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Original poster

Many Tears?

19 replies

JohnCusacksWife · 04/06/2015 14:19

We have a beautiful cross breed boy who came to us from our local SSPCA dog home 15 yrs ago. Sadly he is now beginning to fail and I doubt he will be with us much longer. I couldn't be without a dog and would prefer to rescue another cross breed when he is no longer with us. Our local shelters (scottish central belt) seem to have very few dogs of the type we would prefer (mutt/heinz/mixture) but I have come across the website of Many Tears in Wales which seems to have (sadly) many dogs that might fit the bill for us.

Does anyone have any experience of them? Are their descriptions reliable etc? We live a lonnnng way away so would be unable to check it out in person prior to travelling down to collect any dog, were we lucky enough to be accepted by them. Any first hand experiences, or advice about any similar shelters elsewhere in the country, would be much appreciated.

I'm so hoping we won't be in the position of having to get a new dog too soon but want to begin to do my research now. Thanks so much.

OP posts:
AddictedtoGreys · 04/06/2015 15:28

I will PM you

Scuttlebutter · 04/06/2015 17:55

MT act as the end of the pipe for a lot of puppy farm dogs, so they have lots of the breeds popular among PFs. So plenty of Bichons, and other similar small breeds. Be aware though that they often do have some behavioural issues due to the horrendous conditions they've been kept in, though to be fair to MT, this is always spelled out.

They also bring dogs over from Irish pounds.

They have a national network of foster carers.

Be aware that they insist on early neutering - something that is now being questioned on health grounds. Dogs are neutered on site and travel long distances the same day to go to foster carers - not best practice. They are also the only rehoming organisation that charges for behavioural follow up advice.

They are a very big organisation (upwards of 2000 dogs rehomed each year) - probably only Battersea is a bigger individual rescue.

Movingonmymind · 04/06/2015 19:29

I've been looking at them. No direct experience but their descriptions state best to rehome with another resident dog so new dog can learn. Didnt want responsibility of that or to necessarily have 2 dogs.

Original poster
JohnCusacksWife · 04/06/2015 19:41

I'm not interested in "breed" so would be unlikely to pick a dog from a puppy farm background. I just want a mutt, which seems to be increasingly difficult these days. The fact they have dogs from Ireland/Portugal was what drew me to them. That seems to be the only way to get a Heinz57 these days! Not all of their dogs, as far as I can see, need to go to a home with another dog.

Are there any other rescue centres anyone knows of which I might also look at?

OP posts:
Scuttlebutter · 04/06/2015 22:50

If you are looking for a crossbreed, have you considered a small lurcher? You could try EGLR or Hounds First - both operate nationwide and often have small lurchers.

BurningBridges · 04/06/2015 22:59

I'm about to get a rescue from Romania, there are lots of charities taking Eastern European dogs and bringing them over, but I was also interested to come across this one: www.blackretrieverx.co.uk/Black_Retriever_X_Rescue/Home.html

Beautiful dogs, I've seen on Facebook they've sent dogs to Scotland previously. When I was looking to rehome a dog I "liked" one rescue centre on Facebook and then loads came up all over UK in a line of "suggestions", I liked them all and then started to get posts from them so I could see what dogs were available/where they were going etc.

Many Tears is not for everyone, and I know they sometimes attract criticism - my friend has a dog from there she is delighted with but then she lives in Wales - if you are local the relationship is much easier to manage.

let us know how you get on with your search?

Bubble2bubble · 05/06/2015 09:34

this site can be useful if you are looking for a rescue

Original poster
JohnCusacksWife · 05/06/2015 09:46

Thanks all.

The only rescues near us seem to be dominated by Staffies, which aren't the dog for us, or won't re-home to homes with younger children so they're out.

I'm getting the vibe that Many Tears is not popular with some because they take dogs from puppy farms. Perhaps I'm naive but if they didn't wouldn't the outcome be so much worse for those dogs?

It's heartening that there seem to be so few unwanted cross breeds but that leaves people like me looking for a dog having to go down the pedigree/breeder route and I am really not keen on that at all.

