| Q. | How does your adoption process work? |
| A. | PLEASE take a few moments to read the following explanation of our adoption policies and the steps that make up the process.You may be surprised to find that adopting an animal is a more involved process than you expected, or that it means you can’t have immediate access to an animal you are interested in. Therefore, it’s important to understand two things: 1) the process is the same for every-one, and 2) it’s not our intent to frustrate you. Rather, everything we do is for the best interests of the animals in our care, and is aimed at giving them the best possible chance of finding a permanent home. Our website is not meant to be viewed as a catalog.Yes, you may like the look of a particular dog, but that does not necessarily mean that the dog’s personality is a match for your family or lifestyle. Our adoption success rate is quite high and we are quite proud of our program and its standards. This is because our main concern is finding happy endings for the dogs in our program.HERE ARE THE STEPS YOU’LL GO THROUGH IN THE ADOPTION PROCESS: Before you can adopt any animal, we ask you to complete an adoption application. Our process includes asking questions, asking to see proof of identity and, frequently, asking for veterinary references, particularly when you have other animals at home. This is simply to protect the health of adoption candidates and the pets you already have. Once all the paperwork has been submitted, it will be reviewed by one of our volunteers. We will contact you to clarify any questions we may have and assist in setting up an appointment at a volunteer’s home or be invited to an adoption event where a knowledgeable member of our volunteer staff will be available to answer questions about behavior, training, veterinary care, how to deal with introductions to current pets, and anything else you can think of. You will be asked to sign an adoption contract and pay an adoption fee. This fee covers spaying or neutering, veterinary care, deworming, vaccines, food, and other items your pet has received while in our care. PLEASE NOTE: We cannot hold animals for anyone. Unfortunately, because of the tremendous demands on our foster homes, all adoptions must be done on a first-come, first-served basis, and the first good, properly-qualified prospective home will get the pet. LET US REPEAT: We don’t ever mean to be frustrating to or evasive with you. We want you to understand that it’s stressful and upsetting-in fact, downright devastating – for the animals, for our volunteers, and most importantly, for you when adoptions don’t work out and pets have to come back to us. And a bad adoption experience can sour some people on shelter animals — for life. So try to bear with us and be patient. Understand that going through the process the way we do really is the best policy – for all of us. |
| Q. | What is your adoption fee for Puppies / Dogs? And what does it include? |
| A. | Our adoption fee of $400 includes:
*** re spaying/neutering: in cases where our vet deems this not feasible or on smaller / younger puppies, we will have you sign a contract to complete this procedure within a specified time period. When that happens we reduce the adoption fee by the cost of the surgery based on a Friends of Animals spay/neuter certificate. The adoption fee for these puppies will be $325. You can order a low cost s/n certificate directly though Friends of Animals at http://www.friendsofanimals.org or choose to pay the additional fees and use a vet that you are comfortable with. FOA certificates are not accepted at all vets and a list of participating vets is on their website. We are not related to Friends of Animals. All vaccinations and medical care after adoption become the responsibility of the adoptive family. |
| Q. | I sent in my application a few days ago and have not heard back yet when can I expect an email? |
| A. | In most cases you will get an email within a day. If you have spam blocking on your e-mail account, this would usually be the problem as we find that our mail sometimes gets lost there. You could try shutting it off and sending in a new application. |
| Q. | I see a dog on your website that I want to adopt, how can I meet it? |
| A. | The first step is to fill in an adoption application so that a volunteer can work with you directly to set up an appointment. |
| Q. | Can’t I just talk to someone before filling in an application? |
| A. | PawSafe’s Volunteers have made a commitment to ensure that the animals we place will be in their new home for life. This is why we ask that applicants complete an application form prior to speaking with an adoption coordinator. |
| Q. | I am just in love with a certain puppy on your website. Will you place him/her on hold for me? |
| A. | Please plan on meeting the animal you are interested in adopting. Although the pictures and descriptions may show the “perfect” pet for you – nothing replaces an actual meeting!! You can NOT place an animal on hold. This is unfair to both the animal and other potential adopters. |
| Q. | Where can I go to meet all the dogs at one time? |
| A. | PawSafe is run via a network of volunteers who take animals into their own homes in addition to holding adoption events at Tractor Supply and Holiday Tyme Pet Hotel in Patterson NY as well as various other pet supply stores. There is no central location for you to meet all the animals at once. Adoptions and surrenders are by appointment only. |
| Q. | How long does it take from when I submit my application to being able to adopt? |
| A. | That depends. We are a small group of volunteers and try our best to respond in with a day – if not hours! The more information you take the time to give us in your adoption application, the faster we can approve you for adoption. Normally the process is completed within 24 hours to several days at most! |
| Q. | What forms of payment can you accept? |
| A. | The adoption fee is payable in cash or check only. There is a $25 dollar charge for bounced checks |
| Q. | I am coming to meet a dog that you have for adoption. If I like him/her will you hold it for a few days while I get supplies or go on vacation? |
| A. | Adopters should be prepared to take their new puppy home at the time of adoption!! We are a small rescue. We CANNOT hold your dog for you while you go on vacation or prepare the house for your new family member. This should be done before you come to adopt a dog. Please understand, if we did that, we would save far less dogs because of a lack of space or resources. Thank You. |
| Q. | I have already filled in an application and been approved – now I see a dog I want to meet. How can I set that up? |
| A. | Just send an email to adoptions@pawsafe.org |
Adoption Q&A
PawSafe Animal Rescue
Copyright © 2013 All Rights Reserved
Copyright © 2013 All Rights Reserved