This is the part no one ever wants to talk about. The death, the abuse, the neglect, the torture. It's all the ugly stuff, but it's something you've got to deal with in rescue.
We have some REALLY bad people in the rural parts of Tennessee. I'm not sure why there are so many and why they seem to be concentrated in one state. Maybe it's something in the way they were raised; who knows.
We have hoarders and breeders that call themselves rescues. We have people who enjoy torturing and killing pets that call themselves loving pet owners. We have counties that support these kinds of people and refuse to prosecute violations of the law that pertain to animals, and yet they'll threaten to throw a true rescue in jail in a heartbeat if they can spin anything to make you look guilty.
As a former member of a wonderful law enforcement agency in SW FL with co-workers that adored animals and fought for their safety and well being on a daily basis, it's hard for me to see such sickness and corruption in the agencies here. But it exists.
The point to this is to let you know that while no one that loves animals ever wants to see one die, there are much worse things than an animal being humanely euthanized. While you'll hear a lot of groups having hissy fits over heart sticking euthanasia, what they don't tell you, because they probably don't know themselves, is that when it's done according to state law it's actually VERY humane. I'll explain...........
There are two commonly used forms of euthanasia; IV and heartstick.
IV involves finding a vein in the animal, putting in the needle and then pushing the medications that stop the heart.
Heartstick requires the pet to be completely sedated and while unconscious, a needle with euthanasia drugs is inserted into the heart and injected.
Both forms are done humanely with very little trauma to the animal. The trauma and stress that an animal goes through during euthanasia comes from the fear of the unknown, the fear of the people restraining it, and picking up on any stress the humans are under. The death is quick and generally uneventful and peaceful.
The reason heartstick gets a bad name is there are some people that choose to inject the medication into the heart without sedating the pet first. We had one shelter in TN shut down and a vet's license taken because he was doing this. So, heartstick itself isn't an evil or cruel practice if done properly.
The other ugly part of rescue here is you're going to see the abuse, the neglect, the torture and you're going to see the rural counties in most areas not only refuse to do anything about it, but refuse to acknowledge that it exists and flat out lie about it, even when it's done by their own employees. This video will probably be one of the most difficult things you'll ever watch, but if you want to save lives, you need to see the other ugly, dirty side too. If you need to pause it and walk away, do so, but come back and finish watching it. If you can't handle the terrible things that happen on film, you'll never be able to change them in real life.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YQyAY-cWvLU
Tuesday, January 28, 2014
Section Nine: Your adopters
Once you're set up on line you'll start getting people interested in your pets. I highly recommend setting up your adoption application on a website called EmailMeForm. Here is a copy of ours on there: http://www.emailmeform.com/builder/form/T733uinf5fhglob
The website is free and you can configure all kinds of applications and forms on there. We also have our rescue partnership form on there. It's a great site. If you add the link to your application on every single pet you place on line for adoption, people will be able to fill the form out and it gets emailed right to you automatically. Much easier and less time consuming than them emailing you and asking if the pet is still for adoption and then asking you to send the application, etc. It just streamlines it for you, and it also logs every single application. You'll be able to log on, pull each application and make notes directly on it as you call to confirm references and such. It makes tracking applicants easy!
Ok, so you just got an application in your email. Now what?
One of the first things I always did was confirm the vet reference. To be approved to adopt from us every single pet you have and have had for the last five years MUST have been spayed / neutered. Rabies must be current per state law and the combo vaccine can be no more than five years old. So obviously that call to the vet is first. When you call their vet, tell them your name and the rescue you're calling from and that their client has listed them as a veterinary reference on an adoption application for a foster pet in your rescue. Ask if they're showing them in their system and if so if their pet(s) are spayed / neutered, current on vaccines, and if they've kept them on preventatives and such. A vet can give you a good idea of how good a pet owner is based on whether or not they even need to go pull a file. There is nothing that makes me happier than a vet office staffer say 'oh my gosh, they're wonderful' without needing to dig through paperwork to check.
These are really the basic criteria for vet reference checks. There are a lot of rescues that go a lot further. They want to know if they've had heartworm tests every year, if they purchase their preventatives from the vet, and some even go as far as asking if the patient has a balance on their account. This is where you've got to decide how far you want to grill an adopter. Personally, I think with as many homeless pets as we have in this country, if they've kept their pets spayed / neutered and up to date on vaccines, I'm not going to go prying too much more. They're obviously a caring pet owner. I'm not looking to put a pet in a home where it'll be fed caviar from fine crystal; I'm looking for an owner that will care for and give a lifetime home to a pet in need.
Beyond the vet reference, you'll need to make other decisions. Most rescues will schedule a home visit to make sure the house is safe for a pet. You'd be surprised how many people live in filth and want to add an animal. Or live in a home that's falling down on itself. Or have a kennel out back with a crate in it and an obvious wear path worn in the grass where a pet spent years running in circles out of neglected boredom. If you choose to do the home visits before adoption, I always brought the pet with me. I wanted to see how comfy it was in the home and how the entire family reacted to it. You don't need to be nosey, checking bedrooms and bathrooms, but a walk through the main living spaces and the property can tell you a lot.
You can also do a Google image search for the home to see what it looks like and what the neighborhood is like. You can ask for personal references and phone numbers of neighbors to see if they complain of dogs barking all night or running loose in the neighborhood. You can call the local animal shelter and see if there have been any complaints from that address.
As a last note, sign up for www.dnapets.org It's a database that's kept by rescues and shelters and others in animal welfare. Anyone that's had a bad adoption or seen someone convicted of cruelty, neglect, etc will log the info there. You can search for people by name and state. I usually went on quarterly and just printed a list for the state and the surrounding states and kept it in a file for when I was at adoption events and didn't have internet access.
If you do get a hit on there, keep in mind that anyone that signs up as a rescue can enter anyone for any reason and they can lie. And sadly with some of the catty people in rescue, it happens. So if you get a hit, contact the person that entered it and ask for details that you can confirm.
Screening your potential adopters is a huge part of rescue. This is a person that you might be handing a pet to that was once homeless and could have faced death. Their life is in your hands and you need to take that very seriously.
The website is free and you can configure all kinds of applications and forms on there. We also have our rescue partnership form on there. It's a great site. If you add the link to your application on every single pet you place on line for adoption, people will be able to fill the form out and it gets emailed right to you automatically. Much easier and less time consuming than them emailing you and asking if the pet is still for adoption and then asking you to send the application, etc. It just streamlines it for you, and it also logs every single application. You'll be able to log on, pull each application and make notes directly on it as you call to confirm references and such. It makes tracking applicants easy!
Ok, so you just got an application in your email. Now what?
One of the first things I always did was confirm the vet reference. To be approved to adopt from us every single pet you have and have had for the last five years MUST have been spayed / neutered. Rabies must be current per state law and the combo vaccine can be no more than five years old. So obviously that call to the vet is first. When you call their vet, tell them your name and the rescue you're calling from and that their client has listed them as a veterinary reference on an adoption application for a foster pet in your rescue. Ask if they're showing them in their system and if so if their pet(s) are spayed / neutered, current on vaccines, and if they've kept them on preventatives and such. A vet can give you a good idea of how good a pet owner is based on whether or not they even need to go pull a file. There is nothing that makes me happier than a vet office staffer say 'oh my gosh, they're wonderful' without needing to dig through paperwork to check.
These are really the basic criteria for vet reference checks. There are a lot of rescues that go a lot further. They want to know if they've had heartworm tests every year, if they purchase their preventatives from the vet, and some even go as far as asking if the patient has a balance on their account. This is where you've got to decide how far you want to grill an adopter. Personally, I think with as many homeless pets as we have in this country, if they've kept their pets spayed / neutered and up to date on vaccines, I'm not going to go prying too much more. They're obviously a caring pet owner. I'm not looking to put a pet in a home where it'll be fed caviar from fine crystal; I'm looking for an owner that will care for and give a lifetime home to a pet in need.
Beyond the vet reference, you'll need to make other decisions. Most rescues will schedule a home visit to make sure the house is safe for a pet. You'd be surprised how many people live in filth and want to add an animal. Or live in a home that's falling down on itself. Or have a kennel out back with a crate in it and an obvious wear path worn in the grass where a pet spent years running in circles out of neglected boredom. If you choose to do the home visits before adoption, I always brought the pet with me. I wanted to see how comfy it was in the home and how the entire family reacted to it. You don't need to be nosey, checking bedrooms and bathrooms, but a walk through the main living spaces and the property can tell you a lot.
