To think that "rescuing" an imported dog is a bad idea?

[pepsicolagirl]

So last lockdown (ahem, and the one before) we had the company of our dog to motivate us to get moving everyday. She was an old girl who sadly had to be put to sleep in September due to old age and early stage heart failure.

Since then I have been looking for a new dog to join our family. I feel very strongly that I'm just a better version of myself when I have a dog around and we can offer a nice family home with years of dog ownership experience and a nice big secure garden. I work from home (did so pre lockdown) so no issue there

But OMG the prices of dogs at the moment!!!
Now, I understand that cheap dogs are not a good idea because of people buying them on a whim but even though I KNOW I can afford the day to day costs of feeding and properly caring for a pup I can in no way justify upwards of 1500 to buy one and I am absolutely gutted about it.

I have been looking at rescues too, it would be nice to have a young puppy but I am absolutely aware of the amount of work involved and I would be happy to open our home to a rescue but there are none out there suitable for a home with 6yrs+ children so that's not an option.

The other thing I'm seeing all over the place are dogs/puppies which have been rescued in places like Romania and then sold in the UK.
Now, the prices are lower and many accept kids 6+ but why does it feel like such a bad idea to me!?
If you've got one of these dogs I would love to hear from you as to why I'm wrong in feeling like this about them?

I don't know about Romanian rescues, specifically, but I have lived in a country where dogs are often 'rescued' from the street for home adoption. (I take the point above that not all foreign rescues are street dogs.)

In all honesty, dogs cope living on the street much better than I think people realise. It can be dangerous for them, for sure, but it is not quite the sentence of misery it is sometimes assumed to be and a life as a pet is not always an upgrade, depending on the dog's personality and before/after circumstances.

As a result, I would be think carefully about the individual dog's specific history and circumstances before adopting it - and this includes how much faith I have in the charity to be able to give this deatil. But that is no different, in principle, to a UK adoption.

I am sure there are horror stories but equally it can work well. Two friends each have Hungarian rescue dogs. One is incredibly quiet and easy to manage, a really lovely dog. I think he was a street dog. The other is nervous, particularly of men, and very loyal, although is getting more used to the sounds of day to day life. He was mistreated / neglected. Both owners are happy and enjoying their dogs.

The key from talking with them seems to be identifying a sound organisation that has good open communication, and taking the homing process slowly. Both dogs were with expert foster carers prior to moving to their new homes and thoroughly assessed, with immediate health problems resolved. The prospective owners were in regular contact with the foster carers and shared video updates. It was clear what their history was and what they were taking on.

Google 4 Paws, South Killingholme for 4,600 reasons why imported rescue is a bad idea. As I remember they were charging £250 per "rescue", but making an absolute fortune. An APHA inspector told me it is very difficult to tell the difference between imported dogs for sale and imported rescues. There are little or often no health checks, vaccinations, high rabies risk, no temperament checks, falsified paperwork etc etc.

We have a rescued Street dog. He is a nightmare but we love him. There is a huge difference between a dog that has been born wild and never been domesticated and most of the Greek/ Romanian type rescue dogs.

We have ours because of an old neighbour moved to the far east and and rescues injured street dogs and nurses them back to health and then sends them back to all her old friends in the UK. These dogs are hugely territorial, not house trained, not used to being touched or being on a lead.He would fight every single dog/cat/horse he ever met if let off the lead for a single second. They do not 'play'. If you throw a ball etc it would not occur to our dog to go and retrieve it. But he is a great character we accept him for what he is. Most people would not want this.

Another friend stopped supporting a couple of Romanian rescues because she became aware that dogs were being farmed and then sold on to be rescued.... Which explains why they have so many young dogs that are capable of settling in.