OP posts:
FiveHoursSleep · 05/06/2015 10:02

We almost adopted from MT and wanted to go and meet a puppy, and introduce our existing dog to her to see if they got on.
When I spoke to the fosterer, I was told the puppy would be reserved for us and we would be expected to take it when we visited but could always return it if it didn't fit in with our family.
I felt uncomfortable with this so we didn't go and visit ( was a couple of hours away from us) and went back to the rescue we had got our previous dog from. They encouraged us to visit a few dogs and let our boy meet them too before making a decision. We like mutts and they take them from the Irish Pounds.
I know they have rehomed some in Scotland if you want to have a look.
www.heathlands.org.uk/

tabulahrasa · 05/06/2015 12:41

"I'm getting the vibe that Many Tears is not popular with some because they take dogs from puppy farms. Perhaps I'm naive but if they didn't wouldn't the outcome be so much worse for those dogs?"

Yes, but...in a way they're almost supporting puppy farms by providing them with an easy way of getting rid of the unwanted ones without doing anything to actually help stop puppy farmers.

Personally I can see why they do that, but I also understand why some people aren't entirely happy with it.

Floralnomad · 05/06/2015 15:17

I always thought that the anti MT thing was due to having to pay for behavioural support after you have adopted and should you have any problems , frankly this seems reasonable to me as there is only so much money to be had and surely it's better spent on the dogs that need rescue .

hellhasnofurylikeahungrywoman · 05/06/2015 16:58

I have a dog from Many Tears and a dog from Heathlands.

Our MT dog was 8 weeks old when we collected her, she was chipped, vaccinated (first jab), treated for fleas and worms. We spoke to them about neutering and they do say on the website that they want it carried out at six months of age but they will accept a letter from your vet saying that neutering is being delayed (our girl is just over a year old now and is being neutered at the end of June which will be three months post her first season) but to be honest they haven't even contacted us to see if she has been spayed. They do not help with the costs neutering or the second vaccination. Her microchip is registered to us.

We adopted a boy from Heathlands on Sunday. It generally felt less pressured than the MT route, the first Heathlands dog we met wasn't suitable for our family but they contacted us with suggestions of another dog that might be suitable. The second dog we met was right for us, Heathlands neutered him before he came home and would've covered the cost of his second booster. Our Heathlands dog is chipped but the chip remains registered to Heathlands and you sign to say that if your dog needs to be rehomed for any reason then you will contact Heathlands. They also give you the name and contact number for a behaviourist should you need one.

I must say that so far, I prefer Heathlands.

hellhasnofurylikeahungrywoman · 05/06/2015 17:00

The collie is our Many Tears girl, the spaniel is our Heathlands boy (he is an Irish rescue)

Many Tears?
Many Tears?
Original poster
JohnCusacksWife · 05/06/2015 17:06

Thanks, hell. Do you know why they insist the microchip remains registered to them? That would worry me...as if the dog's not really yours?

OP posts:
hellhasnofurylikeahungrywoman · 05/06/2015 17:26

I think Heathlands consider they have a responsibility to the dog for the rest of its life. I know one of their dogs went missing on a walk here recently and the new owners were beside themselves and notified everybody, the dog was found and returned to the new owner as everyone was satisfied that it was simply a case of a dog becoming lost rather than an abandonment.

hellhasnofurylikeahungrywoman · 05/06/2015 17:27

They are hoping to dual register their dogs soon as the rules around microchipping change in April 2016.

FiveHoursSleep · 05/06/2015 20:25

Both my dogs are still registered to Heathlands and it's not bothered me.I have paperwork saying I've adopted the dogs and it's good to know that if something happened to me ( say our whole family was wiped out) then Heathlands would take the dogs back and find homes for them.
They really are a lovely rescue and it's worth checking their pages once a week, or liking their FB page, to see what they have.
Here are our two Heathland dogs

Many Tears?
Many Tears?
Original poster
JohnCusacksWife · 05/06/2015 23:18

Gorgeous dogs! Thanks for the input.

My poor boy's not been good the last day or too. I'm going to forget rescues and concentrate on him for the next wee while.

OP posts:
FiveHoursSleep · 05/06/2015 23:52

Enjoy the time you have with your old boy. I hope it's good quality time and you don't have to think about replacements too soon.

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