Rescues: are they too picky?

crazy4strays · Jan 5, 2016

I'm not sure if this is the best place for this. If there's a better place, feel free to move it, mods.

Anyway, one thing that I've been reading a lot lately is that a lot of rescues make it virtually impossible to adopt animals. So people who would provide a good home to an animal, give up finally, after being humiliated and rejected, and go to a breeder, a Craigslist ad, or a pet store, thus fueling the homeless animal problem.

A lot of dog rescues insist on only adopting to a family with a fenced yard, insist that if you want a toy or small breed you can't have any small children, and also ban families with small children from large breeds as well. Some places also insist that you can't adopt if you work full time. Some cat rescues even do this supposedly! Some places don't adopt any animals at all to farms.

Some places turn you down if you're a senior citizen, even if you have a plan for who will take care of the animal if you become unable. So who does that leave, if families with children, working people, and senior citizens can't adopt? The unemployed, the self-employed, and the millionaires?

I'm guessing that maybe they aren't as picky with adopting cats out, but who knows?

I've heard that some places make a clause in the contract that says that they are the legal owner of the animal and can show up unannounced and do home visits and fine you if they don't like what they see.

My rescue seems pretty reasonable, so far. After reading stories of people getting turned down to adopt from rescues, I was afraid to even apply to foster for one, but luckily my rescue doesn't seem to go overboard on things.

For adopting, I think that they just try to make sure that the cat is a good fit for the family, that the family is responsible, and that the veterinary references come out good. I don't know as much about their dog adoption program, as I don't foster dogs.

What has been your experience with rescues? Is it really that common for them to go that far overboard or are these just a few rare instances that make the good rescues look bad?

donutte · Jan 5, 2016

I had a rescue that told me they need to have a board vote to approve any adoptions to folks with 4 or more pets already. Considering the life I've had, four seems like nothing. However, in that particular shelter's case, I think I can understand the pickiness. They were seriously over-budget this year, mainly as a result of people this past year returning cats they'd adopted because they were old and/or sick. Every cat they take back has to go through a full battery of testing which costs a lot of money. So, it doesn't surprise me that they are getting a bit more strict. However, considering how much they are hurting financially right now - they are having trouble staying open - I would think they need to loosen up a bit. I did end up going to a different shelter, which is where I got Pea-Pea. Didn't have to bring the whole family, etc.

I know a lot of cats have "personality profiles" now. Back when I lived in the city, there was no such thing. I adopted cats off the street, not knowing what they'd be like, or how they would react to dogs/cats, etc. Somehow we always made it work. Now, with the profiles, they'll refuse to adopt some cats out to homes with dogs and/or other cats. Or kids, although if they went through an abusive situation, where kids were allowed to abuse them, I could understand that one a bit more.

I adopted Penelopy because her eyes drew me in. I didn't get to witness her true personality because she was sick the one time I visited before adopting her. I brought her home anyway. And I was SO glad I didn't have to bring my mom there, it's so hard for her to get out. We already did that twice when adopting our two dogs this year.

crazy4strays · Jan 5, 2016

Yeah, the thing with rescues is that they do see the worst of the worst, and probably get skeptical after awhile.

One thing that I've ran into, is places denying people cats because of wanting them to be barn cats.

It seems that they could create a barn cat program where feral or otherwise unadoptable cats could be placed as barn cats. I'm all for keeping cats indoors and agree that it's safer, but there are some cats that can never be turned into housecats. In those cases, why not place them on a farm instead of euthanasia?

donutte · Jan 5, 2016

That was the case with my babies' mama (lol, I couldn't even type that with a straight face). She was totally feral, and the lady that found her and the babies wanted to keep her, but she was indoor/outdoor and decided to stay outdoors one day and not come back. But ultimately she was found and re-homed on a farm, where apparently she is quite happy and healthy.

paiger8 · Jan 5, 2016

I agree with being a little choosy, but at the same time, making decent people jump through a million hoops to adopt a cat is a bit ridiculous.

