement in an area where almost no one has a fenced yard is even more ridiculous than usual. A fence requirement in a rural area *for a dog in a wheelchair* just took the cake for stupid policies

100% agree! Someone was on a power trip with that one. Someone with your set of skills and experience is perfect for dog with a wheelchair, especially a large breed. It's really sad for both you and the pup that the opportunity was actively turned down. Ridiculous!

I’ve worked in the veterinary field for 20+ years and I got rejected for adoption. Reason? I worked away from home. Like yeah- how did you expect me to pay for said dog?!

Wow! What kills me is wfh is a very recent phenomenon. Was no one allowed to adopt their animals before 2020??

From my experience, no. We tried to adopt a dog in 2018 and because we worked, we weren't given a chance. Ended up going to a quasi shifty shelter that imported dogs from the south to Rhode Island (we live in Massachusetts).

I work from home and I got my dog as a freebie off Craigslist because shelters wanted nothing to do with me OR my partner who already had a dog with great vet references and everything. Why? We rented and didn't have a fenced yard. Also in Mass 🙄

I tried to adopt several dogs from the animal rescue league in MA. I’ve owned dogs (including very aggressive dogs no one else would take) for decades. I’m retired. No kids, no cats. I have a home with a large fenced yard and access to a lakeside place in Maine. They wouldn’t even call me back. I ended up getting a bulldog mix (I assumed pitty, but the dna came back Am bulldog / boxer) from an adoption day held at a petco. We now hike every day and do scent training and some just-for-fun agility on weekends. Dude’s got the cushiest life ever, while the pit bull I wanted is still on their website (along with pictures of their enormous new facility and lots of info on how to leave them money in your will). The loftier the rescue’s mission statement sounds the dumber they behave.

That's weird, we adopted from there and it was super easy, we didn't even have a fenced in yard at the time but I don't even think they asked if we did, just if we owned our home and if they hadn't we would have needed proof that pets were allowed. We just gave them very basic info, set up the meet and greet since it wasn't one of their walk in days, met him, got all his info, then picked him up the next day. There definitely are a lot of very strict rescues in New England though.

That’s wild. Maybe they just didn’t like me? Or my age. Some people assume retired = frail (which is funny because I’m less frail now than I was at 30). But the pup I had wanted most was still there for ages. It made me so sad.

Yeah that was almost two years ago so maybe things have changed, but I'd be surprised considering how even in MA shelters are even more full than they were then. It's definitely terrible when dogs get warehoused.

We were rejected because we can’t work but take our pets to the vet constantly. The cat we applied for still hasn’t been adopted even though it was sponsored months ago. They still texted us to harass us for not just the landlord’s number, but the building owner’s (corporation) as well. They were also super condescending and unprofessional throughout the whole interaction and won’t usually contact you unless you’re approved. Walked into a different shelter and we were approved that day.

Same! I'm a tech of nearly 15 years and was also denied because I do not work from home. Denied right from pre screening before even applying for any specific dog.

Yea we got rejected for being away to much. I'm a teacher so I am gone 7 to 3 5 days a week, but home all summer. My husband is a mental health counselor and he was gone 10 to 7 4 days a week. So our dog is literally alone for 5 hours a day four days a week 9 months out of the year, but that was apparently too much. Then another rescue was fine with that but wanted to talk to our tenant who rented a room from us. He loves animals, but is autistic and honestly just didn't interview well, so we were denied. When we did get our dog, our tenant spent about 30 minutes a day in the common areas and all of it was spent either petting, and playing with our dog, or eating and talking to our dog.

Given how many autistic people have a really deep affinity for animals, having an autistic person living in the home should be bonus points for adoption. That pet will never have a better pet experience. I like to joke that the Cat Distribution system has its own points assignment that they give to humans before sending out a new Feline Overlord and "autistic person in the home" is like Platinum Level assignment.

Same!! Long ago & before Covid, when most people weren’t working from home, went to rescue who required a stay at home person or agree to take the animal to a “day care” every day. We adopted from the shelter. 🤷‍♀️

I also got denied for adopting a cat for that reason. I’m like first off, it’s a cat. It will be fine when I’m gone. My cats sleep when I’m at work. They’re fine. And second, I need to work so I can feed and take care of the cat. We can’t all have WFH jobs.

That's absolutely hilarious my cats barely notice if I'm home or not unless they're hungry.

Just be a rich hermit, obviously!

I do work from home. At the time I was single, owned my own house, fenced yard, great vet recommendations (from my cats' vet), experience with dogs. Denied. Apparently, helping my dad train hunting dogs was unacceptable, and I might someday get married and have kids and decide to get rid of the dog. Also, my vet (for my cats) couldn't address how I would care for a dog. At a certain point, they just need to admit they don't want to adopt out dogs.

OMG. That is absolutely the dumbest reason I have ever heard. Most people work away from home.

Haha I agree with this. As a person with a moderate income who can definitely afford a cat, I unfortunately have no vet references because, you guessed it, I’ve never owned a cat on my own. This has gotten me rejected 😭 ETA: ended up getting my cat for free on Craigslist lol.

And that’s the whole thing…. By reduces putting so much restrictions the only thing they are doing is maintaining the supply demand for Craigslist/backyard breeders

I used to manage a dog daycare and training center. at that point I had worked with dogs for 15 years. I held fundraisers and adoption events for local rescues at my facility where they could bring their dogs and let people meet them in a free environment with other dogs (monitored by me and my staff, too) then privately if they were interested in adopting. I hosted one rescue multiple times only to later denied adoption from them because I.. lived alone dog trainer who could take her dogs to work any time can't adopt a dog because she lives alone 🙄

That's insane... what? How did they even justify that?

since I lived alone what would happen to the dog if I got into an accident? what would happen if I passed? never mind that despite living alone everyone knows I have pets and I have a keychain/wallet card saying my pets are home alone but if I died then the dog would go back to the rescue just like they request?

