We have a phone appointment with an overseas rescue :)

[CloseYourEyesAndSee]

I'm very excited!
it's a reputable rescue - I have a friend who has adopted through them and now volunteers for them. DS has wanted a dog forever but I WOH so couldn't. DP has semi moved in and he also wants a dog so a dog we are getting :)
DP has had dogs and I have when I was a child and teen. I have a cat so that's something that will need to be managed. DP is self employed and his office is close to fields so he will walk the dog during breaks.
I will be asking for lots of advice here I'm sure but for now does anyone have anything they think I need to think about??

He wants a dog but it’ll live with you? That’s nonsensical.
And a rescue won’t just wander into an office and be happy there all day.
I know one or two success stories. But most rescues from overseas I meet have major issues. Around food. Or other dogs. Resource guarding or not being used fo a house.

Absolutely this, most of them are feral or offspring of feral dogs, they are not meant to be pets.

And I dont know what people are going on about the partner for, whethe rhe has moved in or not is irrelevant.

This is my gorgeous Romanian rescue right now. We've only had him a few months after his last house here didn't work out for him. We have two other dogs and he's still not too happy being near them in the house but they're best of friends going for walks together and they're slowly getting used to each other in the house. He's the most loving and affectionate dog with us (DH, me, 2 teens) and he loves other people too.

One thing we didn't consider is that he doesn't like toys as obviously he's not grown up used to anything like that on the streets. The other two dogs have the biggest toy box you've ever seen but they like soft toys and not balls. I was thinking this time I might get to go play fetch but it's not to be.

He also bolts if he's not on his harness and lead, and recall so far has been iffy at best. We keep him on a long lead at all times now to be on the safe side (so he can get some space to roam when we're in a park or at the beach) but he walks so nicely on the lead, he's a dream to walk compared to our other dogs.

And I dont know what people are going on about the partner for, whethe rhe has moved in or not is irrelevant.'

It's not irrelevant at all.

OP has said the reason she didn't get a dog before is because she works out of the house - so if her partner (who will be doing the vast majority of the care if he's taking it to work) doesn't even live with her, I suspect he rescue won't be very impressed.

Lots of people have dogs and work, they get doggy day care or dog sitters or do walkers

I'm not sure what you aren't getting about our situation!
we have been together ages, we are engaged, but he has his own place (very low outgoings) which he keeps and stays in 2 nights a week. The rest of the time he is here with me in my place. We are happy with this, and don't plan on changing it. He will be with the dog most of the time. The only times he isn't here are during those two nights and during the day on Saturday when he is with his kids. Once the dog is settled he will likely take the dog out with his kids but we wouldn't do that immediately as it would be too much.
does that make sense? There is nothing 'nonsensical' about it as far as I can see!

I've explained our living situation several times. I know it's unconventional to keep two homes but I assure you he's here the majority of the time and when he won't be, I will be.
I've also explained the situation to the rescue and they seem to understand it perfectly well!

It's not a normal office! Without giving every detail of the set up and making myself totally identifiable on here, it's a unit that he owns where he is the only person working, he sets his own hours and can take breaks whenever he wants/needs and it has outdoor space both attached to the office and also very close by where he can walk and exercise the dog several times during the day. It's not an actual 'office'.

What a handsome chappy :)

She's beautiful :) thanks for sharing

OK I may be being a bit dim here ( I have 3 dogs from a reputable breeder who asked lots of questions for each ) - but what is it that means the UK homes including Battersea will not let you adopt a dog from them?

What a lovely little face! My DS is looking forward to walking the dog so much, but we would use a long lead in the park. We do live near a beach so I hope the dog likes water :D

Thanks!
there should be no need for this as between us we can have the dog with us at all times. The dog will have more fun with DP as he works less than me and can take the dog out more, my work day is fairly non stop so the dog would be just out in the garden for wees with walks before and after work whereas with DP they would get more play and walks during the day.

The fact that I have a cat and a young teenager rules us out.

Battersea was one I applied to.

I work from home, have a teen not a younger child, have a secure garden... was willing to take any age, and consider any behavioral/ medical issues on a case by case basis. Have owned dogs before.

I didn't even get turned down, just an automated reply saying they will be in touch if they decided to proceed with my application.

It is not easy to adopt from UK rescues.

Your poor cat. Where does she come in all this?

We have two Hungarian rescues, they came to us about 2 months apart and are inseparable. You will probably find house training is hard work, these two were kept in cages for breeding. So you need to aware that they will piss all over your beautiful house . Also they may not have heard noises like a hoover or tv and also struggle with the heat in your house if they've lived outside.
They can take a while to decrompress esp if they travelled a long way to get to you so you need to let them be in the beginning.
It's hard work but our two are good fun and very affectionate with us and each other. We also have a cat but he's v dog savvy and we keep him apart from them.
One thing we were told when they first came was to feed them the cheapest food u can find, they are used to eating scraps so if you feed them food that's too rich it will make them very sick. Our two passed straw in their poo for a few days. So introduce quality food slowly. Tins of butcher food is very good for them in the beginning.
Good luck, you are doing an amazing thing

Great ideal. Let's encourage more people to make money from breeding dogs when there are already thousands needing a home ! Wake up

Thousands needing a home but rescues not letting people take them here. What a crazy situation?!

Let's encourage more people to make money from breeding dogs when there are already thousands needing a home !

It's almost impossible to rescue a dog in this country if you have any other animals, children or a job.

DH and I applied to numerous rescues and were told a flat "no". The reasons for turning us down were that our garden was two small, we had two cats and we both worked.

They totally ignored the fact that I'd be home two days a week and that we had dog care set up for the other three (family - not daycare or kennels) where our dog would be doted on all day. They also ignored the fact that both our cats had lived with dogs before in their previous homes, and that we lived in the bloody Lake District so we had miles and miles of walks on our doorstep.

We ended up getting a puppy 🤷🏻‍♀️

@collieresponder88 yawn.

We had a very poor experience of an overseas rescue (as did many of the adopters of the same litter) but have friends for whom it worked out well.

Having said that, have you only approached the “big” rescues, or have you tried smaller local ones? Our two local rescues are very flexible with rehoming and are bursting at the seams. I’m almost certain you would have better luck with a local rescue. Depending on where you are in the country I can point you towards a couple.

Having a cat won’t rule you out from all rescues.
It is relevant how you plan to split care. A rescue from abroad needs stability and consistency. A safe space. One. Where it can decompress and adjust. You’re not able to offer that.
It is lovely to hear positive stories. But there are far far more where overseas rescues come with baggage (or even diseases) It isn’t something I would do.

This is a big problem with U.K. rescues :(

My cat is being considered! Lots of people have dogs with cats.