Example, last year I applied to adopt 2 cats from a private animal rescue. I filled out a 4. page. long. (TYPED!) application that asked every question possible. What type of food would I be feeding them? What specific brands I would be feeding? Am I okay with cleaning the litter box every day? How will I treat fleas? Will I provide my cats access to an enclosed outdoor space? Did I have house plants? How long do I plan to stay at my current (owned) address? If I get pregnant, will I keep the cat?

Of course I'm okay with cleaning a litter box. It's a cat. Duh. And to ask what specific brands I plan to feed is a bit crazy. Especially because cats are weird and it's impossible to know what a specific cat likes. The pregnant question was just super crazy to me too, and very personal. Like, I get that they don't want people to give up the cat if they have children, but as a single person, getting pregnant is NOT on my radar right now. Plus, the status of my womb is NONE of their business.

I then had to provide 3 "pet owning references" which they called and spoke to each person and asked how I would care for the cat, am I able to afford veterinary care, would I give the cat up if I became pregnant, if they would trust me with their pets, blah blah blah. She interviewed my friends and family for 30 minutes EACH!

Oh, it doesn't end there. I then drive 2 hours to meet these cats and do an in person interview. We pulled up to this "rescue" which looked more like an abandoned house. Super run down, the kitchen was a pile of dirty cat dishes and cans. And the entire place stunk like cat pee. I met the cats which were supposed to be a 5 month old brother and sister. Well, they were 2 (not neutered) MALES. I honestly don't know how you miss the gonads on a 5 month old unaltered male?! I spotted them in 2 seconds.

After my hour long in person interview, she had me sign an equally long contract saying that they basically still owned the cats, and had to be notified when I got the cats fixed, and they could show up anytime at my house to check on the cats, and take them away if she deems fit. She then grabs the cats paperwork, and says, "Oops. There's been a major oversight. Both of these cats tested Positive for FeLV." (They had been listed as FIV/FeLV- on the website.) These cats had also been in a communal cat room with 15 other healthy cats. Sharing food and water...

Those cats ended up going to a FeLV cat rescue because I couldn't have them around other cats, but I would never adopt from there again. I know that the end result wasn't typical, but the amount of paperwork, references and interviews that they required was just crazy.

When I adopted my current 2 from a large shelter, it was super awesome and painless. I showed up, met the cats, spoke with an adoption counselor while I was getting to know the cats, filled out the 1 page application while the cats were doing an exit health exam, and left with the cats. I did list a couple references, but they didn't call them. I think if someone seems sketchy, definitely call references. I'm also a big fan of the database they're now compiling of animal abusers, so rescues can check to see if someone has a prior history.

I think if you charge enough money for adopting cat, you're going to weed out a lot of people looking for cats for bad reasons. Abuse, dog fighting, etc. My rescue charges $75 per cat, or two bonded cats (like mine) for $125. I highly doubt anyone would go through all the trouble of paying that much for a cat that they may abuse. I think abuse is much more likely with "free" cats, strays and farm cats. I know it happens all over, but I can't see someone paying a hundred bucks to abuse a cat.

kittens mom · Jan 5, 2016

I had a friend show me a sale contract for a horse being sold near the 10K price range. The insanity in what should have been a one page BOS went on for pages listing all the acts that the former owner could assign that would allow her to take the horse back. The need to inform her if the horse was moved from the owners property. Notice if she sold the mare so the former owner could approve them. It seems she thought abuse would be a muddy corral, getting wet etc. In fact the way it was worded she would have the final say on what constituted horse abuse. I advised her to walk away. Lovely mare. Loon of an owner.

I have seen some adoption contracts that rival this nonsense.

1. If I bring it home and pay the feed/vet bill it's mine.

2. No one on your application will give you the names of people who will give them a bad reference.

3. Most pets go in for a yearly check up. Unless it was noted on the chart notes that your pet had cigarette burns all over it's body they are simply going to confirm you are current on shots.

4. You don't have to be a homeowner to list yourself as one. Also many renters have a more stable home life than home owners. Anyone can move and leave a pet behind.

5. Not having a bad driving record or criminal history does not make someone a good person. Good people make mistakes and lots of bad people never seem to get caught.