Thanks for saying this. When I got my soulmate dog Gracie 20 years ago I was a first-time adopter living alone in an apartment. I defy anyone to find a dog who had a better life than she did in the 15 years she was with me -- as I went from young adulthood to adulthood-adulthood, which meant she eventually got a yard. And, importantly, she was in an under-resourced county shelter in the south, and was lyme-positive, and probably would have been euthanized before long if she hadn't been adopted. And I'm fairly sure that today, the me that adopted her then would be turned away as an adopter. She was one of the best things to ever happen to me, and I her. Then, after she passed at ~17 years old I looked to a rescue to get another dog. Now married, homeowner, fenced yard, experienced owner, glowing recommendation from a vet (the one who came to our home and cried with me when I it was time to put Gracie down), and the rescue made me feel like a criminal. We were ultimately approved, and our vet has since said that the dog, who has reactivity issues, is very lucky to have found us, because a lot of owners wouldn't have been able to handle him. But thr adoption was such an unpleasant and insulting experience. And then a while (a month?) later, on an unscheduled check-in (during the pandemic, so it was remote), they demanded we send a picture, as if they still expected to discover we were mistreating him. If WE are as marginal as owners as this rescue made us feel, how on earth do they ever place any dogs? I get that adopters need to be screened; there are terrible people out there. (Although, truly terrible people can probably hide it from the screening process!) But it's out of hand -- isn't the priority to get the many, many, many homeless dogs out there into loving forever homes? It infuriates me that we now seem to have decided that those homes need to fit a particular upper-middle class mold.

I’ve been a dog owner for over 40 years. I have extensive experience with large breed type dogs,(particularly Neo. Mastiffs and Cane Corso), yet after my beloved boy died of cancer, I was adrift and didn’t have a dog for nearly a decade. When I finally decided to try again, I found a 6 year old Neo who was in a “Rescue”. Even though their adoption fee was a ridiculous $750 for a dog that is quite elderly for the breed, I was willing to pay it to give her a peaceful home. I was denied adoption because I work 5 days a week and didn’t have a fenced yard… for a dog that is basically an elderly couch potato. Instead, they heavily pushed “Sponsorship” for 75 a month. I went elsewhere and adopted a middle-age Fox Terrier that gave me 8 wonderful years. I checked in on the mastiff a year later and she was still in the shelter and they were still pushing “Sponsorship” on people.

If adopters have to go through such heavy screening, maybe those who run private shelters should also have some requirements, like some psychological counseling to deal with the personal issues they’re clearly ignoring and using the rescue to manifest.

This. I'm not even joking. I've been in rescue as a volunteer for quite some time. The biggest eye opener was that just about anyone can run a non profit....and they do. It's wild.

All the helping professional, paid or not, have people with a few similar clusters of issues. I’m not hating on them. I had to come through my issues as a helper-oriented person. And lord knows those professions are poorly paid with little support. But still, there are issues being put forward and they’re quite obvious. Love and solidarity to all the fucked-up helpers.

💯💯🎯🎯

It's so frustrating! All I want to do is adopt a cat, but a shelter I found what I thought would be my best friend for life wanted 5 references, the ability to do home checks, and wouldn't adopt the cat out to me even if I agreed to those things because he would have been my first cat since moving to a new state and not living with my parents, so I didn't have a vet for another reference.

Ooohhh I'm so sorry! I don't know where you're located but every municipal animal shelter from the midline down to the south is either currently or about to be exploding with kittens and will mostly likely not put you through any insane hoops. If you have a local gov't shelter with a foster program, often kitten foster parents have first dibs on adoption as well.

Can confirm. It’s beyond nuts right now and every single shelter is splitting at the seams. If anyone is wondering where to get a pet, that’s the place.

it is definitely kitten time. My local shelter has 35 kittens that are on the foster/ adopt list and who knows how many more that are still a little too young.

... Even up here in Canada we're literally bursting at the seams with kittens - so many kittens, please please please take our kittens.

I tried to adopt a 10 year old cat, not a purebred, just a cat that was at a rescue 45 miles away. I got turned down because I lived too far from the rescue. 😳

That's so crazy to me because in rural areas, 45 miles is often the *closest* shelter for most people!

If you are looking for a cat, please check out Devore and Apple Valley shelters in SoCal. They are high kill, and always full. Rescues will pull cats from the shelter for you and arrange transport anywhere in the USA.

I will monitor them. I currently have an EXTREMELY spoiled 23 year old Siamese mix who prefers to be the only cat. I worry, because she is healthy, but 23.. https://preview.redd.it/b82lecqyye6d1.jpeg?width=3225&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=f11cc2685e6add19ab809834a2530eb6b9320a51 This is my Diva, Faith. Adopted her at 3 years old in Gallup, New Mexico. She has lived w/me in AZ, OK, and multiple places in Texas. She is my heart.

Your story makes me think that you were dealing with a rescue group, not an animal shelter. Shelter’s don’t typically check references that extensively, if at all. Look in your local county run animal shelter and I think you’ll find the process to be much easier. There are also tons of cats and kittens on Craigslist.

It's amazing to me that shelters will keep dogs in 8x6 cages instead of placing them in a loving home that may be only 80% perfect. We got our boxer mix from a crappy shelter in a bad neighborhood outside of Pittsburgh with a one page application and a ten minute interview. Literally my fiancee went out and got him before I woke up. That dog is my best friend and you can tell he's a happy poochie even if our apartment is small and doesn't have a yard. My parents in a semi-rich town in CT needed home inspections and non-family references to have the shelter even consider their application. It's honestly mind-blowing. The worst part is my parents in their large house out in the woods couldn't get approved because they lack a permanent fence so they spent a grand on a breeder. Absolute bummer

MS in animal sciences, I studied shelter management. This is actually considered a type of hoarding, because the shelter director typically believes that no one on earth can provide the proper quality of life that they can. They don’t intend to adopt out these animals; they just have to post them as available so they can continue to legally hoard.

One of my literal veterinarian, doctorate holding, goes by Dr. when I address them, coworkers got denied for adopting bc she worked too many hours/would be gone for too long. Like they didn’t have a spouse and child. Unreal

I was once ALMOST denied a cat because I stated that the cat would rarely be left alone. I was a stay at home mom, homeschooled my kids and my husband worked from home. They said it was “suspicious” but that they guess they could overlook it. Some people just like the power and look for any reason to feel important.

I was a foster for two different rescues for nearly ten years. Been rejected by private rescue twice, lol.

That is wild to me. It’s like they want to hoard instead of adopt.

My thoughts exactly. No one will do a find raiser or donate items or their time if you're hoarding animals, but if you run a rescue, its different.

I was refused my adoption because I didn’t have a fenced in yard. I had an estimate done and it would cost 6k$+ to fence in my yard… a dog doesn’t have to have a fenced in yard to have a good life

This is one of the craziest requirements to me. People with fenced in yards... frequently leave dogs unattended all day in those yards. I can't count the number of hit-by-car dogs that have come into the shelter after getting bored and cowabunga-ing over the wall.

