Looking to adopt a dog in Madison... (Wausau, Dane: fit in, for sale)

[mommyntheoc]

We looked at the local rescues, but seemingly none of them want to adopt to families with kids.

We looked at the humane society, same deal - the only dogs they will adopt to families with kids are PITBULLS *slaps forehead*, not miniature poodles. Go figure.

We've placed an ad on Craigslist and searched the postings daily, but it seems all the dogs are "for sale" and not for adoption - every owner wants $200-400+.

We just want to find a small dog that's a good match for our family and we're a good match for them, preferably from someone who can't take care of them due to job loss or health circumstances. It doesn't seem like it would be a difficult task, looking outside of WI - it seems relatively available - but we cannot seem to find a dog in Madison (or nearby).

So my question to you...we refuse to support a breeder, so where other than the rescues, shelters, and craigslist can we look for a dog that needs a good home? (preferrably not a puppy) Are there newspaper around here that have sections for this type of adoption??? Thanks for any input!!

[RemiJP]

Originally Posted by mommyntheoc

We looked at the local rescues, but seemingly none of them want to adopt to families with kids.

We looked at the humane society, same deal - the only dogs they will adopt to families with kids are PITBULLS *slaps forehead*, not miniature poodles. Go figure.

We've placed an ad on Craigslist and searched the postings daily, but it seems all the dogs are "for sale" and not for adoption - every owner wants $200-400+.

We just want to find a small dog that's a good match for our family and we're a good match for them, preferably from someone who can't take care of them due to job loss or health circumstances. It doesn't seem like it would be a difficult task, looking outside of WI - it seems relatively available - but we cannot seem to find a dog in Madison (or nearby).

So my question to you...we refuse to support a breeder, so where other than the rescues, shelters, and craigslist can we look for a dog that needs a good home? (preferrably not a puppy) Are there newspaper around here that have sections for this type of adoption??? Thanks for any input!!

I searched for a very long time before finding the right dog for us. I have heard that some of the smaller breeds in shelters aren't great with kids as they can be more fearful/nippy, whereas larger breeds sometimes have the tendency to be lazy and calm. Though with patience and forming a good relationship with shelter volunteers, I'm sure you can find the perfect small dog! We don't have kids, but have lots of little ones in our neighborhood so finding a kid-friendly dog was very important to us. We ended up adopting from Green County Humane after months of searching on petfinder.com, but I was also really impressed with Shelter From The Storm. They are frequently at PetSmart on Saturdays, doing meet and greets with adoptable dogs. They seem to have a wide range of different breeds and many of the dogs are in foster homes, frequently with children of all ages. The foster parents are excellent informants about the dogs' personalities. The volunteers at SFTS are usually pre-teens/teens. Other shelters like Dane County and Green County have children/teen volunteer programs, so maybe you can specify that you want a small dog who has been involved in that kind of program?

[ranger17]

We have adopted the last 2 dogs we've had; both of which were great experiences and both blended into our family almost immediately. Last time we wanted to get a golden retriever and found a 'golden' rescue group at the local pet store there. From our online searches, there seemed to be breed specific rescue groups for many types out there, and others that helped any dog regardless of bloodline.
As noted before, the Pet chain stores do allow rescue groups to 'show' in their stores and would be a good place to start. The various groups we've talked to didn't have issues with adopting out to a home with kids, they just take into account the ages of the children and work to make sure the right dog is placed for that home. A benefit to working with a rescue group, is that many will first foster the dog before putting up for adoption. It's a great way to learn of any odd tendencies they may have, or things you as the new owner would need to work on. Good luck, glad to hear you support shelters and those who work so hard to help out dogs ( and cats ).
You will likely find puppies are harder to find, "teens" or adult dogs easier; the golden we adopted was about 6 at the time, and lived with us for another 7 yrs until recently when it was just her "time to go". Note a shelter or group may well ask for a fee or a donation, but that never bothered us any. After all, the dogs were checked out and treated, you had some solid info on their background/needs, and you're helping out a group that in turn can then help another animal in need.