You can also do a Google image search for the home to see what it looks like and what the neighborhood is like. You can ask for personal references and phone numbers of neighbors to see if they complain of dogs barking all night or running loose in the neighborhood. You can call the local animal shelter and see if there have been any complaints from that address.
As a last note, sign up for www.dnapets.org It's a database that's kept by rescues and shelters and others in animal welfare. Anyone that's had a bad adoption or seen someone convicted of cruelty, neglect, etc will log the info there. You can search for people by name and state. I usually went on quarterly and just printed a list for the state and the surrounding states and kept it in a file for when I was at adoption events and didn't have internet access.
If you do get a hit on there, keep in mind that anyone that signs up as a rescue can enter anyone for any reason and they can lie. And sadly with some of the catty people in rescue, it happens. So if you get a hit, contact the person that entered it and ask for details that you can confirm.
Screening your potential adopters is a huge part of rescue. This is a person that you might be handing a pet to that was once homeless and could have faced death. Their life is in your hands and you need to take that very seriously.
Section Eight: Promoting your pets
The most important part of getting your pets adopted is getting them seen. Trying to do pet rescue with no outlet for the public to see your pets will take years to find a home for a single one. Petfinder is easily the most common and well known of them. There is also Adopt A Pet, Pets 911, and hundreds of other sites. While Petfinder is the primary account used by most rescues, it's also the most difficult to get set up with. And that might be why it's the most popular. While they really can't confirm every single rescue, they do their best and it means there are fewer puppy flippers and breeders on there.
After a few rescues and shelter I've set up, I've got it pretty down pat for you though. First, you need your vet. Make sure the one you choose knows you're a rescue. They will require a letter on his letter head stating that their office does all medical care for every one of the animals in your rescue, including mandatory spay and neuter of every single animal with no exception. That is the big thing with them; all animals, no exceptions, all medical care. Make sure he includes spay / neuter!
You need to start here: http://www.petfinder.com/register/index.html
Here is what you'll need:
After a few rescues and shelter I've set up, I've got it pretty down pat for you though. First, you need your vet. Make sure the one you choose knows you're a rescue. They will require a letter on his letter head stating that their office does all medical care for every one of the animals in your rescue, including mandatory spay and neuter of every single animal with no exception. That is the big thing with them; all animals, no exceptions, all medical care. Make sure he includes spay / neuter!
You need to start here: http://www.petfinder.com/register/index.html
Here is what you'll need:
If you are a 501(c)3 or state tax-exempt non-profit or Canada charitable organization:
- A copy of the first page of your IRS determination letter, state tax certificate, or Canadian charitable status; AND
- A letter of reference signed by your primary veterinarian (on his/her letterhead) confirming that he/she provides medical care for the pets in your rescue and adoption program.
- A copy of your ADOPTION CONTRACT (not the application); AND
- A letter of reference signed by your primary veterinarian (on his/her letterhead) confirming that he/she provides medical care for the pets in your rescue and adoption program.
If you are an organization without official non-profit status:
- A copy of your ADOPTION CONTRACT (not the application); AND
- A letter of reference signed by your primary veterinarian (on his/her letterhead) confirming that he/she provides medical care for the pets in your rescue and adoption program.
Most likely you're going to fall under the second section as it takes forever to get your determination letter from the IRS. So it's really honestly, pretty easy. Just make sure your vet does that letter with those words!!! Then include your adoption contract making sure it includes that all pets that are adopting must be returned to the rescue if the adoption does not work out, that all pets are spayed / neutered without any exceptions, and your rules for how the pet must be treated. Again, after this course, see the blog entry on adoption contracts and feel free to edit it to your liking.
Because there are so many websites that you can list your pet on and updating everyone would take so much time, there is a great site that I highly recommend. Once you've been set up through Petfinder and set up through Adopt A Pet, log in here and simply your life. The beauty is that you enter information and photos and videos, etc in one place and the website does all the work of updating all of your sites for you!
https://www.rescuegroups.org/
After you're set up on those sites, set up social media sites. Facebook is the most common. Once you've set it up, start liking animal welfare pages; Pet Pardons, The Good the Bad, the Unforgivable of Pet Rescue, various pet food company sites, etc. Post on their pages and share their postings. By being active on the larger sites, you're getting exposure for your rescue with large numbers of people. If you take in a really bad case, or if you get a really great adoption, post the story on those pages. Give people a reason to follow you!
Twitter would be a secondary account to set up with probably Pinterest being a third. I believe there are sites that are similar to RescueGroups, where you post one update and it sends it to all of your social media pages. Juggling multiple social media outlets was too much for me - I must be getting old - so I only use Facebook. If you're a social media guru, or if you pick up a volunteer that is, go with it!
Last, use the news media when you can. If you're in a small area, contact the local newspaper and see if they'll run a Pet of the Week for you on a Sunday or something. It can fill space for them and get you some local attention. Also, see if they'll do a story on a new rescue in the area. This is a great time to bring up all those statistics on euthanasia and the number of homeless pets we have in the country! If you work a big hoarding case at some point or if you get your 501c3 and receive a grant to spay / neuter, etc., call the local news media and see if they'll do a story. Anything to get your name out there in a positive way!
Section Seven: Networking
This is a HUGE part of rescue! For starters, the biggest resource you will ever have is another good rescue. Sadly, there is a lot of cattiness and ego in rescue. Do your best to always remain positive and don't let yourself get dragged down in the mud with those that like to fling it. I cannot stress this enough! A couple years after I started a rescue in TN, I had a dog that a co-worker had left in a small fenced lot for years. He'd lost his home and needed to find a place for the dog and asked me to help. I offered to courtesy list him as we just didn't have room in the rescue.
Courtesy listing is when you post the information you have and the photos of an animal on your advertising pages but don't actually have custody of the dog. You screen adopters like you would with one of your own and it's up to you how much medical you do. For us, if we handled a CL dog, we only did basics; vaccines, heartworm test and spay / neuter. Because we didn't have them long enough to evaluate them or start any housebreaking or obedience training, or do any blood work or other medical for them, we reduced the adoption fee. We had a couple contact us about adopting him, screened and approved them and started working on getting him transported. In the meantime we were contacted by a lady that had started a rescue outside of Nashville. I explained the dog had been adopted, at which time she offered me $500 to tell the adopters that something happened and they couldn't have him so she could. I was highly offended; I take the ethics of rescue very seriously, and I told her as much. She did apologize and I moved on. Ultimately the people that adopted him noticed some serious swelling from his neuter site but didn't contact me or take him to a vet until a week later. I was obviously not happy but made arrangements to bring him back. In the meantime I contacted the other adopter / rescue and let her know he was coming back and needed to see the vet but when we got whatever the problem was under control that they could adopt him for the same reduced fee, not $500. She and her husband offered to go right then and pick him up and take him to their vet and cover any cost of medical for whatever his problem was. I agreed to that and waived her adoption fee.
Ultimately the dog had a major medical condition that was life threatening. We offered to take him back so they wouldn't have the expense but they wanted to keep him and were willing to cover any medical. She in the meantime got in touch with the lady that first adopted him and neglected to inform us of his medical issues or take him to a vet and became friends with her, then calling me to tell me to refund the lady's adoption fee. We had a very large disagreement and I informed her that our policy was we do not refund fees, especially when they neglected a dog with a medical problem, and that we still had to cover his neuter and vaccines and heartworm testing. It escalated and became a huge ordeal that lasted a good month of battling.
Since then her rescue has grown immensely. Although I have issues with her on a personal level for obvious reasons, I do acknowledge the fact that she runs a great rescue and any animal in her care gets the absolute best vet care there is. I would never hesitate to transfer any animal from my rescue to hers. Will I ever call her and ask her to go have coffee with me? No. But it doesn't mean I can't put my personal feelings aside given that when it comes to animals she does wonderful things for them.
This is the story I tell everyone in rescue. I don't get involved in the drama. I don't want to know your personal feelings about another rescue. I want to know if they get good vet care for the animals, if they screen potential adopters, if they do follow ups. I don't care if you never want to have a slumber party with them and I won't get involved in the drama that goes along with it.