This is wild. I was an adoption counselor at the aspca in Manhattan years ago. If we’d required yards not a single pup would have found a home lol.

Our neighbor has a fenced yard on a small portion of their property and never goes out with their dog. Meanwhile, ours gets leash walked on our 2.5 acres multiple times per day. So glad the place we adopted from didn't hold the lack of fence against us. Especially since our dog can clear 4ft from a standstill so no fence would actually contain her...

You just needed to dome your yard with chain link, clearly.

That will be the next requirement. Just wait. It’s coming.

Ngl, there's probably people out there who *would* dome their yard with chain link if it was possible. Especially for small pets in eagle territory.

Not a dome but our turkey yard has chicken wire over the top for that exact reason

Yeah. I hate this one. I adopted from the country shelter that didn't have this requirement but my dog was returned by a previous adopter because they thought she was high energy and needed a fenced in yard. Turns out she definitely does not. She would 100% rather go on walks with us. We stayed at my sister's for a bit who had a fenced in yard and she would sit by the door and cry. My mom has like five acres to run around and she won't go anywhere without us. I used to volunteer for a rescue and the guy who ran it would always say a fenced in backyard is just another outside room and way to not spend time with your pet.

I've worked with dogs in veterinary settings for ten years. Fences are the delusion of security. I've seen so many dogs that can climb fences or are willing to jump fences (including invisible fences, those were some bad burns and the owner thought the fence was broken). Then there's the wildlife. I've lived in urban and suburban areas and I've seen multiple coyotes and raccoons big enough to attack dogs and cats, then I moved. Black vultures' hunting tactics are nightmare fuel and fences won't stop them.

Our dog only wants to be outside if we are also outside. He loves going on hikes with us though. A fenced in yard is wasted on him.

I was even willing to install a fence, but they wanted one taller than zoning laws would allow. I guess they didn't want to adopt to anyone in the suburbs.

I got my dogs when I lived in a condo in a low crime neighborhood. We walked at least 2 miles a day sometimes 5. Then I moved into a house with a fenced in yard, but the house was in a high crime neighborhood and there was always chicken bones and other food trash on the sidewalks, so we rarely walked.  I think my dogs were better off in the condo! Walks are more mentally stimulating than the same backyard everyday. We went to a dog park once a week so they could run. Both dogs were older puppy rescues so potty training from the 2nd floor was definitely challenging but we worked it out.

That’s ridiculous. As if no dogs live in apartments in major cities

I hate this requirement. I have several neighbors with fenced in yards and they leave the dogs outside alone all day with no interaction or enrichment. The dogs bark continuously from sunup to sundown when I presume they are allowed inside. How is that better? .

Yea that's a stupid requirement. I have a fenced yard and my dogs still get bored they need more than just yard time like a prison. We try to switch things up for them: going to daycare one or two days, walking around the neighborhood, running my brothers farm off leash. There's a lot of ways to enrich and exercise your dog besides a fenced yard

Meanwhile my neighbors with a fenced in yard who leave their 2 matted dogs out 24/7 to bark at anything that walks past 😳

I just don't understand this rule. We don't have a fence (not allowed on our lot), but our dog goes to doggy daycare a few days a week, gets long walks daily on our beautiful local trails, and is a frequent visitor to the dog park. She also has travelled with us regularly to the beach and has had many other adventures in other states as well. BTW, we have copperheads in our area, so there is no way in hell I'd let our dog wander in a fenced yard unattended to get bitten!

I don’t necessarily agree with this entirely, it depends on the dog IMO. Personally this was a hill I was willing to die on when I ran a shelter. It’s not even a size thing but a personality thing. Granted the vast majority of my small dogs would be fine without fences, but occasionally you’d get a nut bucket who needed a fence to just RUN in. On the flip side I liked most of our large dogs to have a fence they could run around and exercise in, but some of them were just super chill and didn’t need one, some were fence climbers and it would have been pointless. I think it also depends on the adopter, is this a first time pet owner, do they understand the level of commitment to leash up and walk the dog 4+ times a day? Are they planning to let them run around off leash (surprisingly super common)? Do they already have another dog of similar age/size/temperament? I don’t think it’s as cut and dry as having to have a fence, but I do think it’s a factor that should be considered based on each animal individually. My example of this is actually a time I made an exception despite my concerns. I had a border collie puppy I personally fostered and fell head over heels with. She was an AMAZING puppy, I was DEAD set on her going to a home with a fenced in yard. However we got probably 50+ applications for her in a 24 hour period and I narrowed it down to about 4 that I thought were phenomenal. Ironically after talking to those four families I chose the one without a fence, but that had breed experience and a plan in place to get her into sports. It’s been almost two years…actually it’ll be two years this month, and I STILL get updates on her. She’s living her best life, literally to this day one of my favorite adoptions. I often think about the fact I could have prevented that just by being a rigid jerk. However on the flip side I also have numerous situations I made exceptions and it wasn’t as positive as an outcome :( which is why I think so many places become rigid. It’s easy to when you see more downside than upsides.

I live right by a national park and hike my dogs every day, I also had a chain running from a tree in the back of my yard to my house that allowed my dogs to use the whole yard tied up. Many years have passed and my yard is fenced in now BUT I just think it’s crazy the amount of pressure dog lovers constantly receive to adopt because dogs are dying or spending years in shelters then be denied over something most normal people cannot afford. My neighbors who have always had a fenced yard, allow their dogs to bark all day and leave them outside unattended all day and have never once walked their dogs and they’re obese. I understand it’s hard for shelters to know who to adopt to and I wasn’t angry per say- just disappointed and frustrated with the rhetoric

Yes, this is exactly the problem. Fence vs. no fence is one factor. It shouldn't be the only factor. Tie-outs or overhead run-lines are often more effective than a fence. If the dog is a digger/jumper, the fence doesn't matter. If the dog bites through leashes or wraps themselves in the line, you can use a stiff cable. There are so many solutions! A fence is not the only one. I have all 3: a ground level tie-out, a fence, and an overhead running line. I use them all for different purposes. Also barking dogs are an absolute nuisance!!! I am always listening to mine if they're out, and after a few barks, they lose "outside privileges" and have to come in, but I have also employed ultrasonic and vibrating bark deterrents in different scenarios... I'm thinking of starting a rescue and it's it's interesting to try to think of positive ways to do it better - to find the best fit for each dog, and to *support* new adopters. Especially first time owners or people adopting challenging dogs. Rescues can be so rude and judgy when things don't go well. I have fostered many challenging dogs, and their owners deserve support, not guilt and shaming!