Really a street dog is not a domesticated animal... And if it is domesticated then one wonders how there is such a consistent turnover of these young pups

I second a pp's suggestion about looking into rescued greyhounds in the UK as perhaps a better idea

Thanks @Hotcuppatea

@LonnyVonnyWilsonFrickett yes the lab rescue that my other dogs came from have already had a couple of 9 month old boisterous labs arrive at the kennels. Lockdown puppies dumped already. 😮

I have tried adopting from dogs trust and a local resuce, both said no as we have two cats (who have lived with dogs before) and two kids. I can understand why someone would buy a puppy or adopt a rescue from overseas

My rescue is from romania, but the local dog shelter actually rescued her first as they had a lot of available space, and then we adopted her from the local dog shelter

I'm not sure about rescues with kids full stop though - when you rescue a dog you do it for them, not for your family - it can take a long time for the dog to relax and their true nature to be revealed and there is a lot of adjustment required, and kids just want to love on and walk the dog who may start off too stressed for all that. I'm sure a lot of cases work out fine but it worries me.

DD and her DH adopted a greyhound a few years ago. Such a lovely dog! Her previous owner had gone into a nursing home so she was back at the greyhound charity. She is an older dog, very laid back and affectionate.

The issue I have is that there doesn't seem to be much post adoption support and advice.

I have a rescue dog from Ireland and my parents have 2 rescue dogs from Spain, through Black Retriever Cross. The follow up was very well balanced.

But I keep seeing Facebook posts saying 'Rescue dog escaped. Do not approach as very timid. Call this number. Recently arrived from....' I've seen at least 9 or 10 in my local rural area. For these dogs to escape, they must have had an opportunity. Why weren't the families warned of how strong the urge to escape captivity would be? Most of these dogs come from the streets and it's not their norm to be kept in a home.

I have had rescue dogs (and fostered for a while) for over 20 years - we currently have four including a Romanian one. Only one of our four is from the UK. You can absolutely get puppies from rescues - www.chimneyfarmrescue.com/ regularly brings puppies over from Greece for example. stgilesanimalrescue.co.uk/adoptions/ also has puppies fairly often.

A trustworthy rescue centre will assess the dog (and the potential adopter) before rehoming them and will tell you which dog would be most suitable. Please, please, please do not buy a dog. You can get the right dog from a rescue centre. That way you will not be contributing to the problem of overcrowded shelters, because for every dog that's bought, one is left in a shelter.

Feel free to PM me if you'd like to chat further.

@Dogscanteatonions

It's my understanding that a lot of people are adopting rescue dogs from abroad as the animal rescues here make you jump through hoops to adopt and will turn you down for all manner of reasons.

This is true in my experience (vet)

DuchessOfDoombar - That may be the case but there are also many rescues who refuse to rehome to people for the most nit picky of reasons.

Agree completely. We tried for a few years to adopt a rescue dog locally but were refused each time because DP and I work full time (albeit from home) and had a young child. One actually told me that they pretty much block anyone who isn't retired and can't devote the majority of their time and attention to the dog. This was years ago now but I don't think it's got any better since. One lady in the village has been allowed a rescue dog from a local centre but she is retired and an experienced dog owner.

I have friends and neighbours with rescue dogs from Cyprus, Spain and Romania. One has a gorgeous Romanian street dog who has been with her for six years now and is the most laid back, soppy creature ever. However another has one and it has all sort of behavioural issues that they are trying to work through. Dogs are individuals after all. I think you have to be very patient and be prepared to invest a lot into training and supporting your rescue dog. But you'd need to do that if you bought a KC registered puppy from a good breeder.

It does seem from news reports that there will likely be a large influx of UK rescue dogs available this year as lots of lockdown puppies purchased on a whim are being given up for adoption now that people have realised they aren't just ornaments

@Lougle

The issue I have is that there doesn't seem to be much post adoption support and advice.

I have a rescue dog from Ireland and my parents have 2 rescue dogs from Spain, through Black Retriever Cross. The follow up was very well balanced.

But I keep seeing Facebook posts saying 'Rescue dog escaped. Do not approach as very timid. Call this number. Recently arrived from....' I've seen at least 9 or 10 in my local rural area. For these dogs to escape, they must have had an opportunity. Why weren't the families warned of how strong the urge to escape captivity would be? Most of these dogs come from the streets and it's not their norm to be kept in a home.