When rescues argue and bicker and a small disagreement blows up into a huge argument, animals lose. There are a lot more puppy mills and crummy pet owners and dog fighters out there than there are rescues. The animals need us to form a united front to help them. Learn to put your personal feelings aside for the greater good.
Aside from rescues, you're going to need to find foster homes if you want to help more animals than you're able to care for on your own. In most foster situations, the foster will provide the food for the pet and the place for it to live, as well as transport it to and from adoption events for the rescue. The rescue will provide all medical and preventative medications for the pet. I always let my foster homes see adoption applications, speak with and meet potential adopters, and be a part of the decision making process. While no one will know that animal better than it's foster and know better what situation will be comfortable for it, no one but you will ultimately be held responsible for where it goes. You'll need to learn how to balance the foster's opinion with your own decision.
You'll also want to reach out to people to help with transporting, cross posting, networking on social media, keeping in touch with shelters and foster homes, logging and tracking medical care and procedures, etc. The larger your rescues, the more volunteers you'll need.
Courtesy listing is when you post the information you have and the photos of an animal on your advertising pages but don't actually have custody of the dog. You screen adopters like you would with one of your own and it's up to you how much medical you do. For us, if we handled a CL dog, we only did basics; vaccines, heartworm test and spay / neuter. Because we didn't have them long enough to evaluate them or start any housebreaking or obedience training, or do any blood work or other medical for them, we reduced the adoption fee. We had a couple contact us about adopting him, screened and approved them and started working on getting him transported. In the meantime we were contacted by a lady that had started a rescue outside of Nashville. I explained the dog had been adopted, at which time she offered me $500 to tell the adopters that something happened and they couldn't have him so she could. I was highly offended; I take the ethics of rescue very seriously, and I told her as much. She did apologize and I moved on. Ultimately the people that adopted him noticed some serious swelling from his neuter site but didn't contact me or take him to a vet until a week later. I was obviously not happy but made arrangements to bring him back. In the meantime I contacted the other adopter / rescue and let her know he was coming back and needed to see the vet but when we got whatever the problem was under control that they could adopt him for the same reduced fee, not $500. She and her husband offered to go right then and pick him up and take him to their vet and cover any cost of medical for whatever his problem was. I agreed to that and waived her adoption fee.
Ultimately the dog had a major medical condition that was life threatening. We offered to take him back so they wouldn't have the expense but they wanted to keep him and were willing to cover any medical. She in the meantime got in touch with the lady that first adopted him and neglected to inform us of his medical issues or take him to a vet and became friends with her, then calling me to tell me to refund the lady's adoption fee. We had a very large disagreement and I informed her that our policy was we do not refund fees, especially when they neglected a dog with a medical problem, and that we still had to cover his neuter and vaccines and heartworm testing. It escalated and became a huge ordeal that lasted a good month of battling.
Since then her rescue has grown immensely. Although I have issues with her on a personal level for obvious reasons, I do acknowledge the fact that she runs a great rescue and any animal in her care gets the absolute best vet care there is. I would never hesitate to transfer any animal from my rescue to hers. Will I ever call her and ask her to go have coffee with me? No. But it doesn't mean I can't put my personal feelings aside given that when it comes to animals she does wonderful things for them.
This is the story I tell everyone in rescue. I don't get involved in the drama. I don't want to know your personal feelings about another rescue. I want to know if they get good vet care for the animals, if they screen potential adopters, if they do follow ups. I don't care if you never want to have a slumber party with them and I won't get involved in the drama that goes along with it.
When rescues argue and bicker and a small disagreement blows up into a huge argument, animals lose. There are a lot more puppy mills and crummy pet owners and dog fighters out there than there are rescues. The animals need us to form a united front to help them. Learn to put your personal feelings aside for the greater good.
Aside from rescues, you're going to need to find foster homes if you want to help more animals than you're able to care for on your own. In most foster situations, the foster will provide the food for the pet and the place for it to live, as well as transport it to and from adoption events for the rescue. The rescue will provide all medical and preventative medications for the pet. I always let my foster homes see adoption applications, speak with and meet potential adopters, and be a part of the decision making process. While no one will know that animal better than it's foster and know better what situation will be comfortable for it, no one but you will ultimately be held responsible for where it goes. You'll need to learn how to balance the foster's opinion with your own decision.
You'll also want to reach out to people to help with transporting, cross posting, networking on social media, keeping in touch with shelters and foster homes, logging and tracking medical care and procedures, etc. The larger your rescues, the more volunteers you'll need.
Section Six: Documentation
Regardless of whether or not you choose to be a 501c3, you'll still need to document everything you do. Once you've taken on any responsibility for an animal, it's your responsibility for the rest of your life! Because of that you'll want to keep a log of every single animal you've come in contact with through your rescue. Every single animal will need it's own file. Every single file should contain a form stating where it came from (shelter name, owner name and address with owner surrender form, or stray and where and when you found it as well as the means of listing it as found), any medical care it received, an intake information form stating the condition of the animal when it came in, and the ultimate location the animal went to. Even if you have animals with terminal illnesses or that pass from injuries or accidents, log it and keep it!
Among the multiple forms you'll need to write and keep are:
Among the multiple forms you'll need to write and keep are:
- Intake form - this form will give the date and location an animal came from, the animal's species, breed, guesstimated age, weight, breed or mix, sex, altered status on intake, color and markings, fur type and length, and the name you've given it or that it came in with. I highly recommend adding in the condition / status report to this as well that lists a place for you to fill out any injuries that are present, any scars the pet may have, whether the pet is over, under or at ideal weight, any dental issues that are obvious, behavior / temperament issues that are observed, etc.
- Medical form - this form will have the basic info on the dog (name, breed, sex, age, markings / color, etc) as well as lines to document dates and dosages for dewormings, heartworm and flea / tick preventative doses, combo and rabies vaccines along with the rabies certificate information (date, vet name and certificate number), any treatment or procedures done by the vet, etc. This form will be copied and the original will be given to the new owner when adopted. My form has a space at the bottom for the ultimate disposition of the animal (adopters info, or if death the reason and date and attach all medical forms as documentation, transferred to another rescue, etc). This is also the form you'll attach the sticky labels from the combo vaccines to.
- Owner surrender form - make sure you fill out everything on this form, have the owner sign it, have a witness for you sign it if possible, write the owner's ID number or attach a photo of the ID that you took, and if you can, download photo of pet with owner to your computer and print it out and staple to the form. This information and documentation will be your proof that the owner gave you the dog, so there can't be too much information on here!
- Transfer form - It's common for rescues to transfer dogs between each other. We're in an area with a LOT of hounds that are homeless. Sadly, finding adopters for them here is nearly impossible. They can get one from the local on line site, so why would they adopt one from a rescue? However, there are many great rescues up north that love the hound breeds and have approved adopters waiting for them. I highly recommend reaching out to northern rescues. Let them know you'd like to help the high kill shelters here and pull dogs for them and send them up. We can vet them much cheaper too and if we can find volunteer transporters we can send them highly adoptable dogs at a tiny fraction of what it costs them up there. It saves a lot of lives. In doing so, you'll want to have a transfer form. It needs to list the basic info on the dog, list your rescue and the rescue it's going to. Make sure it says you're transferring ownership of the dog to the new rescues and that you've disclosed all information regarding the pet's health and temperament and are not liable for any medical or behavioral issues after transfer. Keep this copy with a copy of the intake and medical form in your files and send the originals with a COPY of the transfer to the new rescue. You always keep the original transfer form.
- Adoption application - This is the very first step any new adopter will take in bringing home one of your foster pets. There are multiple applications on line and many rescues will happily share a copy of theirs with you. After I've completed the entire course outline here I'll start to load my forms as well. You're welcome to copy it and make any alterations to fit your rescue.
- Adoption contract - This will outline what you expect of the new owner. Like the application, you'll keep the original in your file with a copy of the medical form and the original intake form. New adopters DO NOT need the intake form unless you choose to give it to them. I never sent it to adopters, only to rescues if transferring.
As I screened adopters, I also printed out emails and other forms of communication and had a spot on the bottom of my application where I could keep notes about phone conversations, documenting dates and times and who I spoke with to confirm vet information, landlord confirmation, etc.
Over time there will be other forms you'll develop. I had them for my foster homes, my shelter coordinator, transporters as well as transport cover sheets and fax cover sheets. But the ones listed above are a good start. Again, I'll create the forms on here after the course outline is done and you're all welcome to copy those and edit them in any way for your own rescue.
