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Original poster

Such a shame I'm not 'allowed' to rehome a rescue dog :(

25 replies

BattyBadgerBadger · 01/11/2005 09:18

I've been searching for some time for a dog to rehome. Particularly a younger dog or pup who might acclimatise to the children more easily. But, call after call later and no rehoming centres that I've called will place dogs, even pups in homes with pre-school children.

I'm really irritated by this! I'm not going to wait several years until the children are school age to get a dog, so, rather than rehoming a pup from a centre, I'll be buying one. Seems a shame that I'm not allowed to offer a rescue pup a home......Ggrrrr!

OP posts:

moondog · 01/11/2005 09:22

Why don't you have sparklymiaouw's?
She's looking for a home for her Jck Russell.

Freckle · 01/11/2005 09:22

Have you put up an advert in your local newsagents? You might find someone has a dog which has had a litter and they are looking for good homes for the pups.

I agree it's madness to keep a dog in kennels (or even put them down) when there's a perfectly good home for them. I can understand it for older dogs whose history is not known, but I would have thought a pup would be ideal as they grow up together.

carla · 01/11/2005 09:26

Message deleted

SoupDragon · 01/11/2005 09:27

Rehoming centres are probably more srtingent than pet shops etc because the dogs may have been mistreated, neglected etc etc and therefore not be suitable (or may be unpredictable) with very young children. It is a shame but I actually think they're probably right. If the dog turned on a child, the rehoming centre would be ripped to pieces for rehoming an unsuitable dog, there's not the same "responsibility" attached to buying a puppy froma shop etc.

WigWamBam · 01/11/2005 09:28

I don't know where you are, but Birmingham Dogs Home will rehome a dog into a home with children - they will watch how the dog and child react to each other, and if they get on then you will be allowed to have the dog.

Freckle · 01/11/2005 09:28

But that wouldn't really apply to a puppy from a rehoming centre. As I said, an older dog might be unsuitable because of a bad history or unknown history, but the same wouldn't be true of a pup.

Lonelymum · 01/11/2005 09:30

I am not trying to put you off, but are you totally sure a puppy and your pre-school children will go well together?

I ask because I have long wanted cats for my children to grow up with but always had a small child to consider. Now my youngest is 2.8 and my oldest is 9 and I felt I really had to get on with having some cats before ds1 was any older. I adopted two kittens from the Cats Protection League in September and I have to say, regretably, that I think it was a mistake. The three older children love them to death and tend to maul them a bit but I am sure they are not too rough with them as the kittens still stay with them voluntarily. Ds3 however, is an absolute menace with the kittens and they run and hide from him if he even enters the same room as them. I am finding it very hard to keep both kittens and ds3 happy, and every day I am having to watch what he does with them. Fortunately they are not aggressive kittens at all and have never scratched (though I somethimes wish they would just to teach ds3 to leave them alone). All in all, although the kittens are great for my older children, I have to admit that with ds3 as young as he is, we should not really have adopted them. I know some cat charities would not have considered us because of ds3 and I fear they are right in this attitude.

I am not suggesting anything about your decision to have a puppy, but just would like you to consider what you are taking on and why the dogs' homes won't re-home to you.

Freckle · 01/11/2005 09:42

I've had both kittens and a puppy with pre-school children (not at the same time!). The kittens just learned to avoid the youngest until such time as he could be trusted to be gentle with them, which wasn't that long. The puppy was absolutely fine - I'd suggest getting a fairly robust breed such as a labrador if you can. The problem with the puppy is that you have to be certain that you can devote enough time to it or it will become bored and possibly destructive. If you have young children, sometimes finding time for pets can be very difficult, so you have to be certain that you can cope with both demanding children and a demanding dog - and training lessons are a must for many reasons, so you need to factor in time for those too.

Original poster

BattyBadgerBadger · 01/11/2005 09:44

Thanks for your replies

Putting an ad in a newsagents sounds like a possibility.

SD, that's why I was hoping to rehome a younger dog/pup, of which there seem to be far too many stuck in rehoming centres (needlessly IMO)

Lonelymum, I've thought long and hard, don't worry . Your points are valid and I understand your view entirely but I've found with our cat, the children learned very quickly (as has he) where each others boundaries lay.

As a child we had several dogs all from rescue homes and they really were fantastic!

OP posts:

carla · 01/11/2005 09:44

Message deleted

SoupDragon · 01/11/2005 09:46

I think it would apply to a puppy from a rehoming centre, yes. These centres tend to be more "morally liable" than a shop etc IYSWIM.