6. Do you know who is getting your personal information on that application and what do they do with it to protect your ID.

7. Income is not an indicator of how well any pet will be cared for or the vet care they might receive in an emergency.

The idea of a rescue is to move animals through it into the best homes that can be found. That may not always and seldom will be the perfect home.

Many rescues are a front for hoarders. Something I have dealt with personally in one horse rescue where the horses there were worse off than many starving neglected beast I ever dragged home. As to home visits. Unless you want to let me do a background check on you I highly doubt I'm going to open my door to you for snooping.

The best way to screen is through training volunteers in interview techniques that can trip the losers up and let you rest easy when you find the right person for that cat.

jcat · Jan 5, 2016

Our no-kill shelter turns down about 50% of potential adopters. I personally probably turn down closer to 75%. IMO, that's not being too picky given the amount of love, time, money and sometimes heartache we've invested in the cats or kittens (there are very few dogs). We love those animals and want them to have long happy lives with a good "match".

The people most likely to be turned down are those looking for indoor/outdoor cats. The rule of thumb is that people have to live at least 150 meters (164 yards) from a busy street. It's not easy to meet that requirement given the population density in this area. People lie about it all the time, too - they apparently aren't aware that we check out distances using Google Maps, and even if that looks okay, somebody drives to their address and takes a look at traffic, the number of parked cars on their street, whether there's a bus or truck route nearby, the number of dogs being walked, etc.. One very unpleasant aspect of shelter work is having to scan, and sometimes photograph, cats that have been run over by cars so that their owners don't spend weeks, months or years wondering what happened to them. Do that often enough and you're very choosy about location.

Granny's 85 years old and has her heart set on a kitten, or maybe the one-year-old? The 7-year-old is way too old? The daughter/son/niece/grandson will take the cat if she dies? How about if I show you J., E. or T.? They're all senior cats whose owners died and who have poor adoption chances because they have to compete with the cute kittens. It's too bad that the relative who promised to take them wasted no time before dumping them here - no time, not enough room, the new dog attacks cats, etc..

Kids should grow up with pets, I absolutely agree. Your sons and daughters are adorable and boisterous. We've got a number of cats that love the kids who come to visit here and would make great companions for them. Oh, you've fallen in love with the timid little calico who jumps at her own shadow? Sorry.

Your little girls' hearts are going to be broken if they don't get the Golden Retriever? He's great with kids. Who's going to walk him? Oh, your 8 or 10-year-old will be completely responsible for that? It'll be good for them to get the exercise, and you don't have the time yourself? There's just one little problem - I'm 5'6" tall, weigh 123 lbs., have plenty of experience with large dogs up to and including Saint Bernards and Great Danes, take that dog for a walk most mornings, and can barely hold him when he sees a bird, horse, cat, etc.! Sorry.

You're looking for a pair of kittens to be indoor-only cats? Perfect! You live on the third floor and have a balcony - you'll be securing that so that the cats won't fall and get hurt? No? Your last cat never fell or lunged for a passing bird, so it's unnecessary? Sorry. Here's some literature on high-rise syndrome and how to secure a balcony. You're welcome to come back once that's done.

One of your cats died and you'd love to have C. as a companion for your other cat - she looks just like the one that died. The trouble is that C. doesn't get along with other cats at all, but I can show you some other tabbies that do. Oh, it has to be C.? Sorry.

I could go on and on. There are also people who came in looking for an adult "beginners'" cat and ended up with two kittens, the 60-year-old who wanted a certain 10-year-old cat but adopted a 2-year-old because the former rejected her and the latter absolutely wanted to go home with her, the woman who took a pair of semi-feral siblings, figuring the male was friendly and the female needed a home even if she wanted no contact, and ended up with the female following her around the house, sleeping with her, cuddling on her lap every night.

kittens mom · Jan 5, 2016

jcat said:
Our no-kill shelter turns down about 50% of potential adopters. I personally probably turn down closer to 75%. IMO, that's not being too picky given the amount of love, time, money and sometimes heartache we've invested in the cats or kittens (there are very few dogs). We love those animals and want them to have long happy lives with a good "match".