Section Five: Saving lives means saying no
This is the part that gets so many rescues in trouble. The only way to run an effective rescue is knowing your limits. When I started rescue I never had more than one or two dogs on top of my own two. I didn't have the funding for the care of any more than that. I didn't have room for more as I was a single mom in a REALLY tiny house. And I was working up to 70+ hours a week. I'd also just started learning about canine behavior and body language and doing proper evaluations to make sure the new foster would fit into my pack. If I'd brought in any more than two I knew they'd be going from the frying pan to the fire and that's not rescue. It could have ended in a deadly fight between dogs.
Unless you've got a huge group of people standing behind you to foster, please keep this in mind. You're a new rescue. You're probably not used to having 35 dogs in your house; few people are. There are emotional and psychological strains that come with those kinds of numbers. When humans become stressed with their situation, it affects dogs. A stressed dog is a dog that is much more likely to cause problems.
What is your home situation like? Are you married or have a significant other living with you? Do you have children and if so, what ages? Do you have other pets? You've got to keep their safety in mind as well. How busy is your life? Are you a stay at home mom or a retired spouse? Do you work a 40 or 50 hour week?
As you begin your rescue, people in your community will know and spread the word quickly. You'll get phone calls and emails and neighbors will stop in to show you the cute little puppy they found. And they want you to take it. Now. They can't. Because they've got another dog already and can't have two. It doesn't matter that you might have five as well as a full time job and a spouse and three children with after school activities.
You'll need to learn to tell people that you're too full and can't take another right now. BUT you can take photos and put them on line to try to find them a home if the people will agree to keep them for you. You can provide the medical care and if you're able you can even provide food. You can contact other rescues via email or social media to see if anyone has room. There are options if the people truly want to help the animal. You've just got to realize your own limitations and do your best to explain it to others that ask.
The inability to say to an animal will result in you getting in over your head. And when you do and have to reach out to others for help, it leaves you with a bad reputation. And if you don't reach out, it winds up leaving you as a hoarder. Learn to say no. Realize it's not the worst thing you can do.
Unless you've got a huge group of people standing behind you to foster, please keep this in mind. You're a new rescue. You're probably not used to having 35 dogs in your house; few people are. There are emotional and psychological strains that come with those kinds of numbers. When humans become stressed with their situation, it affects dogs. A stressed dog is a dog that is much more likely to cause problems.
What is your home situation like? Are you married or have a significant other living with you? Do you have children and if so, what ages? Do you have other pets? You've got to keep their safety in mind as well. How busy is your life? Are you a stay at home mom or a retired spouse? Do you work a 40 or 50 hour week?
As you begin your rescue, people in your community will know and spread the word quickly. You'll get phone calls and emails and neighbors will stop in to show you the cute little puppy they found. And they want you to take it. Now. They can't. Because they've got another dog already and can't have two. It doesn't matter that you might have five as well as a full time job and a spouse and three children with after school activities.
You'll need to learn to tell people that you're too full and can't take another right now. BUT you can take photos and put them on line to try to find them a home if the people will agree to keep them for you. You can provide the medical care and if you're able you can even provide food. You can contact other rescues via email or social media to see if anyone has room. There are options if the people truly want to help the animal. You've just got to realize your own limitations and do your best to explain it to others that ask.
The inability to say to an animal will result in you getting in over your head. And when you do and have to reach out to others for help, it leaves you with a bad reputation. And if you don't reach out, it winds up leaving you as a hoarder. Learn to say no. Realize it's not the worst thing you can do.
Section Four: Medical
Ok, so you've got an idea of where you'd like to start at when finding pets in need. Now the important stuff; medical issues.
For starters, you're going to need a veterinarian. You can certainly find a local spay / neuter clinic that works with rescues, but keep in mind they generally don't do exams, additional medications, xrays or other diagnostics, prescribe medications, etc. So if you'll be doing this regularly, you'll need a vet.
I always suggest writing up a proposal and send it to multiple vets and see what you get. I called the local spay / neuter clinic and got their prices for basic services; rabies vaccines, spay / neuter procedures for cats and dogs / males and females, heartworm testing, health certificates, etc. Then I contacted a few local vets offices to get prices on the things the clinics don't offer; exams, xrays, health certificates, etc. Then I wrote up my proposal for services based on the clinic basic pricing and knocking off about 15% from the vet pricing on other services. I also added a second line on the exams section that agreed to waive the exam fee is another service was being performed like having xrays. The only time we had to pay the exam fee was if we only need a rabies vaccine or a heartworm test or something inexpensive and simple like that. Given that exams usually run $25 and up, this can be a significant savings over time. On the very bottom line I had a space for credit limits. With our vet, we had a limit of $1000 and we had to have a zero balance going into the new year. Some vets will not give you any billing credit at first and it's something you'll need to work up to as you've been working with them a while and they trust you. However, don't think you can't put anything there. They can't say yes if you don't ask the question!
Once the proposal was set up I'd sign it and fax or email it to the local vet offices with a place for them to sign if they agree. If they called and said they could do it but wanted us to pay $xx for such and such service, we'd haggle over the phone until we agreed. I'd then re-do the proposal for the agreed amounts and send it back over for them to sign. KEEP THIS SIGNED FORM FROM THE VET IN A FILE! If there are pricing disputes at any time you'll need it!! Also keep in mind that in the rural areas of Tennessee, finding a vet that will work with you can be difficult. We had to drive an hour, but for us it was worth it.
Ok, so you've got your vet and hopefully you've found a low cost spay / neuter clinic that works with rescues as an emergency back up. ALWAYS have an emergency back up of some form! Now you need to invest in the supplies that you keep on hand. For starters, you need basic medical supplies like alcohol, peroxide, betadine or iodine, gauze pads, vet wrap, antibiotic ointments, gloves, Qtips and cotton balls, nail trimmers, Benadryl (generic is fine but it must be ONLY diphenhydramine - I buy the 25mg WalMart brand of 100 capsules for $4), plain asprin, puppy pads or chux, blankets and bath mats to put in dog crates, pill cutter and pill crusher, saline solution, high quality clippers and scissors, pet shampoos, athlete's foot cream (treats ringworm), and canned pumpkin (for treating intestinal upset). Most of these things you can grab from your local big box store or grocery store.
You'll also want the more serious medications:
For starters, you're going to need a veterinarian. You can certainly find a local spay / neuter clinic that works with rescues, but keep in mind they generally don't do exams, additional medications, xrays or other diagnostics, prescribe medications, etc. So if you'll be doing this regularly, you'll need a vet.
I always suggest writing up a proposal and send it to multiple vets and see what you get. I called the local spay / neuter clinic and got their prices for basic services; rabies vaccines, spay / neuter procedures for cats and dogs / males and females, heartworm testing, health certificates, etc. Then I contacted a few local vets offices to get prices on the things the clinics don't offer; exams, xrays, health certificates, etc. Then I wrote up my proposal for services based on the clinic basic pricing and knocking off about 15% from the vet pricing on other services. I also added a second line on the exams section that agreed to waive the exam fee is another service was being performed like having xrays. The only time we had to pay the exam fee was if we only need a rabies vaccine or a heartworm test or something inexpensive and simple like that. Given that exams usually run $25 and up, this can be a significant savings over time. On the very bottom line I had a space for credit limits. With our vet, we had a limit of $1000 and we had to have a zero balance going into the new year. Some vets will not give you any billing credit at first and it's something you'll need to work up to as you've been working with them a while and they trust you. However, don't think you can't put anything there. They can't say yes if you don't ask the question!
Once the proposal was set up I'd sign it and fax or email it to the local vet offices with a place for them to sign if they agree. If they called and said they could do it but wanted us to pay $xx for such and such service, we'd haggle over the phone until we agreed. I'd then re-do the proposal for the agreed amounts and send it back over for them to sign. KEEP THIS SIGNED FORM FROM THE VET IN A FILE! If there are pricing disputes at any time you'll need it!! Also keep in mind that in the rural areas of Tennessee, finding a vet that will work with you can be difficult. We had to drive an hour, but for us it was worth it.