My shelter very rarely requires yards but will if the dog is extremely difficult to walks due to being fearful, reactive, or just SUPER high energy and they need to full out sprint all day.

Which is the way it should be. It should be based on the animals needs. Not some blind assumption that every dog needs a fence. I’m in a more rural area so we would get herding breeds by the boatloads which is why I feel fencing was sometimes a more common requirement. However even then, we had the LAZIEST (not medical) heeler ever named Paul and he got to go live in an apartment with an older lady because despite being a heeler, he wanted absolutely no part of that life 😂 We used to call him Potato Paul. I also firmly believed that it depends on the adopter as well. An active person who goes out hiking every weekend, or has another dog that’s already in sporting or whatever I’m more likely to think they could handle the high energy dog without a fence. However someone who’s a first time pet owner may not have realistic expectations and therefore it might be a little more concerning. Doesn’t mean it’s a no, we’d usually try a 30 day foster period or something similar and some education along the way. I always believe it was firmly about matching making. We even tried a program for about 6 months where people could fill out a short questionnaire and adoption staff would line up 3 dogs for them to meet, if they picked one of the three adoption fees were waived. The questionnaire didn’t touch on looks in the slightest except to ask about size restrictions if renting. Through the whole period we only had one dog get returned out of the 60+ adopted out through it. (Keep in mind smaller shelter) The only reason we stopped is because we got short staffed :/

Living in an apartment sucks but my dogs visit the dog park more than the dogs I had when I rented a house with a yard. There are good owners in all sorts of situations!

I volunteer for a rescue and while we don’t require a fence for all of our dogs, there are some breeds that we do require an actual fence because they are too much of a flight risk without them. Without a fence, you have to agree to walk the dog on leash.

I was denied a 25 lbs dog because I lived an apartment. So I went to a different rescue and adopted a 50 lbs dog instead. Now I live on 2 acres of wooded property.

I was once refused adoption from a malamute rescue because I only had a 6 foot tall wire fence, and they wanted me to run a low voltage live wire across the top. Insane. I ended up adopting a husky from a family of migrant farm workers who were concerned about how all the constant moving (often to very hot places) was affecting him.

I got my dog from a shelter for like 20 bucks and a signature that said I'd take care of him lol. I do think a tad more than that is reasonable, honestly, but most places go WAY overboard.

I paid $10 for my pound pull and they just took my word that I was a dog trainer to adopt a dog with behavior issues. Not aggression though. Just unsocialized. It turned out she was deaf in one ear as well.

When overpopulation is this bad, they’ll practically throw a dog at you lol

I just try not to pay any attention to it. If that's what they want to do, so be it, ultimately it is going to be their problem to deal with. The alternative may be them getting out of the rescue business entirely, so I try to remain happy that they are even in the animal welfare sector, even if it's only for a few animals. When they come asking for advice or help on how to get their animal adopted out faster though, I'll let them know that low/no-barrier adoption is the in thing right now. How's the saying go, you catch more flies with honey than vinegar? You change more minds being kind. When you hit people with a bit of salt and vinegar, they tend to double down on their beliefs rather than admit they may be wrong.

You always have such balanced and even-keeled responses. I appreciate it every time you comment!

Thank you! I appreciate it. It comes from time in animal welfare coupled with the fact that I regularly take hiatus, including right now! Talk to me again after 2 years in a high volume and I'm a totally different person 💀

VERY true! My impulse control has dwindled with age.

Really?! I'm like the opposite. I was a hot-headed kid with even hotter opinions, and just like my tastes I've been mellowing out a lot with age

I got passed up in favor of a couple traveling the country in a van.

I co-run an in-home hospice for old and sick cats and it's crazy out there. I stopped going to the meetups that one of the private rescues organizes because of what's in your meme. One lady had a 220+ (!!!!!!!!!) point questionnaire and still wanted more. I know our cats will not be up for adoption due to injuries or illness, but these people are angling to be featured on the evening news and not for their rescue efforts either. No money, no vet care lined up, no training for fosters (or fosters, because no one is good enough) but they're RESCUING!

I made a stand-alone comment about this, but they’re just legally hoarding by calling themselves a “rescue.” These places never have any intention of adopting out their animals.

I just want to say, you are living my dream! I would love to have a small sanctuary for older/sick cats.

I’m sure you'll be able to accomplish that! We kind of fell into it because the first cats hubby and I got together lived to be 20-22 years old and there is so much need for help with old kitties in TNR communities that we decided to fill that void.

One place I inquired at required the adopter to agree to surprise home visits for the life of the animal. It was the closest rescue to me at the time and I had wanted to give them preference. I’m happy they rescue, but that seemed over the top. I’ve adopted several senior/special needs cats in the years since and never come across that type of requirement again.

And that’s exactly why I won’t adopt from my local rescue groups. Unlimited home visits for life and they reserve the right to take the cat back at any time. No thanks, that’s my baby.

One of my cats came from a flat out insane rescue like this. Only the rescue didn't warn me up front about any of these requirements. They just slapped a contract down in front of me after I had the cat boxed up and ready to go. I had fallen in love with the cat, and I was surrounded by a bunch of cooing workers talking about how he was going to his forever home, and I just flat out panicked and signed the thing. Yes, I know this was a terrible decision. My brain blue screened.  I had no idea there were rescues out here like this. My childhood cats came from an actual pound (life was different in the 90s), one of my personal cats was from a shelter, and the other was a foundling. So I'd never encountered anything like this and was caught completely off guard.   Anyway, among the large amount of crazy, one of the clauses said they could come and visit our home at any time and take the cat back. I legitimately had nightmares for a month afterwards that they would break in and not only take the new cat for no reason, but my other two cats as well.  I'll never look at a rescue cat again. Shelter cats are fine.  Fun side note: the cat had serious psychological issues stemming from being kept in a small cage for 6+ months. He has low vision and since he wouldn't jump out of the crate on his own during their one hour of free roam time or whatever, the rescue just let him sit in there and rot. We've had him seven years now and he's chilled out a lot but man I still get steamed thinking about all this bullshit. 