[Megan1967]

Having *extensive* experience with cat rescue and more than typical experience with dog rescue I will tell you that they are very careful about how and where they place their furry wards. It isn't anything personal, but they usually invest a lot of time and emotion into getting these animals ready to go to a new home and they want this to be the animals final home, not just another in a series of homes. They tend to shy away from kids because so many kids are so ill trained or supervised around animals. If you can demonstrate that your kids have a healthy respect for and understanding of how to handle dogs you will have a much better shot.

Little dogs are not necessarily a great match with children. They are much easier to injure because of their size and children don't always appreciate how easily they can be hurt. They sometimes view them as animated stuffed animals. A bigger dog can take more "wear and tear" than a smaller dog who may nip if he or she is inadvertently hurt.

Regarding adoption fees... Rescues often charge as much as a breeder's "pet" rate because, even if they don't have to spay/neuter it, get it shots, etc, the next dog might require a $2000 surgery. Trust me - they ain't making money on the deal, they usually break about even if they are *very* careful with their money.

[mommyntheoc]

Our kids are VERY calm and well mannered, and ALWAYS supervised...but for the record, Dane County does NOT take that into account at all for "firm" recommendations.

However, we were able to find several families on craigslist who needed to find a new home for their dogs. We met with them in our home and were able to see which animals preferred us and would work well in our home. It was great meeting them in home to see how they reacted to a new environment and people (and these are never been caged animals).

Anyways, we were looking for an older adult dog, but the personality of a puppy actually stood out more with us - he is 9 months old but fit in so well in our home! He loved the kids and they really enjoyed playing together, and then he really enjoyed snuggling up to me too. The best part is that I don't feel like we've bought a life...but saved one by giving them a better existence! Thanks for your input everyone!!

P.S. Wonder if anyone on here has researched into non-profits who bid on puppy mill leftovers so they can turn around and make a profit with their "rehoming fee" before they have even provided medical care (as the pups are too young to spay, shots, etc). Seems pretty common practice and very disturbing, but little known. I ran into several shelters around WI that do this...not cool.

[Megan1967]

I wasn't saying your children are ill behaved, I sort of had the feeling they *are* well behaved from your other posts. I just said that if you are able to show rescue workers this fact they often calm down re: the child issue.

Rescues "rescue" animals from pupppy mills in a misguided effort (in my opinion). I don't think most are trying to make a buck - usually puppy mill animals are very sick. They've been bred almost to death and the females bodies have been so depleted of nutrients that their teeth alone cost hundreds of dollars to clean up (most are pulled). Rescue workers think they are helping the animals (and they *are* helping the individual animal) but in reality they are just supporting the puppy millers. They get that last dime out of animals they consider "used up." Other than a "rescue" I mention below, the only times I've heard of rescues getting actual puppies is when the police remove them when they close down the mill.

A good rescue will treat animals with any curable medical needs (Heartworm, bad teeth, diabetes, ringworm, operable cancer, gun shot wounds, chemical burns - you wouldn't believe what I've seen) neuter, do basic parasite testing, and give the animals age appropriate shots. Like I said, one animal may only need to be fed and housed, but another might require $1500 worth of surgery.

There is also the transportation costs. I've driven all the way to Indiana to take a corgi to a foster home in Wausau, WI. I donated the gas and millage, but not everyone can afford to. People have to be reimbursed for these costs.

Just because a group claims to be a rescue doesn't mean they are, however-checkout "Sage and Thyme Ranch." It was a travesty and worst yet, they had a county contract as the official animal control officers.

[mommyntheoc]

We found a dog to adopt, he is supposed to be brought over tonight for our adoption finalization! We're all very excited, and it is so wonderful to be able to help out another family who has just been unable to take care of their little furry family member in these tough times...win-win on all parts!