Ok, so you've got your vet and hopefully you've found a low cost spay / neuter clinic that works with rescues as an emergency back up. ALWAYS have an emergency back up of some form! Now you need to invest in the supplies that you keep on hand. For starters, you need basic medical supplies like alcohol, peroxide, betadine or iodine, gauze pads, vet wrap, antibiotic ointments, gloves, Qtips and cotton balls, nail trimmers, Benadryl (generic is fine but it must be ONLY diphenhydramine - I buy the 25mg WalMart brand of 100 capsules for $4), plain asprin, puppy pads or chux, blankets and bath mats to put in dog crates, pill cutter and pill crusher, saline solution, high quality clippers and scissors, pet shampoos, athlete's foot cream (treats ringworm), and canned pumpkin (for treating intestinal upset). Most of these things you can grab from your local big box store or grocery store.
You'll also want the more serious medications:
- Ivomec which is a cattle and pig medication but also the easiest and cheapest way to prevent heartworm
- Antibiotics - you can purchase antibiotics over the counter at your local pet store in the aquarium section. Amoxicilin and Cephalexin are the most common.
- Combo vaccines - We always used Galaxy brand DAPPv (now made by Nobivac) and had no reactions at all. I do NOT EVER recommend a vaccine with lepto in it. Unless there is a lepto outbreak in your area and your dogs will be trampling through standing water in the woods, there is absolutely no reason to ever vaccinate them for it. Lepto has the highest rate of complications of any vaccine on the market and I see no point in subjecting any animal to it. We ordered our vaccines from Jeffers Pet on line. You do not need a prescription and can probably get the aquarium antibiotics from them as well. If you're ordering in the summer, get the extra ice packs and the better cooler. Vaccines must be kept cool or it will kill the virus and it's like vaccinating with water!
- Syrings, both with and without needles
- Dewormer - I use SafeGuard. It's a goat dewormer but the same ingredient as PanacurC for dogs. You really can't over dose a dog with it and unlike many of the other dewormers out there it's a broad spectrum so it kills all of the intestinal parasites, not just two or three. If you're going to deworm, you might as well get it all from the beginning
- CapStar - oral pill for getting rid of fleas quickly. Order through your vet.
- NutriCal - you can probably order this when you order your vaccines. It's great for sick dogs or young puppies, giving them the extra nutrients they need when they're stressed.
Accidents will happen, and if you have puppies, it'll happen a lot. Keeping a case of paper towels and a few gallons of bleach is a big help. If you have puppies, you'll also want to keep large bottles of vinegar on hand in case you have coccidia pop up. The symptoms are very similar to parvo, but unlike parvo it can't be killed by bleaching the area. Vinegar is the only thing that might kill it, but you've got to soak it a long time. Coccidia is straight from hell!
Ok, so you've got all your supplies, you know where the animals are coming from that you're going to save. Now you need to know how to care for them. First, if you don't know how to give a vaccine to a dog or cat, watch this link. As you watch, remember that gravity is your friend. I don't know why they've got her holding the vial at an angle. It's MUCH easier if you hold the vial upside down and let gravity help you out. Aside from that it truly is as easy as they say. If you're vaccinating wiggly puppies, it's easier if you have someone help out by holding them for you. I also massage the area the vaccine was administered after to help break up the lump it creates.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PSWWlBUlp1o
The next thing you need to decide is your vaccination schedule. Realize that the situation your in and that the pet is in will change how you vaccinate. Pets in shelters, especially puppies, will get A LOT of vaccines. The more vaccines a pet gets, the more likely it is to wind up with vaccinosis. Given the choice between a slight chance of vaccinosis and a real risk of parvo or distemper in a shelter, the shelter should lean on the side of caution and vaccinate once a week. After the puppy has reached 12 to 14 weeks the vaccines can stop, but this means a puppy that's entering a shelter at 6 weeks old and vaccinated until 14 weeks old will get eight vaccines! Out of the shelter however, if you've taken a litter of owner surrenders, in theory your surroundings shouldn't be as dangerous. You can vaccinate every two weeks starting at six weeks of age and vaccinating for a series of four vaccines with the last being give when the puppy is 12 weeks of age. Half what they get in a shelter.
When I had juvi dogs, I chose to do a series of two vaccines if they were under a year but over 12 weeks. They'd get their first vaccine and then a follow up vaccine two weeks later. Dogs over a year old got only a single vaccine. You'll need a form to complete that logs the date and information on the dog when you vaccinate. Make sure it has room on the form for the small label from the vaccine bottle and make sure it's from the vaccine, not the sterile water vial. The new owners will need to log this with their vet as it has the batch numbers and expiration dates.
As for dogs in your rescue long term, you'll need to decide how often you vaccinate. The AVMA recommends annual combo vaccines. The AAHA recommends the vaccines be broken down into individual vaccines and that they be given anywhere from every three to seven years. I personally only give my dogs an annual combo vaccine every five years or so. This is something you'll need to read and study yourself and make your own decision.
The next step is deworming. If you've bought SafeGuard, you can safely dose 1cc per every five pounds of body weight. Dose once per day for three days in a row and try to dose at the same time each day. For example if you have a 35 pound dog that comes in, you'll give them 7cc of SafeGuard per day for three days. SafeGuard can be added to the dogs food for dosing and works really well if you've got some canned food in there with them.
After this you'll want your vet to examine them. A rabies vaccination as long as they appear healthy and are at the age requirements for your state should also be done as well as a heartworm test. As long as the heartworm test is negative, you can give monthly preventative at home with the Ivomec. Dosage is 1/10 of a cc per 10 pounds of body weight, rounding up at 6 pound increments. Sound complicated? It's really not. For a 27 pound dog treatment would be:
1-6 pounds = .1cc
7-15 pounds = .1cc
16-25 pounds = .1cc
26-27 pounds = .1cc
So the total dosage would be .4cc once a month. It should be given ORALLY - NEVER EVER inject Ivomec into your dogs! If you have a dog that tests light positive for heartworm, ask your vet if they feel that the slow treatment method would work. This is simply dosing the dog with the preventative each month like you would for a heartworm negative dog and then retesting in six months. You'd continue to retest until they come up negative. The upside to this method is it saves you anywhere from $300 to $1000 in treatment the standard way. The downside is that while you're treating, there will still be heartworms eating away at the heart muscle and there is a risk that the dying heartworms can lodge in the veins and cause death. It's a small risk, but it is something to consider.
Fleas / ticks are another persistent issue for any rescue. Because they can cause itching which can lead to skin damage and infection, as well as serious skin issues for one with an allergy, flea / tick preventative is a must. Fleas also can carry the microscopic eggs of intestinal parasite and cause anemia, and in severe cases even death.
Because there are so very many diseases and each has it's own symptoms and treatments, there's just no way to go over it in a blog. I'd highly recommend you read up on at least parvo, distemper, coccidia, and campylobachter. Parvo, coccidia, and campy all have very similar symptoms but very different treatments. There are ways to mix your own Albon for coccidia, but again, it's so indepth that it's easier if you just do your own research.
And lastly, the MOST important part of rescue, spay and neuter. We currently euthanize over 4 MILLION pets every single year. It's not for health issues or behavior problems. It's simply because there are more pets than there are homes. Pets wind up in shelters for a multitude of reasons, but one common factor is the lack of reproductive altering. Especially in our area, it's highly unusual for an animal to be in a shelter if it's been spayed or neutered. Why?
Male dogs for one are known to roam. Blame it on the hormones. They're like teens boys at a school dance. Looking for a good time. Because of this they wind up in bad situations and get lost and picked up by local animal controls. And they're the lucky ones. Others wind up on a farm harassing a farmer's cattle and are shot. Others are hit by cars, die of starvation, get sick or injured and die of that. Sadly, there are also the people that prey on the unsupervised animals, using them as bait in their dog fighting rings. These animals are taken back to compounds, have their jaws and hips broke to keep them from escaping or fighting back. They are then thrown into a ring with a dog that's been taught to kill. Slowly, they're literally ripped into pieces until they die from the injuries. The lucky ones die pretty quickly. Others however are thrown in rivers or lakes to drown, are electrocuted, are shot, or are just left in the woods to slowly die from their injuries.
Female dogs will go wandering when they're in heat, looking for a mate. As the pregnancy progressed they may wander off again to have their puppies in the safety of the woods. Born away from humans, these unsocialized puppies seldom will approach people and grow up and continue to reproduce where they are. They'll suffer the same fates as the males that wander. The ones picked up by animal control are usually deemed unadoptable and are euthanized immediately.