We had a puppy from when my brothers and I were about 7, 4 and 1 btw and never had any problems so I'm not against mixing puppies and preschoolers by any means.

carla · 01/11/2005 09:49

Message deleted

SoupDragon · 01/11/2005 09:55

(oooh, my post was only really in response to Freckle's of 9:28:43 AM)

Lonelymum · 01/11/2005 10:11

If I am strictly honest here, I have to say that I was longing for our kittens as we had cats when I was a child and I had an extremely close relationship with one all my childhood. I thought I had waited long enough for ds3 to be old enough to leave them alone when asked to, but I know I have misjudged it. Also, caring for the kittens isn't as much fun as I thought it would be. They are not fully litter trained (although I thought all kittens were pretty reliable on that score) and I really resent sorting out their poo when I am also having to sort out ds3's poo (he is potty trained, but also not reliable yet!) Just little things like having to add feeding the cats to my list of chores in the morning before I can sit down to my breakfast are proving more arduous than I anticipated. It doesn't help that dh won't have anything to do with the kittens at all as it was my decision to get them and he is not a cat person. I don't mind taking on the responsibility of taking them to the vets and cleaning out the litter tray, but I really resent him ignoring their demands for food or someone to play with).

BBB, I take it your dh is fully supportive of your decision to get a dog? Believe me, even if he is hardly home, it will make a difference to have him fully on your side.

Original poster

BattyBadgerBadger · 01/11/2005 10:44

No H, Lonelymum . In fact, his reluctance to take at least partial responsibility for caring for a dog was a lot of the reason why I didn't get one before now. I find it's somehow easier to get on with things myself than to be let down by someone who's meant to be helping out, IYSWIM?

LOL @ the nappy thing! I do think that time wise, now would be a good rather than a bad period to get a pup though. I'm not tied into work commitments (though when I do start it will be a couple of hours several days per week rather than long shifts) and I do feel a pup would be a positive addition, that the plusses would far outweigh the negatives.

Thanks for your thoughts though, I don't think that a decision like this can really be over analysed!

OP posts:

Lonelymum · 01/11/2005 10:47

Oh sorry about putting my foot in it re your H.

Yes, I have to say, the only good think=g about my timing is that I am home all day to give the kittens what they need. By the time I get a job, they will be older and probably quite independent.

Well, good luck with it. Hope the children enjoy their new companion when you get it!

ggglimpopo · 01/11/2005 10:52

Message withdrawn

expatinscotland · 01/11/2005 10:53

How about fostering? Could that be an option?

Original poster

BattyBadgerBadger · 01/11/2005 11:40

Lonelymum, thanks but it's fine, really!

Hi ggg, thanks for that tip, I'll start on it immediately . I'm doing well thanks, how are you?

Expat, I would imagine they'd be reluctant to foster with us for the same reasons

OP posts:

suedonim · 01/11/2005 11:47

BBB, I don't know if you'd be interested but I'm looking to foster/rehome our dog as we're going abroad to live. She's an 11yo Cavalier King Charles Spaniel. CAT me if you want more info. I'm in NE Scotland, btw.

expatinscotland · 01/11/2005 11:48

Aw, suedo! She sounds perfect! I love King Charles'. But our landlord won't allow dogs .

Original poster

BattyBadgerBadger · 01/11/2005 12:21

Sue, I really hope you have luck rehoming your KC, she sounds lovely! I'm really hoping to have a larger mid to large breed though.

OP posts:

pixel · 01/11/2005 13:17

I don't know where you are but my friend went to WADARS (Worthing and district animal rescue)and they were quite happy for her to have a young dog even though she has 4 children between the ages of 9 and 6 months.

My mum got her dog from Allsorts Dog rescue in Hassocks. They don't have kennels but the dogs are fostered by various families until permanent homes are found for them. This means they are much more sure of the dogs' temperaments and are more willing to consider homing them with children.

You probably live at the other end of the country but it proves that it is possible to get a rescue dog if you go to the right places.

suedonim · 01/11/2005 16:23

Hope you get the dog of your dreams, BBB. Our dog definitely won't suit you if you want a larger breed - I'm trying to shrink mine, not make her larger! She's on a diet food from the vet and it works because she thinks it's so disguting she won't eat it unless she's desperate!

at your situation, Expat. It's understandable why landlords stipulate no pets but rather sad all the same.

Ellbell · 02/11/2005 22:21

Badger

We've just adopted a dog from a rescue place. Our dds are 5 and 3. They were certainly cautious about which dogs they thought were suitable for us with children, but they didn't write us off totally. It did help that I've had rescue dogs in the past and was looking for a companion for my old dog after my previous (and even older) dog died last year, so they knew that I was aware of what I was taking on.

Have a look here for rescue centres in your area.

Not all rescue dogs are unknown quantities. My previous dog was a stray, so obviously we didn't know anything about her background at all, and we did have to start house-training her from scratch, she didn't have a clue about walking on a lead, coming back when called, etc. But this latest one was a divorce victim... but had obviously been very much loved and was used to children.

You may have to be prepared to look around a bit to get the right dog, but you should be able to find a centre willing to home to you.

Also, don't discount a slightly older dog. Any dog from a rescue centre will have to adapt to your family and your ways. It's not true that you can't teach an old dog new tricks. Our new dog is about 5 and has learnt masses since we got her.

Good luck.

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