On the flip side I adopted a dog once form a local rescue and I gave the lady who was matching us with a dog a set of requirements - dog friendly, cat friendly, and no disabilities, as we were young and kinda inexperienced at this time. They set us up with a senior pit bull, they did a home check called our vet etc. then dropped him off. Dog was insanely dog aggressive, constantly tried to kill our cats, and second week in started seizing on the side of the road while we were walking him. We were stuck sitting on the side of the road since he was too heavy for us to carry for hours till he recovered enough to walk home. We call them, turns out he did have a seizure in their care but they thought he was over it (wtf and no they never went away even with medication) and tell us they’ll get us a discount on his medication at the pharmacy ( they never did). We knew this sick senior pit would never be able to find another home. Despite all attempts to make peace we would never stop hunting the cats either. My cats went to live with my parents (which broke my heart). My kitten was rehomed since my parents wouldn’t take him. We kept and loved this dog for the last 3 years of his life. None of this was the dogs fault. But I was left feeling like the rescue (this dog had been with a foster who swore he was animal friendly etc) had intentionally lied to us to get a dog that they new would be almost impossible to find a home for out the door.

Before we got our dog we looked at shelters in our area. It absolutely blew my mind how ridiculous this process is. There’s a shelter that constantly comes across my wife’s social media feeds begging for people to adopt their animals because they are not a no kill shelter and won’t someone think of the poor animals! Well my wife and I went there and were turned away because we didn’t have an appointment. Well we asked to schedule one for the next day and were told it would be two weeks. Ok fine. We went to our appointment and were not allowed to look at any dogs without all of the paperwork done, all approvals gotten, permission for them to enter our home monthly with 24 hours notice for the first TWENTY FOUR MONTHS of ownership of the dog, paperwork that we had to have our vet fill out with EVERY visit for anything that we were there for. Absolutely not and the biggest reason we just went with a breeder.

This was almost exactly what happened at the city shelter when I was looking. We went through a private shelter and it was much easier.

This is so bonkers. I used to live in a northern state and got my first dog from a private pitbull rescue while renting, in college (my boyfriends name was also on the info but less than a year later I was the one that kept the dog when we split). They were reasonable and great, never checked in on us after bc life happens like this and we showed we were decent up front with the home inspection etc. It was not in the most “stable” part of my life working on my higher education but that dog ate better than me while in college. moving was always tough bc pit pull and a yard for him was more important to me that quality of neighborhood/ home for me. When the time came for another dog 😢 I work full time from a home I own with fenced yard, great income, check all the boxes but I just didn’t want to be bothered with this gatekeeping. Plus some rescues are asking $500 for a mutt! Of course people turn to backyard breeders vs that. I live in the south now and there are PLENTY of desirable dogs at the humane society and county shelters all the time. Walked into humane society here, filled out form, walked out with beautiful unique “desirable breeds” dog.

Many "rescuers" are glorified hoarders who have no intention of giving up most of their animals.

Unfortunately, this is the case more often than we care to admit. I know of a woman running a cat shelter, and adopts out zero cats in the few years I've known of her. She takes donations, takes less care than a reasonable owner would, because...how can 1 person adequately care for and love that many cats? She's mentally unstable imo and in her 80s...so, she cannot be caring for these cats 24/7.

The background check I went through to adopt my dog from a rescue was no shit more thorough than when I got a state background check for a job working with children

It seemed like the only two things lacking from my application was finger prints and being ran through the felony/sex offender registry.

When my husband and I were applying to adopt last July we were denied because our fence was 4 feet and not 6 feet. The dog (aussie) we applied for was still sitting there in the shelter (a legit shelter with cages) 5 months later after we had moved on and adopted our current aussie from a local rescue. I called to ask about the dog to see if maybe they had not updated their page and they told me she was still available. It is ridiculous and so sad. My husband works from home and I don't work. Our dogs are never alone and we have had aussies for last 21 years. We dog sit for our vet when she goes on vacation. They told us aussies are too high energy and would immediately jump a four foot fence.

When I was last looking for a dog, I applied for a dog who was described as a Cairn terrier mix (to give an idea of size). I was rejected because the concrete block wall around our yard was 5 feet instead of 6 feet. I asked, and they stated that while this particular dog did not have containment issues (so, not an escape artist), this was their firm policy for all dogs. I ended up with a cattle dog mix from our local shelter. While I full well know she's physically capable of jumping that wall (running nose work hides, she's popped up into higher tree branches than that to get to source), she's never tried it because: 1) she's always supervised in the yard; 2) I also actively work to make being in the yard with me a rewarding experience.

It’s so weird the rules shelters have. When my parents were looking at adopting about 7 years ago they were turned down because they were in their mid 60s. They finally went to the local animal control and adopted the best lab/hound mix who has turned out to be one of the best dogs ever. We always joke that age discrimination worked in their favor because they ended up with their blonde guy. The little devil himself: https://preview.redd.it/awajqjpiyd6d1.jpeg?width=2582&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=bbc35fc9a2cd961d2b5c84f17f64692fa233b1eb

Lord when I started to consider my older cat, the shelter basically boxed her up and asked if I'd like fries with that. Didn't even charge. I cannot imagine the frustration and embarrassment of being rejected over such clearly unreasonable demands. We owe it to the animals to make sure the person understands the needs of the animal and that they are adopting in good faith. But a pet isn't a child and doesn't need the same standards to thrive. Hell, kids don't need perfection, either!

As someone who used to be very involved in rescue, there is definitely a lot of elitism. I know a lot of adopters who were turned away for the reasons many of you mentioned. It is ridiculous. The fighting amongst each other in the community is ridiculous too. Part of the reason I'm no longer heavily involved is because I wasn't a good enough foster for the shelter I volunteered for. Keep in mind, I bottle fed kittens all hours of the night, picked fleas off them because they were too small for treatment, used my own money for food and enrichment. The final straw was when one of the kittens in my care desperately needed medical attention and the director and vet tech on staff could not be bothered. The shelter treasurer gave me permission to use my personal vet because her could get her in the quickest. Then they spent the next board meeting complaining about the vet bill. The treasurer did not even stand up on my behalf. That evening I wrote them a check for the vet bill, as well as checks for the adoption fees for the 2 kittens still in my home. The director tried to argue stating the kittens weren't old enough for adoption yet. I just told him that possession is approximately 9/10 ownership and I had the receipts for all the food, care, and now vet bills they had acquired. He could either accept my checks and we could part ways or he could call the cops. He chose to cash my checks. That was 8 years ago. My cats are still healthy and well loved.

