Adopting a rescue...HOW???

[ClayPigeon]

I work 30 hours a week flexibly and can work from home most days around appointments and meetings.
I have three DC, youngest 6.5
I have cats
I am not keen on the big jawed breeds such as staffies

I have trawled every rescue I can find online and check regularly, follow lots of rescues on FB, even friends with local home checkers. I apply for every dog that I think will be suitable but they either don't get back to me or the dog has already been reserved. Are the above reasons why I am finding this so hard? I think we could provide a really good home to a dog but I'm losing heart.

I really wanted to rehome an adult rescue dog but part of me is just thinking we'll be waiting forever and might as well get a puppy. AIBU? If you had similar circumstances to me, just how did you get a rescue dog?

Those are valid points LoverofCake.

I definitely set out to adopt a rescue from the UK but I guess I was totally naive to how difficult it would be. When I first started applying, I was going for older, apparently desperate dogs, some of which were described as in urgent need because they weren't coping in kennels. I was still rejected.

My understanding is that quite a lot of U.K. rescues already have Romanian dogs for adoption. The one I am being home checked for has a beautiful dog that sounds like she could be right for us and she's already being fostered in the uk so hopefully we can meet her before deciding to go ahead.

But yes, I guess it's a risk to get a rescue no matter where they're from and that's why it's important to use a rescue that has backup and advice in place.

I used Dogsblog online to find our rescue. In the end he came from very small rescue in Essex (a long way away from us in the south coast) who had him in their own home for a few weeks so had made a good assessment about his suitability for housing with children, being left for a few hours etc Dogsblog is split into sections so you can view all dogs suitable for homing with children for instance. I'm convinced there is s dog for you in the U.K. I looked into dogs from Cyprus for a while but a reality check and candid chat with someone who homechecks for abroad agencies made me re think. Often the dogs are street, farm dogs or strays and will come with very little experience of even a home environment. That would have been too much for me to take on with young children, busy lifestyle.

I wouldn't change a thing about our rescue. She is just lovely, very placid, great with dc's and you can almost see the relief on her face to be living in a safe, warm home where she'll never get hit again. We visited our dog 3/4 times a week for a month before we rehomed her.
My sister adopted a puppy from abroad, at first he was lovely but as he grew it became apparent he didn't suit living with a family. He started to be very aggressive towards other dogs and after a few weeks would bite the children and not let go. My sister would have to prise his jaws open after he clamped them round my nieces arm, my d niece still has a scar and that was months ago.
She got a well renowned dog trainer round and sadly his advice was she could never predict what the dog was going to do, so the difficult decision was made to take him back to the charity.
The charity refused to listen to my sisters concerns, they insisted this dog was a great family dog and promptly rehomed the dog to another couple with young children.
Really don't want to put a dampener on things but just to be cautious.

I think some of the restrictions made by UK rescues are becoming ridiculous.

I don't have young children and have had dogs all my life including several rescues. I was turned down by Battersea Dogs Home because my dog (a rescue staffie x) ignored the potential match when they met and they felt "she wouldn't bring out the best in the other dog's personality". Meanwhile, they were re-homing dogs without home checks. I re- homed a dog from elsewhere and, although she ignored him for the first week, they are now the best of friends.

Sorry to hijack the thread, but why, why, why would rescues reject people to adopt if they work from home?
I would have thought that was ideal for dog owning?
And why are pensioners allowed to adopt, as they don't go out to work either?

We've got a 7 hour return trip tomorrow to (hopefully) collect our new rescue puppy in similar circumstances. I posted on here recently about foreign rescues but in the end I couldn't do it. The rescue said we could foster initially in case it didn't work out but I couldn't in all consciousness bring a dog into the U.K. to potentially add to the existing foster burden if it didn't work. I'm nervous as hell about whether we've made the right decision (partly because of a few challenges with the breed) but we are all very excited and keeping everything crossed we can bring him home with us tomorrow.

Puppy? Not sure why I said puppy, our rescue dog is 4!

Many of the dogs abroad do come from a home environment but have been dumped for whatever shallow reason. There are also many very young puppies. The vast majority of adoptions from the charity I rescued through are very successful. Key is talking to the rescue organisation and making sure they listen to you when you tell them about your specific circumstances.

Just had the home check. Really not sure if we've passed because at the end she said 'they might want to do a second home check when you've decluttered'. I had to ask what she meant as apart from a shelving unit which is a bit overladen and some bags in one corner waiting to go to the charity shop, I don't think my house is cluttered? There's some half finished decorating that needs doing and my house certainly isn't a show home but didn't think that would work against me.

Really don't know what to do if we fail this

I would have thought not having a show home would be a plus point. Certainly when I was home checked by RGT the lady approved of my slovenly habits and said she could tell I was the sort of person who wouldn't be phased by a bit of mud or dog hair on the carpet.

Me too SoPassRemarkable. I got the feeling it was the first home check she'd done but as I've never had one before, I wasn't sure what to expect either.

Feeling disheartened all over again

Well, I was wrong. We've been approved so just need to choose a suitable dog now. So excited!

Yay, have fun choosing.

loverofcake because the dogs in need of homes and the dogs people want to adopt don't match up in far too many cases! and there are many dogs abroad some rescues think deserve a chance at life so are prepared to fundraiser to bring them here.

Yes there is a desperate need for homes for dogs in U.K., something like 11000 are put down every year because there aren't enough homes to go round, but so many many of these will be the unending stream of bull breeds that have such a bad press and people just don't want to adopt them. There is also the issue of rescues being overly cautious as to who they will accept to adopt dogs, but understandable when one bad decision could put a person in danger of being bitten, and the resulting media storm would end that rescues work, leaving yet more dogs to be helped by the smaller number of rescues left going.
Oh and I have a rescue dog, she's is a total delight, and know hundreds and hundreds of others without issues you seem to think all rescues come with