The people most likely to be turned down are those looking for indoor/outdoor cats. The rule of thumb is that people have to live at least 150 meters (164 yards) from a busy street. It's not easy to meet that requirement given the population density in this area. People lie about it all the time, too - they apparently aren't aware that we check out distances using Google Maps, and even if that looks okay, somebody drives to their address and takes a look at traffic, the number of parked cars on their street, whether there's a bus or truck route nearby, the number of dogs being walked, etc.. One very unpleasant aspect of shelter work is having to scan, and sometimes photograph, cats that have been run over by cars so that their owners don't spend weeks, months or years wondering what happened to them. Do that often enough and you're very choosy about location.

Granny's 85 years old and has her heart set on a kitten, or maybe the one-year-old? The 7-year-old is way too old? The daughter/son/niece/grandson will take the cat if she dies? How about if I show you J., E. or T.? They're all senior cats whose owners died and who have poor adoption chances because they have to compete with the cute kittens. It's too bad that the relative who promised to take them wasted no time before dumping them here - no time, not enough room, the new dog attacks cats, etc..

Kids should grow up with pets, I absolutely agree. Your sons and daughters are adorable and boisterous. We've got a number of cats that love the kids who come to visit here and would make great companions for them. Oh, you've fallen in love with the timid little calico who jumps at her own shadow? Sorry.

Your little girls' hearts are going to be broken if they don't get the Golden Retriever? He's great with kids. Who's going to walk him? Oh, your 8 or 10-year-old will be completely responsible for that? It'll be good for them to get the exercise, and you don't have the time yourself? There's just one little problem - I'm 5'6" tall, weigh 123 lbs., have plenty of experience with large dogs up to and including Saint Bernards and Great Danes, take that dog for a walk most mornings, and can barely hold him when he sees a bird, horse, cat, etc.! Sorry.

You're looking for a pair of kittens to be indoor-only cats? Perfect! You live on the third floor and have a balcony - you'll be securing that so that the cats won't fall and get hurt? No? Your last cat never fell or lunged for a passing bird, so it's unnecessary? Sorry. Here's some literature on high-rise syndrome and how to secure a balcony. You're welcome to come back once that's done.

One of your cats died and you'd love to have C. as a companion for your other cat - she looks just like the one that died. The trouble is that C. doesn't get along with other cats at all, but I can show you some other tabbies that do. Oh, it has to be C.? Sorry.

I could go on and on. There are also people who came in looking for an adult "beginners'" cat and ended up with two kittens, the 60-year-old who wanted a certain 10-year-old cat but adopted a 2-year-old because the former rejected her and the latter absolutely wanted to go home with her, the woman who took a pair of semi-feral siblings, figuring the male was friendly and the female needed a home even if she wanted no contact, and ended up with the female following her around the house, sleeping with her, cuddling on her lap every night.

One of my longtime rants is the right pet in the right home.

handsome kitty · Jan 5, 2016

I was amazed how easy it was to become a foster mom for Fluffy. I did fill out a form but it was less intrusive than the one's I've seen to adopt a cat. It could be because she was close to her 'time' at a high kill shelter.

I need to change rescues to foster for. I think the one I want to switch to does a home visit before they approve you.

jcat · Jan 5, 2016

We have questionnaires (not terribly intrusive), interviews and home visits. Finding the right match is important, but so are things like finances and personal responsibility.

If you saw the diseased, half-starved animals from hoarding situations, the kittens trying to raise their own kittens after being abandoned because somebody couldn't bother getting them spayed, the animals we've had to have euthanized because their owners wouldn't take them to a vet when they first became ill and then dumped them in front of the shelter when it was too late to save them, the beat-up toms that are FIV+ because it "wasn't right to mess with nature" and castrate them, and the heartbroken pets who were dumped come vacation time, you'd be picky about who could adopt. The last thing you want is for your "charges" to meet those fates.

Sorry, this is a sore subject for me.

kittens mom · Jan 5, 2016

jcat said:
We have questionnaires (not terribly intrusive), interviews and home visits. Finding the right match is important, but so are things like finances and personal responsibility.