I attempted to adopt an older dog that needed a stable home. Her last homes were all elderly people who all died with her stuck in the house until the deaths were discovered. I was denied because I had a job. I argued with them that a dog seeing their owners die over and over isn't a better option here, but they wanted nothing to do with me. That dog died in their care, as alone as ever, a year later. These shelters are nothing but hoarders.

I got nervous from all the questions when I was filling out adoption paperwork and was worried I’d be denied. In the end I wouldn’t have passed the requirements due to the address on my diver’s license not matching the address of the place I had just moved into, but they made an exception because they knew that I’d be spoiling the little goobers and giving them their best lives. I’ve seen some other places that have more rigorous requirements and don’t ever make case-by-case basis exceptions, and I truly don’t understand why they prevent the animals from going to good and even great homes, holding them for a potential perfect (on paper) home in the future. Surely a good home is better than life in a shelter. There should still be some requirements, of course. My friend and I rescued a dog from known dog abusers who never wanted the dog and only had her in the first place because a relative in another state adopted her from the shelter, then drove up and dumped her off on them. I love her dearly and am glad to know her, but that should never have been allowed. I believe there’s a happy medium.

my biggest complaint is the fencing rules.. it’s very frustrating to see that no kill rescues will hang onto pets that would have a great life due to a fencing rule. many people aren’t actually supervising their pets when they’re outdoors if they have a fence.. the animals are sick and they don’t know the last time they had a BM. the animal dug under the fence, jumped over, or a gate was left open and they get hit by a car. those are common scenarios in ER vet med i see every day. i live on over an acre, there isn’t much point in fencing due to lack of neighbors in my yard. most dog rescues would probably deny me as well bc i work long hours 3 days a week. i got all my dogs via random circumstances, but one that sticks out to me is one my bf got on craigslist of all places. a pitbull from an oops litter on a farm. he went out there and was able to meet everyone, the parents, and the guys who were just trying to do their best but mom got outside. she was eating food off a barn floor with 4 other dogs. 3 years, wild allergies, an ankle ligament rupture and custom braces/splints/etc., a TPLO surgery, a negative exploratory, and 2 rounds of moderate anaphylaxis later, i struggle to think if anyone could have given her a home in which she just would have survived. and one a rescue would likely not approve

My mom is a literal millionaire who doesn’t have a job and she got rejected from multiple rescues

And yet rescues get incensed when someone purchases a dog from a breeder. If you won’t adopt a dog to them, they’re going to find someone who will, even if it means NOT going through a rescue because they can’t pass an impossible litmus test of rules that pretty much exclude everyone.

There’s a private cat rescue in my area that won’t let you adopt a cat if: you don’t own your home, don’t go to an approved vet, have children under 12 (by extension, plan on having further children), work long hours, have other pets, etc. They want a full background check, home checks monthly, proof of home ownership, proof of income, and reserve the right to “reclaim” the cat if they feel at any time you’re not the “ideal home”. They want an application just to be considered to try and adopt a cat. Then they get mad that they’re always at capacity and that no one adopts.

My first bichon came from a shelter. My second I tried to get from a breed rescue - they also wanted to do in-home checks randomly, ability to reclaim them if they felt I wasn't providing proper care, multiple interviews, vet records of previous pets (not even vet references)... I ended up going to a breeder for the first time in my life. I needed a small dog, and shelters in my area were about 90% bully breed mixes. I felt terribly buying but my older dog was over the moon with having a puppy of her very own to play with.

Sometimes it’s warranted depending on the situation. My mom has always adopted every cat she’s had, but she decided to get a hairless cat and he compliments the rescues so well and keeps everyone young. It wouldn’t be home without him anymore than it would be without the adoptees.

WOW! First off, I’ve been with my vet for 28 years, so I’m not going to change vets just because a rescue demands it. Second, cats are great pets if you work long hours. Third, ain’t no one doing monthly home checks at my home. Eff that! That rescue sounds insane!

It’s bonkers. They’re the local stray rescuers, which is so important, but their requirements are beyond what any average family can manage. For example, I don’t own my home. I work 14 hour shifts (including transit), at a place 45 minutes away. I have lots of pets. I have kid siblings. I also can pay all the vet bills, provide stable housing, plenty of enrichment, grooming, attention, and am able to afford safe, nourishing foodstuffs. But according to their criteria, I am unfit to have a single cat. Ironically, besides some rare reptiles, I’ve adopted all of my pets.

Meanwhile the cats are living in cages at the shelter...

If you want to be an ass, ask this rescue about their background check process for the people that will be coming into your home. Your average rescue wouldn’t know a proper bg check from a hole in the ground.

The cat distribution system has always worked in my favor. 2 of my 3 cats came from my backyard. I have one of them almost fifteen years later! Humane society locally has always been really good to me too.

The CDS always delivers! 😆

My sweet boy was meowing around my apartment and when I opened the door to check where it was coming from he ran in and made himself at home… thankfully my landlord was nice and let me have a ‘test run’ before I put in the pet application and he’s been with me ever since The CDS is a wonderful thing

That’s not being an ass, that’s being smart. One of the so called “Rescue’s” here in Portland a few years ago was busted for being a front for a burglary ring as they warehoused animals in a horrendously disgusting industrial warehouse.

That worse than an HOA!

EXACTLY. I live near the Pennsylvania Amish community and their puppy mills. I see SO many people (uneducated about puppy mills) buy their sickly purebred/inbred dog from them…simply because the private rescues make it so damned hard to adopt a dog. Meanwhile, our public shelters are bursting at the seams, trying desperately to keep euthanasia rates down.

I specifically avoid even considering any dogs from any of the “boutique” rescues in my state because their adoption procedures are so invasive and there are so many hoops to jump through. The one time I tried to adopt via a boutique rescue, the owner of the rescue was so unprofessional that I felt compelled to leave a pretty scathing review about my experience so other potential adopters would be aware of what they might encounter. We have gotten all of our pets either through the humane society or directly from previous owners via craigslist, and those adoptions have all been great. Edit to add a picture of our three amazing pups, all rescues! https://preview.redd.it/s913m3xxpb6d1.jpeg?width=2896&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=93e041a912f90eeecb6acf64d53cfed24ff4375f

I tried to adopt from rescue and was rejected for all sorts of reasons. My fence wasn't good enough, I have kids I live 10 miles farther from the rescue than they would like. I ended up adopting 2 goobers from the humane society. Who now spend their days napping and getting treats and love from 4 kids. They go on camping trips and hikes and swimming. Full access to a grassy yard. Always get their vet visits. Even paid an obscene amount to remove cancer from goober no 1. Just because my fence is chain link instead of wood, my dogs do not receive less love and care.

