Support sheltie rescue!

When I was looking for Bela, I came up against the "no fence, no adoption" policy time and time again. It was most discouraging, especially when you are trying to adopt out-of-state. Fortunately, my adoption counselor with Sheltie Rescue of GA spent an entire morning at my house, checking out not only the house and yard (which is unfenced), but my husband and I as well.

I've had Shelties since 1993, and dogs all my life. I've shown in obedience for umpteen years or so. If I say I can manage without a fenced yard, I can. It's not as if I am an inexperienced owner with a first "indoor" dog. And when you come with the references I have provided? (Letters from vet, groomer, petsitter, trainer, and Border Collie rescue - whom I used to foster for) An organization shouldn't just look at the "no fenced yard" on the application and stamp the whole thing REJECTED. Yet I have had just that done to me not once, not twice, but several times.

Thank goodness, Lynda of SR didn't automatically kick me out of the system! And I must say that I almost lost faith when she told me to wait for the right dog to come along. This lady has a real talent for matching needful shaggies with needful humans!!!!!
 
Well, for my family, it's actually the "no children" policy. I have a 6 yo son who has been around with my sheltie since he was born. I choose sheltie because it's one of the breed who I can trust to be around my kid and it has been the right decision. I love watching how they played together. I know some sheltie probably best without children but to make a blanket rule for no children is just too much.
 
That article was great!! I've always felt like that about certain rescue organizations (note the bolded italic...I obviously don't feel that way about all rescue groups). It's just like that article was saying...the rules trump logic. It drives me crazy, especially since the south is full of high kill shelters. I say this not just from a 'sheltie owner' point of view. We have one rescue sheltie, and two we've gotten from breeders. We also have two kitties we have gotten from our local SPCA. Even when we went to get our second kitty from the SPCA (and here in central Florida there is an enormous cat population problem), we were almost 'denied' b/c we don't give certain annual vacs just based on doing our due diligence in researching what would be appropriate for our pets.

I can see how it would be beyond exasperating to try to find a dog via a rescue org w/o a fenced yard. It was already a challenge for us, and we have a fenced yard. Those applications take a considerable amount of time. And they're unique to every rescue org. I really don't understand the fenced yard req't either. I grew up in a condo, and we had a sheltie. He was the best dog in the world (which could be a contributing factor as to why we now have 3 :lol:).
 
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I live in an apartment with my sheltie boy, and he's more quiet than my neighbors, Go figure. I walk him about 2 miles a day. I found my sweet, sweet baby in the local ASPCA, I trust him implicitly around people, he just doesn't like dogs, no biggie. I'm the only one in the building allowed to have a pet because he is my therapy dog.
 
What an interesting thread.

My first dog, Anna, was a referral from the local rescue program. She had problems, like heartworm and not being housebroken. I had her 11 years, though. I think that's why the rescue program didn't think twice about letting me have Daisy, and I live in an apartment now.

I think our rescue program has the ability to look "outside the box". And I am grateful.

Oh, and I think I am now the new photographer for the site. I love to take pics of shelties, and they need some improvement in the area. I was flattered when they approached me. I hope I get a chance to help more pups get good homes.
 
In a way, it's very fortunate that my area just doesn't have a lot of Shelties who are up for adoption. Most are very old or have extreme problems.

On the other hand, it's hard to find ANY Shelties to either purchase OR adopt here. Even the back yard breeders want exhorbitant amounts for their puppies. Don't even ask about reputable breeders.

I've taken the approach of blanketing every rescue group in the region (within a day's drive) with applications. I'm just waiting for that right dog to show up - it may take years, but I'll be ready! It's just greatly disheartening when some rescues (out of either laziness or indifference) don't care to take the trouble to check out out-of-state adopters, and so have a policy of wholesale rejection of applications based on the excuse of "we don't have anyone to do a home visit". Surely, if you've adopted before, and recently, an exception could be made after checking with the other rescue's home visit people?

It's really doing your rescue dogs, and the organizations themselves a great disservice. Having done Border Collie rescue in years past, it's a great thing to have approved applications waiting for the right dog to come along. Part of the "art" of fostering involves the matching of rescue dogs to just the right family. Each dog successfully placed means a space opens up for another Sheltie in need. It's a foster mom or dad's instinct that this person and that dog belong together that is the true miracle of rescue.