Aside from all this, the ones kept as pets that are allowed to breed are usually given to family and friends or the guy down the road. The most recent statistics that I've found showed that for each litter of ten puppies born, only one will find a home for the entirety of it's life. The others will be bounced from home to home, wind up on the streets, hit by a car, be surrendered to a shelter, etc. When you start to take breed into account it gets worse. The pitbull type breeds are by far the worst off in shelters and the most in need of help. Aside from being completely misunderstood and abused by humans, they're also one of the most bred dog in the country. One in fourteen puppies born will even live to be a year old.
As you get into rescue, and probably before rescue, you'll hear about the 'No Kill Nation'. Many jumped on board with their huge hearts, thinking finally some one found a way to save every single homeless animal in the country! It sounds wonderful, right? Unfortunately the numbers don't add up. In our country there is only a set number of people that will adopt a pet each year. Estimates are that appx 8 million pets enter our shelters every year. Of them, roughly half will be adopted or saved by a rescue. That leaves about four million a year being euthanized for lack of a home. To believe that there is a home for every homeless pet, you'd have to believe that EVERY YEAR an additional four million families will adopt a pet. Keep in mind, it's not just once. They would have to do that every single year. By the end of a decade they'd be living with ten additional dogs. It's just not logical.
So what's the answer? Spay and neuter. Simple. The only way to stop so many unwanted / homeless pets from entering shelters is to stop that many from being born. And there is some good news. In the 70s we were euthanizing about 12 million per year. So we're dropping fast. Right now estimates are that 83% of dogs and 91% of cats owned by families are spayed / neutered. So we're headed in the right direction. But keep in mind, these are guesstimates and they only take into account pets currently in homes. It doesn't account for the number of stray pets and those in breeder's home and puppy mills.
Overwhelming? Yeh, a bit. But our country is headed in the right direction and it's due in large part to people like you. Those that love animals and want to make a difference and do things the right way. So learn the facts and make sure as you pass people in town or stand next to them in the check out lines that you bring it up. The more educated the public has become, the fewer animals have had to give the ultimate sacrifice for our ignorance.
Now............on to Section Five!
Section Three: Where they come from
Ok, now we're getting to the real rescue fun stuff; saving lives!!!
By now you should have chosen your rescue's name and obtained your licenses. You should know if you're going to be registering as a federal 501c3 or if you plan on being small, even if just for now. You know why you want to start a rescue and what your mission plan is for it. A list of one year and five year goals for you to accomplish is a great start too. So now let's talk about where all these animals you'll be saving are going to come from.
The most common place rescues obtain their foster pets is from owner surrenders. This is generally the safest and best way for newer rescues as well. Because these come from private homes, even if they're not great homes, it means the chances of them having parvo as puppies or kennel cough or other illnesses and diseases that are found in large groups of dogs and cats is limited. The other great thing about owner surrenders is that in many cases you'll have time to move them to your program. This is extremely helpful and wonderful in the case of puppies. Because stress will cause puppies to break with disease that their bodies are currently building immunity to, the less amount of stress they're under, the healthier they'll be. By going to visit them first to get photos, do basic combo vaccines and start them on dewormer and then going back in a week to ten days for a second vaccine and spending time with them, when you do move them they'll have the benefit of knowing you to some degree as well as having some additional immunity due to a couple vaccines.
One thing I stress strongly to new rescues when handling owner surrenders is to document, document, document!!!! Take a camera with you as well as an owner surrender form. Get a photo of the owner holding the dog(s) that you'll be helping. You need not tell them it's a documentation situation, just that you need photos of each dog and it's helpful if they hold them since they know the owner and are more comfortable with them. After photographs, have them fill out the owner surrender form completely. I have one for a single surrender and one for a group surrender which is helpful in the case of litters of puppies or hoarding situations. After the paperwork is done, ask for their state photo ID. I consider this VERY important. I put the ID number on the surrender form and if you can get a photo of it with the camera or your cell phone, even if you have to do it discreetly - perhaps telling the owner you need to run back to your car to get something and snapping the photo there - it will further serve as proof that the owner did in fact give you legal ownership of the dog(s).
I know this sounds so paranoid, but I can't tell you how many times a rescue has taken in a sick or injured dog, spent a fortune on medical bills, only to have an owner come back when the dog is well and claim that the rescue offered to cover those expenses and get the dog healthy and then return it. I encourage all rescues to share these stories because it can help the rest of us avoid the stress of these same problems.
Keep in mind when you're picking up an owner surrender, this can be very difficult for an owner or they could want you to just take them and get out. Regardless of how bad a situation is, keep in mind that the only way to help the animals is to stay positive and friendly with the owners. Your own personal opinions and feelings must be kept completely out of every single situation in rescue. We all find ways over time that help us handle the emotions that come with this wonderful thing called rescue. You'll find your way over time, but be aware that it will eventually get to you and you will need a coping mechanism. Just always think of the potential problem that can come up and remember how important that documentation will be!
One of the most helpful things I learned was to keep a photo album of before and after photos of dogs in my rescue. Showing them in a shelter, scared in their run and then beside it all dolled up in clothes and clean beds or with their family so happy. Showing them in a hoarding situation where you can see the filthy they're in and then next to it, cuddled again with their new family in a clean environment and looking happy. Many people, especially when handling with hoarding situations, have a hard time believing their pet can love anyone else or that anyone else will love them. It helps for them to see the differences. And always remember to sympathize. Hoarding isn't done by people that don't like animals. It's people that love them but have something broken in their mind that doesn't allow them to see the problem it has become. Acknowledge the pain this is for them. But also remind them that this is going to be a great thing for the pets and that sometimes the best way to show love is to let them go.
The second most common way rescues find homeless pets is to take them from shelters. This is one of the most difficult for so many reasons. For starters, going to a shelter knowing that animals may be euthanized after you leave if you don't take them is emotionally draining. After moving our rescue to Tennessee, I only pulled from one shelter. It was a small rural shelter about four hours from me. I became very close friends with the Director who did an outstanding job. The fact was still that it was a rural area with a huge over population problem. When she had a euth day, she sent email blasts to her rescues. If she was going to be putting them down on a Friday, I'd wait until the other rescues had been there during the week to save what they could. On Friday she'd send me the list of the ones still needing rescue and I'd tell her who'd I'd take. I'd drive up there that day and take as many as I knew I could safely care for. If I couldn't save the entire euth list, I'd stop at a gas station just outside of town and cry. It was how I dealt with it. We all deal in our own way.
The other problem with shelter pulling is disease. Any time you have a single place with a lot of animals, you have a recipe for medical problems. Parvo, distemper, coccidia, intestinal parasites, kennel cough are just a tip of the iceberg of illnesses and diseases that can be brewing. Knowing how to determine if a pet has a disease that you can treat yourself and what the cost will be for treatment is vital in knowing if you can pull that dog and save it.
Other than disease, you've got the added issue of evaluating temperament in a strange and scary environment for a pet. Their behavior here will be very unlike what it will be in a home setting. If you are working with a shelter that has a separate room for adopters that's away from the noise and commotion of the shelter, that's the best place to eval a pet, especially a dog. We will go over body language and behavior / temperament issues later on. In the meantime, it's something to keep in mind if you plan on pulling from shelters. It's definitely very rewarding but has it's own set of difficulties.
The last way to bring a pet into your rescue is through strays. The problem here is evaluating temperament although it won't be as difficult as it is in a shelter setting. Also, you've got to deal with county / state laws on how long you must be in possession of the animal prior to adopting and how you must advertise it as a found pet. I'm very fortunate in my county in that we don't have a shelter here and the county is very eager to work with a rescue. When we found a stray here I called them and asked how long I needed to keep it before it could be adopted and what I needed to do to advertise it as found. All they require is for me to list it on our local on line sales site (www.golsn.com which is available in the entire state of TN) and not adopt it out or have it spayed / neutered for thirty day, after which time it was legally the rescue's dog and we could vet it and adopt it. Not all counties are this willing to work with a rescue. If you have a county run shelter they may require you to surrender it to them. This is one of the areas you'll need to check with your specific county on.