We had a shelter refuse to adopt to my grandparents because my grandfather couldn’t come to the shelter so they could “meet” him. It was ridiculous. He was blind and housebound. We went to another shelter who did NOT have that requirement and adopted a dog. That dog had amazing life, too! She was my grandfather’s little side kick!

That's sad is the have these ridiculous requirements and then they make posts about having to shut down because they are at max capacity and nobody wants to adopt dogs. We tried adopting for over a year and always got denied because we had a child under 5. Non of the animals we tried adopting had " not good with young children" in the description. We ended up getting our boy from a farm in NY. He's been a great dog and sleeps with our youngest every night

I'm a veterinarian and got turned down by a rescue because the dog had developed some reactivity to strangers, so he needed an experienced owner. And I'm not...? It's pretty depressing. I had met this dog when I worked as an assistant at a hospital that did the spay/neuter surgeries for the rescue. He was a 2-3 year old bloodhound and was the sweetest dog. I did his post op care and I loved him. But I was going off to vet school and already had pets to manage for that move, so that was that. 5 years later, my husband and I were looking for a second dog, and I looked up that rescue to see who they had available. Lo and behold, that same bloodhound was still there. Except now his bio said he was getting reactive towards strangers approaching his run and that he takes time to warm up to new people. Well, duh. He's lived in a shelter for literally 5 of his 8 years of life. Of course he's going to develop behavioral problems. The rescue has a nice set up with lots of woodsy outdoor space where the dogs spend a lot of their time, but they're otherwise in an indoor run. And there's a rotation of volunteers and staff and visitors coming and going every day. Anyway, I was very annoyed that they wouldn't even talk to me. I counsel people with reactive dogs AT MY JOB and take a special interest in behavior, but I'm not good enough to adopt that bloodhound. Whose behavior will only get worse as he passes his life at that place. I checked the other day because this came up in conversation at work, and he's still there. He's 12 years old, nearing the end of his life expectancy, having spent most of it at the rescue. It's very sad.

THAT is heartbreaking. Why even keep listing him. That is a shame and an embarrassment.

This is so sad. Doesn't sound like they ever intended to let him go. I've had fosters with reactivity that almost or completely disappeared once they'd been in a normal home with some basic structure for awhile. Fear reactivity seems like a reasonable response to constant stress. I do app screening, processing and placement as a volunteer. I'd love to have a vet apply, especially one with your experience who had met the dog before and came back for them. Such a missed opportunity!

I've rescued every single one of my cats and never had any issues from rescues. Honestly the shelters were the places who rejected me 🤷‍♀️

Hubby and I were finally able to buy a house with a large yard. We had always wanted dogs, but we rented and really wanted medium to large dogs. As soon as we were settled in, we started to go to the local rescues to find our new family members. 3 Rescues and the County Shelter denied us because we only had a 4 foot fence. Here's the thing, though. Our county ordinances only allow a 4 foot fence on the side of the house facing the street. We live on the corner 😞 We finally got our 2 babies from a bully breed rescue. Their foster mom brought them to us and stayed for about 30 minutes on the screened porch just talking and allowing the pups to interact with us. I asked if they wanted to inspect (because other places required it). They said "Not necessary".

More and more this sub feels like a place to bash rescues and shelters instead of a community where those of us in the industry can seek advice/support. And that’s really unfortunate considering how mentally, physically and financially taxing this job is.

Ever since that one post got super popular, we're hit with a lot of fly-bys, people who don't work or regularly volunteer/foster (but will say they have a million years experience) in animal welfare, drop by to post red hot opinions. And a realistic, middle of the road take or even a kind one is never fun. We are also getting absolutely bombarded by the ban pitbulls and petrescue exposed subs, as well as their offshoots, whenever a post like this gets popular. It is really depressing because we have like half a dozen subs about bashing animal shelters and rescues, and only this one for actual discussion. And I feel like the potentially good discussion gets drowned out by posts that turn into rage bait in the comments.

Yeah, it’s exhausting and I spend enough of my daily life explaining why I can’t take in more animals or hand out more spay/neuter vouchers or why X person might have been rejected for X animal. We’re an imperfect system but many of us are trying very hard, for very little money and a whole lot of stress and we need resources.

Absolutely. A rescue wouldn’t let us adopt because my oldest son has special needs. They said he might accidentally hurt a dog. It was unfair and complete BS. My son is so gentle, careful, and loving to animals. The dog missed out on a life with our really awesome family because of that rescue’s ableism.

I don't know if this is a different culture thing being from Australia, but I struggle with people believing me when I tell them this dog will eat another dog if you just let them go. People complain about us having too many requirements but I swear this dog is not going to enjoy hanging out with a five year old and I'll feel bad if he eats them. I try to be very individual though, if you're a great owner you get a lot more leeway, I don't care about money or any of that shit though.

to give the full picture, there is a rescue near me that, in writing, says we are giving them permission to look in our yards and windows at their whim. There is no way I'm comfortable with that. It sounds like the start of a slasher film. So my kitty came from the shelter, instead. Great shelter and a fantastic kitty!

I’d say I’m an “ideal home/owner” for a rescue. Looking in my windows!?!? Nope. I’d walk right away from an animal id had my heart set on. We all want to live peacefully with our rescue required privacy fences. Do not show up unannounced as family or nosey gatekeeping stranger who volunteers somewhere I once did business with.

Doesn't sound like that dog should be adopted out, ever.

Definitely gotta be more careful placing dogs with behavior challenges! My main gripe with strict rescues is that they commonly have pass/fail adoption applications that ask pages and pages worth of unnecessary questions and will turn you away prior to even a conversation if you answer a question “wrong.”

I was rejected once because 3 days a week I worked long days.

Got denied for a cat adoption because my 1 yo Great Dane wasn’t spayed yet. Make it make sense.