When I fill out an adoption application, I always include a host of personal references - groomer, trainer, petsitter, vet, etc. I also include records of my past dogs - their photos (I went mad for a few years and had tons of professional portraits done), and even clippings of Delaney Point records from Front & Finish (and my own column in there as well). Yet still there are many organizations who see the "no fence" and can't get past it.
 
The Sheltie Rescue from which we have adopted and with which I am beginning to volunteer, I believe has the best possible program for adoptions, one I agree with 100%.
Each dog coming into rescue is placed with an experienced "foster" whose job it is to not only provide basic care, but to identify behavior characteristics, personality, health issues, dietary needs, - just about everything imaginable.
Each dog has its own file of information which can be accessed by those facilitating adoptions.
This organization has several persons who are extraordinarily skilled at matching the right dog with the right adopters.
Each potential adopter must fill in an extensive application and be willing and able to pay a significant but reasonable adoption fee. This helps offset the costs of fostering, needed vet care, grooming etc. needed for the dog.
Each potential adopter must provide several references, including a vet reference, and they are checked.
Each potential adopter will have their home visited and screened by an experienced evaluator and any potential issues will be addressed.
Then, and only then, will an adoption committee meet and make final decisions as to adoptions.
This process insures that the best possible matches are made. It is a very rare occurrence that once an adoption is made, that the dog comes back to rescue - and if that rare event occurs, it is most often due to something which had nothing to do with the original adoption.

I know this works. Three of my shelties have come to me using this process. And yes, I do have a fenced yard.
Kind regards to all, Will
 
We have two shelties from the same breed rescue. When we got Bailey our yard was not completely fenced and we were honest about that. We were still allowed to adopt. Shortly after we got him we did fence the yard and a few years later we upgraded to a better fence after some neighbor issues. The upgrade was completed before we got Katy so fencing wasn't an issue when we applied the second time.
 
Every dog is different

Will said:
The Sheltie Rescue from which we have adopted and with which I am beginning to volunteer, I believe has the best possible program for adoptions, one I agree with 100%.
Each dog coming into rescue is placed with an experienced "foster" whose job it is to not only provide basic care, but to identify behavior characteristics, personality, health issues, dietary needs, - just about everything imaginable.
Each dog has its own file of information which can be accessed by those facilitating adoptions.
This organization has several persons who are extraordinarily skilled at matching the right dog with the right adopters.
Each potential adopter must fill in an extensive application and be willing and able to pay a significant but reasonable adoption fee. This helps offset the costs of fostering, needed vet care, grooming etc. needed for the dog.
Each potential adopter must provide several references, including a vet reference, and they are checked.
Each potential adopter will have their home visited and screened by an experienced evaluator and any potential issues will be addressed.
Then, and only then, will an adoption committee meet and make final decisions as to adoptions.
This process insures that the best possible matches are made. It is a very rare occurrence that once an adoption is made, that the dog comes back to rescue - and if that rare event occurs, it is most often due to something which had nothing to do with the original adoption.

I know this works. Three of my shelties have come to me using this process. And yes, I do have a fenced yard.
Kind regards to all, Will
Click to expand...

Our local rescues operate pretty much the same way. They don't automatically require a fenced yard (even though we have a fenced yard). If you know what you're doing and don't let the dog out without a lead, there's no reason that a fence should be required. It is nice to be able to let them out to do there business throughout the day without having to hook them up to a lead, but if you take them for regular walks, what difference does it make? There are too many potential good owners that aren't being allowed to adopt! Even though our yard is fenced, we don't leave them outside alone, unattended. Too many of our neighbors do and we end up listening to constant barking that can go on for hours! When a rescue pairs the right owner with the right dog, everything else works itself out.
 
When we started looking into getting a sheltie, we looked for a sheltie rescue in the area. There is only 1 in the state (that we found online at least). But they were also ones that require a fenced yard. we are in an apartment, so that meant we wouldnt be able to go through them. kids were another thing that would have pretty much disqualified us too. we have a 18month old daughter. and under ALMOST EVERY dogs' profile, they have "not good with kids", and the few that say they are good with kids are all seniors, or you have to get the pair of them together, etc. we would have been happy to adopt but they wouldnt have even looked at us as a possibility. i mean, yes, my daughter is very young, but she is VERY gentle with animals. I guess we might have gotten lucky with Gizmo. Until we brought him home, he had never been around kids, and he does WONDERFULLY with my daughter. I understand that it depends on the dog, but i just dont see how 75-90% of the shelties in this rescue are "not good with kids". oh well, im glad we ended up with Gizmo. down the road a few years though, i wouldnt mind trying to adopt one.
 
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