Because often it's not the dog's fault - it's the family's. If they've never had a dog they don't know that you can't necessarily leave the front door open. Or that you can't get the dog to jump out of the car to head indoors, without a lead. Or they need to teach their children the above. So often if a dog escapes it's because there weren't suitable measures in place. A friend has a GSD - left it with his sister for the afternoon. She has a dog so he thought it'd be OK. However she went to open the front door and the GSD bolted. My friend's response was that the dog had never done it at home. Well that's not good enough, is it?

@mrstea301

Have you looked at greyhound rescues? Greyhounds are amazing pets, very loving and once they've settled in, they feel like you've had them for years!! We have one and wouldn't change him for the world! There are some that they won't home with children but not very many, as they've very gentle / placid on the whole!

This ^^

My ndn's have a Spanish rescue who has settled in very well.

i think there is a difference between adopting an abandoned dog from overseas, to adopting an actual feral streetdog from a pack, which i cant imagine would ever be truly happy as someones pet in a house.
My dog had clearly lived in a house before as was housetrained, but was found on the streets in spain, heavily pregnant begging for food. She had ground down and broken teeth which suggests she may have been chained up for long periods, and she has a few scars from either beatings or being attacked by other dogs.
She is however, perfect with other dogs, even aggressive ones, she doesnt get involved. Shes streetwise, she adores people. Fantastic with children. Very calm. Doesnt chase cats. Just an absolute poppet, and shes living the life of a princess now. She is really calming for my children when theyre upset.
I would do it all again in a heartbeat

oh, and I have no more idea of the history of the staffie we rescued in the UK several years ago, as we do the spanish one. She is also a great dog, just a lot more bouncy and full on, which I expect is why she was abandoned, but will never know the history of any of my rescue animals, but I dont think thats a big deal.

I know of many successfully rescued overseas dogs, but very many unfortunately not. This may be similar to uk rescues but there is generally more aftercare here (for example dogs trust provide post rescue behaviourist services I believe).

I do agree that the drive towards imported rescues is somewhat driven by the overly restrictive rules from some uk rescue charities.

I have known very many with extreme behavioural issues and many with parasitic diseases we don’t currently have in the uk (some treatable, some chronic, some which can make humans ill).

On a purely ethical/utilitarian decision, charity money would be better spent on neutering/welfare programmes in the country of origin and I’m not convinced that animal welfare as a whole will be well served if exotic diseases are brought in to this country and become endemic here - causing suffering in animals and a risk to human health also.

I would not do it.

You might think of rescuing a retired racing greyhound . There are many excellent charities in UK still rehoming an endless supply of hounds from Britain. The charities assess the dogs individual character and needs before rehoming. Ex-racer Greyhounds make absolutely wonderful hardy, sweet tempered lazy charming domestic pets and (contrary to what you might imagine) they don't need huge amounts of excercise.

A friend brought beautiful lurches from Egypt she runs a charity rescue she puts her head and heart into it the dogs were in poor condition when she rescued them.

You would need to do a lot of careful research and checking to be sure that you weren't inadvertently buying from a puppy farm. I know someone who rescued a couple of dogs from either Romania or Hungary, and they are very, very difficult animals. This person has years of experience with both breeding and keeping dogs, and is having great difficulty in training these two. One in particular is extremely unpredictable and reactive. Personally, I wouldn't take the chance.

I'm in the same boat as you OP. We'd love another dog at some point but the prices are sky high. I got chatting to a woman recently with two lovely dogs and I was asking what their breed was (they looked Pointer-ish) and she said she'd recused them from Greece from an organisation called Zante Strays. She was very impressed with the organisation and the dogs come to you fully vaccinated/checked etc. She did say she had to have trackers on both dogs though as their hunting instinct was so strong. I took a look at the website and their Facebook page and they provide lots of information about each animals needs in order to match with the right home.

I have one, from Portugal. He's the best. Loves me, loves my kids. Loves a cuddle.

Loves chasing cars and is a complete nutter on the lead but he was a street dog, so what do you expect?

I have had my Croatian rescue for 6 years. He is a million times better behaved than my 12 year old kc reg pug I've had from 12 weeks. She's a fucking nightmare. Basil is a wonderful dog.

@2bazookas I agree entirely. We have a retired greyhound and he's just wonderful.