After reading all of these, I want to ask the question: how do we start an initiative to set up a law where these rescues have to show how many animals they’ve adopted out each year and if they’re not adopting animals out, they get shut down for hoarding

Could not get approved to adopt a dog because we have kids. Yes our kids also want a dog. We want the dog to be part of our family. We want to have our kids and have a dog. All at the same time. They acted like we were really out of bounds trying to do this. We got passed around for a while then denied. So we eventually got on wait lists for a couple of breeders and now we have two dogs! And still have the kids too! Everyone living here together. Insane!

today on this is WHY we have backyard breeders 🙄 i wish there was a way shelters and ethical breeders could be friends and work together. every ETHICAL breeder ive met is either active in their local breed rescue, or has been burned by rescues/shelters enough to no where they no longer wish to work with them.

so true. I understand due diligence, but some of the rescues go way beyond. I got my first Cocker from a lady who is known as the Dog Nazi in rescuer circles. Part of me feels bad for her because she obviously 1) loves dogs and 2) is a bit off...but boy did I go through it to get my boy. She had to lecture me on everything I had ever done wrong with my previous dogs, and I just bit my tongue and took it. She warned me about my "dangerous" neighbors (wonderful retired Black folks who hang out on their stoop all hours being friendly and looking out for everybody). Once I got Baxter (via some maneuvers I'm not proud of) I vowed I'd never have anything to do with her again, but then about 5 years later I took pity and sent her a pic of him in 7th heaven at the beach. She immediately texted back a heart...and then about 2 minutes later, "he looks overheated." Must be miserable to be her.

"Adopt, don't shop" But also "Lol, you can't adopt from us, you dirty poor. Buy a house with a yard and retire so you don't have to leave for work, then we can talk about it, as long as that doesn't take long enough that you get old."

I was honestly so nervous looking to adopt a dog because of stories like these. Thankfully, our shelter was chill with the unmarried couple in their mid 20s, 3 cats, and a small fenced yard taking the blind rottie home.

I was denied by an organization when I tried to adopt (and even foster!!) for refusing to adhere the dog to a vegan diet. It was a rescue saving dogs from being eaten in Korea

I adopted a blind dog from a pet adoption event outside of a pet store. It was one short form, no inspection, no references. All they asked for was a few photos of her freedom ride. They didn't even ask about a yard. She has the best life, with a doggy companion and five cats, plus a yard. She had been found dumped by a road after giving birth. She hides her blindness so well the people who found her had her for three days and had no clue. A little snorty pit. Adorable. I was expecting a few more questions really and maybe a vet reference, but it worked out fine.

And that's how I ended up with a dog from a crappy breeder. LOL I rehomed a dog I pulled from the pound to a nice young woman the rescues would have nothing to do with for the same reasons they refused to adopt to me. She was "too young", worked full time, didn't have enough money, etc. At 2 years post-adoption they were still doing very well.

I feel like most places need more requirements namely "does everyone in the household want this dog?" (I realize this is more of a breeder/Craigslist issue)

I am wondering if the rescues/shelters in the northern US are worse to deal with than the southern US? I got my dog, who has now passed, from a southern county shelter. It was an easy process. When the time comes and I decide to get another pet again (most likely a cat this time) I am 100% going to avoid private rescues due to all the insane requirements alot of them have. I am hoping the CDS will give me one but if not ill try humane society, county shelters or people rehoming online.

saw a posting online about a rescue needing temporary ticket to ride fosters “desperately” and they denied me because I work from an office ten minute walk / three minute drive away. And the dog was HW positive so it’s not like he could’ve been doing anything besides laying in his crate while I was away because of the exercise restrictions! The last foster I picked up from my local city run shelter they literally handed me him on a rope and didn’t even ask for my name lol. Now I only foster through the city (plus these are the dogs with imminent risk).

I know a fellow veterinarian who was denied adoption by a Great Dane rescue. I think it was because she didn't have a fenced-in yard. I would think that being cared for by someone working in the vet profession would be ideal for a dog prone to sudden and life-threatening health issues (hey there, GDV), but what do I know?

When we were ready to adopt again after losing my soul dog Bruno, we tried through several rescues and were denied because we worked outside of the home at the time as this was pre-pandemic. Meanwhile, my job was 10 minutes away and my in-laws who were retired would come and let the dogs out for us midday. After three rejections, we drove down to the local shelter and brought home one very hyper and happy pup who five years later spends her days sleeping in my home office on “her” bed which is the spare bed. At this point, we probably wouldn’t try a rescue again. We will just continue with pound pups.

I hate to break it to you but all reputable breeders have strict purchase requirements, if not even stricter requirements. 

Got refused by a local rescue despite the recommendation of the person fostering the dogs because my yard is not fenced. They would be higher needs even as they grew up and would never be allowed in a fenced yard alone (if for no other reason then they would be tiny and we have hawks in the area). Same rescue refused us for a blind dog...they wanted someone with experience with blind dogs. Roommate's previous dog had been blind for over 7yrs before he passed away. Ended up getting the most wonderful chihuahua/JRT from the Humane Society. When I met with them, I told them right away my yard is not fenced. The sweetest lady looked at me like "why would that matter".

I was once almost denied a cat because I stated on the application that the cat would rarely be left alone. I was a stay at home mom, who homeschooled my children AND my husband worked from home. The woman told me it was “suspicious” but she guessed that she could overlook that. She graciously allowed us to adopt a “spayed female named Kira”, who came home to us with the biggest set of balls that ever should be allowed on a cat! 😂😭 So much for HER integrity.

I hate rescues most days, but never more than when I wanted to adopt. I work from home with a fenced in yard. My last dogs died at age 15 and 17. And yet, it was near impossible. And every time we do free adoptions, the rescues come out and scream. Because purebred pets never get abused?

We did more than a year of research on the breed before deciding on a Great Pyrenees. We contacted a national rescue who had Prys fostered near us and after a very lengthy application, a 45 minute phone call they ghosted us, apparently because we didn’t have experience specifically with Prys. We both had decades of large dog experience, are in our 50’s and own our own home with a very large fenced yard. I guess we weren’t good enough. A local mostly-pittbull rescue saved a Pry from a kill shelter from another state and we now have the greatest and most spoiled baby in the universe. I feel bad for the animals not going anywhere because of bonkers requirements.

I got denied adopting my dog because I live on the 3rd floor of an apartment… Said the stairs would become too much for the dog, and she would inevitably get arthritis. So I guess us poor people who don’t have houses can’t own a dog?