If you saw the diseased, half-starved animals from hoarding situations, the kittens trying to raise their own kittens after being abandoned because somebody couldn't bother getting them spayed, the animals we've had to have euthanized because their owners wouldn't take them to a vet when they first became ill and then dumped them in front of the shelter when it was too late to save them, the beat-up toms that are FIV+ because it "wasn't right to mess with nature" and castrate them, and the heartbroken pets who were dumped come vacation time, you'd be picky about who could adopt.

Sorry, this is a sore subject for me.

You just described my neighbors. And they are the perfect example of someone who would likely PASS your screening. I would love to know the name of the rescue they got their two dogs from. Aside from being left out no matter how cold it gets and looking like they missed their last 10 meals they are allowed to roam and all the trouble that comes from that. I had to pepper spray the large one numerous times because it's aggressive. They have never altered a cat except the one male years ago and they declawed him also. They threw him outside. He came over to our yard to die. I had to go shame the old man to make him take care of the problem. I cannot count the dozens of cats and hundreds of kittens that perished because of their neglect. Spay and neuter is ' unnatural '.

But I can promise you they would likely pass your interview and questionnaire. I have often been heard to mutter I wish they'd talk to the neighbors before handing out any more dogs or cats to these people. I cleaned up a litter of newborn kittens once that had been literally just bitten in half by one of their dogs. Truthfully I made my husband go finish.

Yeah this is a sore spot for me too.

crazy4strays · Jan 5, 2016

KittensMom, I think that vet references are actually pretty helpful. Especially in rural areas, it's common to not take cats to the vet at all. So if someone bothers to take the cat in for preventative care, they are more likely to be responsible.

I have an old school neighbor who says that it never occurred to him that cats and dogs need any special maintenance. Out of my friends and neighbors, there's plenty of them that I wouldn't adopt to.

kittens mom · Jan 5, 2016

I do stand corrected on the vet records in rural areas. I often felt like a leper that escaped from my island with my cat in a crate. It is also the reason I have started removing the neighbors unfixed cats before they start breeding. The population kept exploding despite their heath issues and the number of sick cats made my husband and myself worry about the possibility of a rabies outbreak since they also seemed to have endless skunks on their property living in their piles of junk. More than once I got to hear how their house stunk after a cat/skunk fight late at night under the floorboards. The older couple has moved out and the daughter is just as bad but puts a nicer façade on her living conditions.

I would say the majority of the dogs here would have no vet record as most are vaccinated at the low cost/free shot clinics.

micknsnicks2mom · Jan 5, 2016

i just this past saturday adopted our deedee and allie from a local rescue. i was actually quite nervous about applying to adopt from a rescue, for the same reasons that @Crazy4Strays mentioned. i can totally understand why some, not all, rescues careful screen potential adopters extremely thoroughly; with all the simply horrid things they've seen, it's totally understandable. my concern was that i might apply to adopt from a rescue that rarely if ever actually approved applications.

we, jaspurr and i, had just recently lost our little snick

, and i knew that i would be totally devastated should my application have been rejected -- partly because i was still grieving. so i looked into the rescue on my own a little, made sure that their cats were actually being adopted. i had talked with my vet, made sure they knew that we were interested in adopting and that a rescue might be calling them for a vet reference. i submitted an application with the rescue -- which was just one page, did not ask for my income, did not ask for personal references, did ask for my vet's name and contact info, and did ask if i would be okay with a home visit. i was prepared to go through a home visit, i thought that was fair to ask -- though now that @Kittens Mom mentions it, that's a very good point about letting people you don't even know into your home to snoop (or whatever you want to call it). these days, you really need to be careful. i did the phone interview, our vet was contacted for a vet reference, and i was approved -- no home visit was deemed necessary.

from an adopters perspective, i think it's important to do some looking into the rescue before submitting an application. there are many truly wonderful rescues, but ones like the one @Paiger8 mentioned, rescues that are hoarding situations, and those that rarely if ever actually approve applications to adopt.........as people interested in adopting, i feel we need to do some looking into the rescue before deciding to submit an application.

