Animal Adoption. What To Expect And Things To Avoid

Soul

Apr 21

Written By Alice and Sara at FRESH.

Allow me to introduce you to some of the most fantastic dogs you will ever meet…

Animal Adoption. What to Expect and Things to Avoid

Boomer

5 years old
Dogue De Bordeaux X Rottweiler

The ultimate king of chill (unless you’re a squirrel) and a big fan of cuddles.

Maia

1 year old
Border Collie X

Literally the most high energy dog on this earth and filled with love.

Ida

5 months
Golden Retriever X

One of the cutest puppies you’ll ever meet with a craving for treats.

Mako

4 years old
Greyhound

Always wins in races on the beach, likes napping after a nap.

Remy

1 year old
Spanish Mastiff X

A big baby who takes care of his human toddlers and enjoys helping mum with her online exercise classes.

Ziggy

9 months
Mix Breed

Best mate to Ellie the cat, likes the zoomies and occasional overnight stays without the pawrents.

Jean-Luc

1 year old
Shitzu X

A refined gent, enjoys following humans around the house, would prefer to skip bath time.

Django

6 years old
Dalmation

Loves long walks with the family and forceful cuddles at all times.

What do all of these glorious pooches have in common? Every single one of them was rehomed.

A new home

These dogs' back stories are very different to each other with sad tales of beatings, abandonment and neglect, while some were loved and others were simply lost. Most of them now live in harmony with other pets, one of them has become the most wonderful older brother to small children and some of them arrived in their new homes as puppies.

Speaking from experience, we rehomed Boomer when he was 2 and although he had been very well looked after by his previous owner, they admitted they were struggling to give him the life he deserved. When we first met him I was in awe (albeit slightly terrified) of the size of him, his giant head and clumsy paws came bounding up to us, knocking over anything in his midst. There was an instant connection. Over the next few weeks we visited him, walked him and even had him for a sleepover so he could meet Murray, the cat. He was the only dog I’d ever known to walk so perfectly to heal without being told, he played so nicely with every dog he met, he already knew all the commands and he was everyone’s best mate at any pub we took him to. Every time we would hang out with him, Simon and I would say to each other ‘there must be a catch, he can’t be this perfect.’ But he was. And he still is. Yeah okay he malts, his breath smells and his bark is the loudest thing ever but that comes with the territory of being a dog. And it’s exactly what we wanted.

The truth about ‘breeders’

There is a myth around adopting animals, particularly dogs, that you just ‘don’t know what you’re going to get’ and that getting a puppy from a breeder means you can pick the exact dog you want along with all the characteristics that will be most appropriate for your life. Well, I have some news for you… That is absolute rubbish.

Dogs are beautiful, idiotic, smart, playful, unpredictable creatures. Just because you have a certificate from someone that you paid more than your car is worth to farm you a puppy… Nothing is a guarantee. Whether you buy from a ‘breeder’ or rehome from a shelter; dogs can develop illnesses, they can learn bad behaviours, they can just naturally be a bit loopy, they can suffer trauma. No amount of money, family trees or shiny gold stars change that.

Dog breeding has become a BIG money earner in the UK, even more so during the lockdown. With people working at home there has been an increased demand for puppies meaning ‘breeders’ all around the UK rejoiced in rocketing their prices up. You’d be hard pushed to find a dog available for less than £3k right now, that was previously only ‘worth’ £500 pre-COVID. And that’s the bottom end, people are charging crazy money for churning out dogs right now.

Horrifying statistics

So what does this mean for the doggos? Well, of the 800,000 dogs we buy in a non-pandemic year, it is estimated that half of these come from ‘puppy farms’. Yes, that is as hideous as it sounds.

This is how 400,000 dogs each year are bred:

Puppy farms, also known as puppy mills, breed dogs intensively through a factory or battery process.
To avoid expense, unscrupulous breeders will skip the health and genetic screening needed to rear healthy puppies.
Unsold puppies are dumped, returned to the breeding sheds, or killed.
Those that make it have usually been removed from the litter too early, just to experience a long, frightening journey to one or more sale locations.
To produce these large numbers of puppies, breeding mama dogs are used continuously, giving birth to one litter after another, until they break down. They are used as breeding machines until their bodies can’t take any more at which point they are often killed, sometimes inhumanely.
These battery-bred dogs are commonly marketed through classified websites, newspaper adverts or cards on notice boards. They have also been sold in puppy ‘supermarkets’, farms, riding stables and even domestic householders. This means that puppy buyers responding to adverts do not realise they are buying a farmed puppy through a third party agent.
They then meet their buyers in a setting that appears to be a genuine home environment. So what looks like a well reared pet, raised by a family, is actually a puppy that’s been bred and sold in fear.
There will often be a fake ‘mother’ with the litter at the home you visit just to keep up the appearance of it being legit.

So if you’re planning on buying a puppy from a ‘breeder’, you have a 50/50 chance of contributing to the multi-million industry of puppy farming. And you wouldn’t even know it.

A second chance

According to Dog’s Trust, 130,000 dogs arrive at rehoming shelters each year in the UK.

These can be adult dogs that have lost their owners to old age, dogs that have been abandoned amidst a messy break up, dogs that have been given up due to life commitments or a lack of understanding by the previous owners, and even litters of puppies that were a surprise and need urgent care.

When rehoming a dog from a shelter or rescue centre (either in the UK or abroad), you will be adopting it from a group of people who care more for animals than you could ever imagine. They will have treated the pup for whatever ailments it arrived with, nursed it back to health and worked tirelessly to rehabilitate it with humans and other dogs. They will then ensure you are the exact right person for the dog with meetings, calls & house visits. The dog will receive any necessary injections or health care before leaving the shelter and they will continue with after care for both you and your new pet until it’s fully settled.

And guess what, you can get all of that for FREE. Animal shelters ask for a minimal fee towards the aforementioned health checks & any travel that’s needed. You would usually need to pay anything between £50-£300 for your perfect life companion, literally a fraction of the price you would pay a ‘breeder’ for a pup that has been stripped from it’s battered mama at 8 weeks and shipped to a new location.

A lot of UK charities have rules in place around rehoming dogs in a home that has other pets or young children, but there are smaller, local charities that are able to provide more of a personal service to determine if you are the right home for that pooch. There are also a lot of rescue centres abroad, in countries that are rife with stray dogs and animal cruelty, that will happily match a dog to your family with thorough checks to ensure safety for everyone.

What next?

If you are considering getting a dog, I would firstly ask you to consider whether it’s the right thing for you in the long term or if you’ve been swept up in the joy of working from home and having less on at the weekends. Remember a dog is for life, not just for lockdown. Why not get an account on Borrow My Doggy first and get your fix with a cute pup on a daily walk.

Secondly, I would implore you to look into the charities & shelters near you that are jam-packed with loving doggies that need an equally loving home. Do your research, speak to the organisations, let them know any concerns, chat with other people who have adopted to find out about their experiences.

Rehoming an animal is not only one of the most rewarding things you can do, it’s also one of the most joyous, life-changing experiences. You will be gifted with a new member of the family complete with their own quirks and an undying, unconditional love for you every damn day.

If you have any questions about rehoming a dog, give us a shout or get in touch with any of the organisations linked below!

Sara xx

LINKS

https://www.dogsblog.com/

https://www.dogstrust.org.uk/

https://www.rspca.org.uk/

ABROAD

https://spdc.org.uk/

https://amiciidogrescue.org.uk/