One of the most important things to keep in mind when bringing in a new animal from any situation is to quarantine! The incubation period for some diseases can last two weeks. That means for two weeks they're spreading disease and yet not showing symptoms. In the meantime, everyone else there is getting sick. Quarantining for at least two weeks gives you plenty time to observe the animal for any signs of illness, give it a chance to get to know you in a calm and quiet environment and begin to relax.
A quarantine room should be set up in your home or building somewhere. Keep a dishpan of bleach and water and a mat you can step on right at the door. Bleach going in, bleach going out. Many diseases are highly contagious. All it takes is for one dog or cat to sneeze or cough in their crate, have one single cell go airborn and land outside the crate. You go in to give them water and step in that spot, even though it may not even be visible. Then you go about your day walking around your home and property, and every place you walk you've contaminated. Diseases can have truly astounding life spans as well. Parvo for example can live for up to 18 months in a yard, just waiting for a dog to come along that has no immunity. You can't ever be too careful when it comes to adding new animals to your pack!
By now you should have chosen your rescue's name and obtained your licenses. You should know if you're going to be registering as a federal 501c3 or if you plan on being small, even if just for now. You know why you want to start a rescue and what your mission plan is for it. A list of one year and five year goals for you to accomplish is a great start too. So now let's talk about where all these animals you'll be saving are going to come from.
The most common place rescues obtain their foster pets is from owner surrenders. This is generally the safest and best way for newer rescues as well. Because these come from private homes, even if they're not great homes, it means the chances of them having parvo as puppies or kennel cough or other illnesses and diseases that are found in large groups of dogs and cats is limited. The other great thing about owner surrenders is that in many cases you'll have time to move them to your program. This is extremely helpful and wonderful in the case of puppies. Because stress will cause puppies to break with disease that their bodies are currently building immunity to, the less amount of stress they're under, the healthier they'll be. By going to visit them first to get photos, do basic combo vaccines and start them on dewormer and then going back in a week to ten days for a second vaccine and spending time with them, when you do move them they'll have the benefit of knowing you to some degree as well as having some additional immunity due to a couple vaccines.
One thing I stress strongly to new rescues when handling owner surrenders is to document, document, document!!!! Take a camera with you as well as an owner surrender form. Get a photo of the owner holding the dog(s) that you'll be helping. You need not tell them it's a documentation situation, just that you need photos of each dog and it's helpful if they hold them since they know the owner and are more comfortable with them. After photographs, have them fill out the owner surrender form completely. I have one for a single surrender and one for a group surrender which is helpful in the case of litters of puppies or hoarding situations. After the paperwork is done, ask for their state photo ID. I consider this VERY important. I put the ID number on the surrender form and if you can get a photo of it with the camera or your cell phone, even if you have to do it discreetly - perhaps telling the owner you need to run back to your car to get something and snapping the photo there - it will further serve as proof that the owner did in fact give you legal ownership of the dog(s).
I know this sounds so paranoid, but I can't tell you how many times a rescue has taken in a sick or injured dog, spent a fortune on medical bills, only to have an owner come back when the dog is well and claim that the rescue offered to cover those expenses and get the dog healthy and then return it. I encourage all rescues to share these stories because it can help the rest of us avoid the stress of these same problems.
Keep in mind when you're picking up an owner surrender, this can be very difficult for an owner or they could want you to just take them and get out. Regardless of how bad a situation is, keep in mind that the only way to help the animals is to stay positive and friendly with the owners. Your own personal opinions and feelings must be kept completely out of every single situation in rescue. We all find ways over time that help us handle the emotions that come with this wonderful thing called rescue. You'll find your way over time, but be aware that it will eventually get to you and you will need a coping mechanism. Just always think of the potential problem that can come up and remember how important that documentation will be!
One of the most helpful things I learned was to keep a photo album of before and after photos of dogs in my rescue. Showing them in a shelter, scared in their run and then beside it all dolled up in clothes and clean beds or with their family so happy. Showing them in a hoarding situation where you can see the filthy they're in and then next to it, cuddled again with their new family in a clean environment and looking happy. Many people, especially when handling with hoarding situations, have a hard time believing their pet can love anyone else or that anyone else will love them. It helps for them to see the differences. And always remember to sympathize. Hoarding isn't done by people that don't like animals. It's people that love them but have something broken in their mind that doesn't allow them to see the problem it has become. Acknowledge the pain this is for them. But also remind them that this is going to be a great thing for the pets and that sometimes the best way to show love is to let them go.
The second most common way rescues find homeless pets is to take them from shelters. This is one of the most difficult for so many reasons. For starters, going to a shelter knowing that animals may be euthanized after you leave if you don't take them is emotionally draining. After moving our rescue to Tennessee, I only pulled from one shelter. It was a small rural shelter about four hours from me. I became very close friends with the Director who did an outstanding job. The fact was still that it was a rural area with a huge over population problem. When she had a euth day, she sent email blasts to her rescues. If she was going to be putting them down on a Friday, I'd wait until the other rescues had been there during the week to save what they could. On Friday she'd send me the list of the ones still needing rescue and I'd tell her who'd I'd take. I'd drive up there that day and take as many as I knew I could safely care for. If I couldn't save the entire euth list, I'd stop at a gas station just outside of town and cry. It was how I dealt with it. We all deal in our own way.
The other problem with shelter pulling is disease. Any time you have a single place with a lot of animals, you have a recipe for medical problems. Parvo, distemper, coccidia, intestinal parasites, kennel cough are just a tip of the iceberg of illnesses and diseases that can be brewing. Knowing how to determine if a pet has a disease that you can treat yourself and what the cost will be for treatment is vital in knowing if you can pull that dog and save it.
Other than disease, you've got the added issue of evaluating temperament in a strange and scary environment for a pet. Their behavior here will be very unlike what it will be in a home setting. If you are working with a shelter that has a separate room for adopters that's away from the noise and commotion of the shelter, that's the best place to eval a pet, especially a dog. We will go over body language and behavior / temperament issues later on. In the meantime, it's something to keep in mind if you plan on pulling from shelters. It's definitely very rewarding but has it's own set of difficulties.
The last way to bring a pet into your rescue is through strays. The problem here is evaluating temperament although it won't be as difficult as it is in a shelter setting. Also, you've got to deal with county / state laws on how long you must be in possession of the animal prior to adopting and how you must advertise it as a found pet. I'm very fortunate in my county in that we don't have a shelter here and the county is very eager to work with a rescue. When we found a stray here I called them and asked how long I needed to keep it before it could be adopted and what I needed to do to advertise it as found. All they require is for me to list it on our local on line sales site (www.golsn.com which is available in the entire state of TN) and not adopt it out or have it spayed / neutered for thirty day, after which time it was legally the rescue's dog and we could vet it and adopt it. Not all counties are this willing to work with a rescue. If you have a county run shelter they may require you to surrender it to them. This is one of the areas you'll need to check with your specific county on.
One of the most important things to keep in mind when bringing in a new animal from any situation is to quarantine! The incubation period for some diseases can last two weeks. That means for two weeks they're spreading disease and yet not showing symptoms. In the meantime, everyone else there is getting sick. Quarantining for at least two weeks gives you plenty time to observe the animal for any signs of illness, give it a chance to get to know you in a calm and quiet environment and begin to relax.
A quarantine room should be set up in your home or building somewhere. Keep a dishpan of bleach and water and a mat you can step on right at the door. Bleach going in, bleach going out. Many diseases are highly contagious. All it takes is for one dog or cat to sneeze or cough in their crate, have one single cell go airborn and land outside the crate. You go in to give them water and step in that spot, even though it may not even be visible. Then you go about your day walking around your home and property, and every place you walk you've contaminated. Diseases can have truly astounding life spans as well. Parvo for example can live for up to 18 months in a yard, just waiting for a dog to come along that has no immunity. You can't ever be too careful when it comes to adding new animals to your pack!
Section Two: Legal issues
There is no way possible for us to put all the laws from all over this country into one single blog entry. This is where you will need to do some leg work on your own. Call your county zoning office to see if there are limits on the number of pets you can have in one home. Call your local county animal shelter to see what the rules are for keeping pets. Call your state's business licensing office to see if you are required to have a state license and what the steps are to get one. I will go over what we have here in Tennessee, but if you're in another state you'll need to check into that yourself. You can contact other larger rescues in your area and ask for help. Keep in mind the previous blog; they don't know you and you may not get an answer or it may not be overly friendly. If you get a negative rescue, move on and find one that is willing to help you out.