crazy4strays · Jan 5, 2016

Kittens Mom said:
I do stand corrected on the vet records in rural areas. I often felt like a leper that escaped from my island with my cat in a crate. It is also the reason I have started removing the neighbors unfixed cats before they start breeding. The population kept exploding despite their heath issues and the number of sick cats made my husband and myself worry about the possibility of a rabies outbreak since they also seemed to have endless skunks on their property living in their piles of junk. More than once I got to hear how their house stunk after a cat/skunk fight late at night under the floorboards. The older couple has moved out and the daughter is just as bad but puts a nicer façade on her living conditions.

I would say the majority of the dogs here would have no vet record as most are vaccinated at the low cost/free shot clinics.

Wow! That sounds horrible.

I too think that it's frustrating when people let their cats roam outdoors and don't keep their rabies shots up to date. We've had multiple bats from our county test positive for rabies in the last few months.

kittens mom · Jan 5, 2016

Crazy4Strays said:
Wow! That sounds horrible.

I too think that it's frustrating when people let their cats roam outdoors and don't keep their rabies shots up to date. We've had multiple bats from our county test positive for rabies in the last few months.

We have hantavirus spread by deer mice droppings, bubonic plague via fleas. Add the idea of rabies to that mix and it becomes a toxic soup. That isn't taking into consideration the feline specific illnesses. They have brought whole litters home calling themselves rescuers only to toss them out at 6-8 months. No vaccinations, certainly on spay or neuter. They also have this warped idea that cats only need a teaspoon of food a day if they are outside since they hunt. when there was up to and maybe more 40 starving cats around here believe me there was not much left to hunt. Of course I got stuck in it because I started to feed them with no resources to TNR. Not to mention the monthly cost to feed them. I said never again and I meant it. If your kitty is in my yard and taking up shop you can find it at the shelter.

I am not mean or hateful it's just something I cannot and will not deal with again.

crazy4strays · Jan 5, 2016

You're lucky that you have a shelter to take them to. I've come to thoroughly resent the idea of No Kill shelters, because in practice it means, "We'll ignore your phone calls to bring in a stray and it will stay in the street to reproduce out of control, starve, get hit by a car, or get cruelly killed by a human or predator."

If I had any feral or stray cats come onto my property basically my only morally sound option is to TNR them at our own expense. It stinks.

kittens mom · Jan 5, 2016

Crazy4Strays said:
You're lucky that you have a shelter to take them to. I've come to thoroughly resent the idea of No Kill shelters, because in practice it means, "We'll ignore your phone calls to bring in a stray and it will stay in the street to reproduce out of control, starve, get hit by a car, or get cruelly killed by a human or predator."

If I had any feral or stray cats come onto my property basically my only morally sound option is to TNR them at our own expense. It stinks.

I did that to some of the more special ones to me at least. 200 bucks a pop adds up quick. Yes shelters and rescues are overflowing. I'd like to know where progress is. It seems for every cat that has a loving home 100 more are sitting in cages for most their life or filling up garbage bags. That's not even taking into account the untold numbers that are surviving on their own.

crazy4strays · Jan 5, 2016

Luckily spay/neuter isn't that expensive here. Last I checked my vet charges $85 per neuter. The low cost s/n clinic charges $35.

kittens mom · Jan 5, 2016

Crazy4Strays said:
Luckily spay/neuter isn't that expensive here. Last I checked my vet charges $85 per neuter. The low cost s/n clinic charges $35.

There are a few low cost S/N clinics. Those spots fill up quick and I hesitate to use it as a TNR resource. Everything else is on a sliding scale.

Rescues: are they too picky?

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Kittens life was lost to a negligent veterinarian.

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Kittens life was lost to a negligent veterinarian.

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Kittens life was lost to a negligent veterinarian.

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Kittens life was lost to a negligent veterinarian.

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Kittens life was lost to a negligent veterinarian.

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Kittens life was lost to a negligent veterinarian.

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Kittens life was lost to a negligent veterinarian.