somewhat O/T but also related (and it has me really fired up)
Submitted by Shannon and Winston on January 27, 2012 - 12:37pmOk, as most of you know I'm a rescue volunteer. I've participated in most aspects of volunteer work at this point. I know the good and the bad side of volunteering for rescue. And, I know the ins and outs about applying to adopt a bully from rescue on both sides of the fence. My first experience with rescue was when I applied, went through the whole process and eventually adopted Winston. Now, I'm on the other side asking the questions.
I take offense to the broad strokes used in this article to describe rescues. It's offensive at best, and at worst it supports the idea that it's impossible to adopt from rescue and you're better off just buying from a "breeder." I normally really like Emily Yoffe's writing, but this is almost enough to turn me away completely.
I don't have the energy (or the desire) to argue each of her points, but I find her assumptions and vague references cliché. I will concede that there ARE some crazy people in rescues (and probably some crazy groups) but this sort of mentality (from a "public" figure with a very public platform) undermines ALL rescues. It also undermines the fact that people need to RESEARCH before they bring any animal home. And, additionally I think she undermines the importance of picking a true and ethical breeder versus just finding someone who has a puppy for sale...
I am truly disgusted right now.
I think it might be wise for us (as a group) to come up with some pretty straight forward response to some of the accusations lobbed at rescues in this article.
Shannon and Winston :)
My swimming bully buddy!
You know, like you said, I
You know, like you said, I know there are some bad people out there doing rescue and even some bad organizations doing it, but ignorantly writting articles like that one aren't doing homeless animals any favors. (this is why I hate the media but that's another topic altogether) A little common sense will tell you there is a reason why rescues ask so many questions and have the restrictions they have: because they dont want the animals they place ending up back in the shelter or rescue again! So many people will adopt an animal without taking the time to research the breed traits and without giving any serious thought to whether or not they are capable of meeting the animal's needs. While I do support responsible breeders (without them we would have no purebred dogs), I very much support rescue as well. Without them, so many more animals would die needlessly in shelters. Ok done ranting now.
well as a person who rescues i agree with many of the
statements made in the aritcle...i know a bulldog rescue group...refuses if you smoke please....i agree to fenced pool areas....but i know people who have been refused becasue they live near a pond.....my pond is 25 ft from my house....but i have it fenced .....some have been refused becasue they work more than 8 hrs.....i have rescued bulldogs own my own business and gone sometimes 10 or 12 hrs...but i have a set sitter go and clean up the crew......so i have seen both sides.....where to do draw the line i think more rescues have to have more common sense....and people should not lie when they apply for a rescue.....the bulldog is a great apartment dog...and this should not deter a rescue from adopting out to one....
so i have seen both sides....the good the bad the ugly....i dont disagree 100% with the article but dont fully agree with it either.....
After a home visit, I was turned down for a cat.
The person that interviewed me said she had 13 cats at her home. Since then I adopted two bulldogs including Quincy and I picked-up a stray cat in Phila. that's now 12 years old.
I don't know what the interviewer was looking for, maybe she didn't like the fact that I had a dog.
Same here
I was turned down for a cat (and I was looking at an older cat that had been at the shelter for a long time). The reason they gave was that I had intact dogs (I breed and show my Bulldogs). My response was that the last time I was in a Biology class - I was taught that dogs and cats couldn't interbreed! Since then I got a cat from a breeder friend, and Dusty is a great addition to our home.
I've also done Bulldog Rescue and home visits and interviews - you see it all.
I would never qualify
for a rescue. We do not have a fenced in yard--the dogs do like to sun on the porch so they are attached to the house (via a leash)--we both work full time and we have cats. Ozzy and Jax (along with Max and Skatte) are the loves of our lives--they are spoiled, pampered and well taken care of. Any time a medical issue has come up, it is taken care of. Ozzy had entropian and cherry eye that Tufts corrected, Jax just had his luxating patella fixed at Tufts and I have to pick up the cat on my way home--he had a urinary blockage that needed catherazation. (its been an expensive couple of months)
I have seen good rescue's but unfortuately the bad ones get all the press and there are a lot of them. There has to be some middle ground and I think that was the authors point.
Just some thoughts
Lyn
IMO, I actually think you would qualify...
A lot of the questions "probing" (at least done by the group I volunteer for) is done more to really try to get a good idea of WHO these people are and if they really are going to give a great home to one of our bullies. We don't try to "trap" people like the article said, but we do ask a lot of questions...you'd be amazed how many people apply to adopt because they think this is the "cheap way" to get a bully...
That being said, I also agree that there has to be middle ground. Like Nakina said...we're doing this for the dogs, not the people. We try to get to know the families that are applying to find a dog with the right personality and temperament to fit into their lives and household. We aren't going to put a high strung, nippy bully in a house with small children...nor are we going to put a super lazy and unsocial bully with a family that's active and has a lot going on...
Shannon and Winston :)
My swimming bully buddy!
Wow
You can feel the underlying tone of anger in her article. I can understand why the rescues are the way they are. I think one person jumping on a couple of kids about a stick shouldn't be representative of all rescuers. But we have a cat and 2 small children and from our point of view, I would be a little hesitant to bring a rescue in without fully knowing what kind of life the dog had prior to us. And from the rescuers point of view, they don't want a dog to be placed in a home where it could potentially be returned because it had issues with the cat or kids. So I completely understand why there are alot of questions. I think this woman forgot that the rescue is there for the animals and not for the people wanting a cheap and easy way to get a pet.
Nakina