The first step is to get your federal EIN. Visit this link: https://sa2.www4.irs.gov/modiein/individual/legal-structure.jsp
Choose the tax exempt radio button at the bottom.
Select other non-profit / tax exempt
Select starting a new business
Select individual
Complete form and select authorized member / officer of the organization
Fill out each page of the form. When you get to the selections for the type, choose other and type in pet rescue in the other box.
Submit application.
Next submit your application for a TN state business license here: https://tnbear.tn.gov/ECommerce/RegistrationInstr.aspx
The next step is deciding if a 501c3 federal non-profit is worth it for you. In over 20 years of rescue I never felt that it was something that would be enough of a benefit to the rescue to file. However, if your plan is for a very large scale rescue, possibly putting up a building or writing grants to help with spay / neuter campaigns, transport vehicles, etc., then a 501c3 will be hugely beneficial to you. However, if you plan on staying smaller there is no need to go through the time, expense and hassle of filing.
The benefits of a 501c3 are:
The first step is to get your federal EIN. Visit this link: https://sa2.www4.irs.gov/modiein/individual/legal-structure.jsp
Choose the tax exempt radio button at the bottom.
Select other non-profit / tax exempt
Select starting a new business
Select individual
Complete form and select authorized member / officer of the organization
Fill out each page of the form. When you get to the selections for the type, choose other and type in pet rescue in the other box.
Submit application.
Next submit your application for a TN state business license here: https://tnbear.tn.gov/ECommerce/RegistrationInstr.aspx
The next step is deciding if a 501c3 federal non-profit is worth it for you. In over 20 years of rescue I never felt that it was something that would be enough of a benefit to the rescue to file. However, if your plan is for a very large scale rescue, possibly putting up a building or writing grants to help with spay / neuter campaigns, transport vehicles, etc., then a 501c3 will be hugely beneficial to you. However, if you plan on staying smaller there is no need to go through the time, expense and hassle of filing.
The benefits of a 501c3 are:
- the ability to write grants
- some of the more behind the times shelters do still require a rescue to have a 501c3 to pull
- ability to fund raise for donations (some states will still require you file with their solicitations department as well and TN is one of those states!)
- Large pet corporations like Petco and PetSmart will work exclusively with 501c3 rescues
- If you travel for rescue related reasons you can have the taxes on your purchases omitted
The complications of a 501c3 are:
- Time and expense of filing; it costs about $1000 to file and that's not including attorney's fees. Receiving the confirmation of your 501c3 can take up to 2 years!
- You must keep meticulous records of every single penny in your record and submit annual tax reports
- Filing requires an entire board of directors for your rescue, mission statements, etc.
As you can see, there are some great reasons to go through with the 501c3 filing. Just keep in mind that filing is expensive and you must maintain your records as you can and will be audited. For me, that $1000 was better used for spay / neuter in my community locally. Also, you can always start with just the EIN and business license and file for the 501c3 later on if you feel you need it.
As you get into rescue and meet others in it, you'll find that in many ways that you can use the 501c3, other rescues will help you as well. For example, it's common for a rescue that doesn't have their 501c3 to have a rescue that does have their pull a dog from a shelter that requires the paperwork. Also, when food donations come available if you're working with a rescue that does have their 501c3 they can add in the number of animals you handle annually to get enough additional food to donate to you also.
Lastly, there are liabilities in rescue that anyone interested in doing it needs to be aware of. Just as our own pets can be the cause of a lawsuit, so can pets in your rescue. Laws that apply to our personal pets will also apply to foster pets in your rescue. If a rescue pet bites someone, you're liable for that as well. Even after adoption, if a pet bites the new adopter or someone that they're around, you can be held liable for that as well. It's why complete honesty and meticulous record keeping in rescue are so very important. If you have a friend in the state that's a lawyer, they will be your greatest asset. If you're in a situation to put down a retainer for an attorney should the worst happen, it could certainly prove to be beneficial in the long run. I'm not saying it's necessary and I'm not saying you'll have problems. In all the time I've done this I've never had a single legal problem. However, it's something that needs to be kept in mind.
So, let's move on to Section Three!
Section One : Introductions
First, I want to thank everyone that's reading this blog! We have a serious over population problem in this country and animal lovers like you helping save their lives and educating the public are the only way we're going to end it!
The first question for anyone that wants to start a rescue is 'why'? What is driving you to run a rescue? If it's something you see as a way to help animals and bring in some extra income, you're barking up the wrong tree. Pun intended! Rescue work is HIGHLY expensive. It's time consuming. It's stressful. If you want to do pet rescue the right way, you will NOT generate a penny in income and in most cases you'll need to donate some of your own personal funds to keep the rescue going and take care of the animals. If you're not in a situation where you can afford to take on an extra pet or two for many months at a time, you're not going to be able to run a rescue.
For those that can't afford to take on the expense of other pets for an extended amount of time we recommend volunteering with a local rescue or volunteering at your local shelter. Because a rescue bears the financial brunt of rescue, volunteers can do just as much wonderful work and not have the burden of the bills.
Rescue work also requires a special type of person. For starters you've got to be highly driven. If you can't handle negativity, stress, or constant set backs, rescue isn't for you. If you can't do things the right way and follow all rescue rules, don't waste your time reading another blog entry. Rescues in general tend to be untrusting of new rescues and you will need to prove that you are doing things the right way. You can't take that personally. Just like you may not know them on a personal level, they don't know you. Sadly there are a lot of people that call themselves rescues but don't actually act like a rescue. Because of those types of people, rescues are very skeptical of others.
If none of this has intimidated you and you're still intent on running a rescue, read on!!
The first question for anyone that wants to start a rescue is 'why'? What is driving you to run a rescue? If it's something you see as a way to help animals and bring in some extra income, you're barking up the wrong tree. Pun intended! Rescue work is HIGHLY expensive. It's time consuming. It's stressful. If you want to do pet rescue the right way, you will NOT generate a penny in income and in most cases you'll need to donate some of your own personal funds to keep the rescue going and take care of the animals. If you're not in a situation where you can afford to take on an extra pet or two for many months at a time, you're not going to be able to run a rescue.
For those that can't afford to take on the expense of other pets for an extended amount of time we recommend volunteering with a local rescue or volunteering at your local shelter. Because a rescue bears the financial brunt of rescue, volunteers can do just as much wonderful work and not have the burden of the bills.
Rescue work also requires a special type of person. For starters you've got to be highly driven. If you can't handle negativity, stress, or constant set backs, rescue isn't for you. If you can't do things the right way and follow all rescue rules, don't waste your time reading another blog entry. Rescues in general tend to be untrusting of new rescues and you will need to prove that you are doing things the right way. You can't take that personally. Just like you may not know them on a personal level, they don't know you. Sadly there are a lot of people that call themselves rescues but don't actually act like a rescue. Because of those types of people, rescues are very skeptical of others.
If none of this has intimidated you and you're still intent on running a rescue, read on!!
Welcome! Please read this post first!
Due to the large number of animals euthanized in shelters every single year in our country (United States) and the large number of animal lovers out there that are looking for a way to help, we've banded together to create a tutorial that will walk you through the basics of starting a pet rescue.
We are located in Tennessee. Laws / rules in your state, and even in some counties and towns within Tennessee, may require additional steps, limit your ability to house many animals, require other permitting, etc. We highly recommend before you attempt any rescue that you contact your local county to inquire about any permitting or zoning issues you may face.
To use this blog:
Blog posts here will wind up showing in reverse order. I'll label each blog as 'Section XX: Title'. Begin with Section One: Intro and then move on to Section Two: Legal and so on.
While going through the blog, if you have questions or comment please feel free to leave them. If you would like to contact us directly, the email address is ronniconnelly@gmail.com
We are located in Tennessee. Laws / rules in your state, and even in some counties and towns within Tennessee, may require additional steps, limit your ability to house many animals, require other permitting, etc. We highly recommend before you attempt any rescue that you contact your local county to inquire about any permitting or zoning issues you may face.
To use this blog:
Blog posts here will wind up showing in reverse order. I'll label each blog as 'Section XX: Title'. Begin with Section One: Intro and then move on to Section Two: Legal and so on.
While going through the blog, if you have questions or comment please feel free to leave them. If you would like to contact us directly, the email address is ronniconnelly@gmail.com
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