Comments on: Dog Adoption Scams

By: rodney

rodney — Thu, 22 Jul 2010 02:07:51 +0000

that is croak north shore animal leg in new york only charges 75 bucks for any dog ,as for the guy who ask what the problem is , its that i can buy a pup for 300.00 , but i wanted to save a dog but they said it would cost me 350.for a small dog!!!!!!!!!!!!

By: Blanche

Blanche — Tue, 06 Jul 2010 03:47:33 +0000

Thank you! I thought I was just overly sensitive. I had been looking for a sweet, mellow companion dog and found the same high adoption fees and invasive questions that everyone here has been complaining about. $450 in “adoption fees” and a very creepy contract saying that the dog can be repossessed at any time PLUS some very rude and weird questions from the foster mom. I ended up going to the ASPCA shelter and found a wonderful Lab mix. At first, I was feeling guilty about not “helping a local rescue group” but I am now having serious misgivings about the whole matter. It will be the ASPCA shelter for me from now on! The local rescue group where I live is supposed to focus on rescuing local homeless pets but they actually go two hours out of town to get chihuahuas from a shelter. The “flipping” dogs for profit theory makes total sense. Again, thanks for giving voice to my suspicions. I am glad I did not give these people one dime.

By: cindy

cindy — Mon, 26 Apr 2010 16:36:29 +0000

adoption groups is just another form of puppy mill supporter, not that all puppy mills are bad, most of them are regulated by a.k.c. and are better than most child care facilities. i have been in the pet industry for years and years and i have never met one adoption group tha was legit. everyone of them charged between $350.00 and $500.00 for a dog and i have seen everyone of them at dog auctions. dog auctions are held for pet store owners, in which these puppies come from mills. or private breeders. you would not believe how many people are there from adoption groups, bidding and buying puppies for at the max… $50.00 then take them back to pet stores on the weekends and try to adopt them out for 350 to 500. it’s all a scam and people fall for it all the time. get real people. research this get the facts, it’s true

By: Noreen

Noreen — Sat, 13 Mar 2010 18:44:20 +0000

I HAVE BEEN lOOKING TO ADOPT A SMALL DOG AS WELL AND HAVE ENCOUNTERED WHAT I BELIEVE TO BE SCAMS ON KIJIJI.COM… NOT EXACTLY SURE THEY ARE ON THE UP AND UP. I TOO HAVE BECOME LEARY OF ADS FOUND ON PETFINDER.COM AND THEIR ANIMAL “RESCUERS”. I AM GLAD I SAW THIS WEBSITE SINCE IT SEEMS MY SUSPICIONS WERE LIKELY TRUE- SOMETHING IS NOT RIGHT ABOUT ALL THIS. I MAY STICK WITH NSAL , WHICH I HAVE BEEN VERY LUCKY WITH TWICE ALREADY IN THE PAST OR ASPCA. THANKS

By: Cathy S.

Cathy S. — Wed, 03 Mar 2010 18:51:57 +0000

Wow.
Thanks for this article. I have been looking on-line to try to find a dog and have inquired after several only to be wrung through the inquisition in one, left hanging on others, and phoned two only to see that the dog listed “was adopted today…bet we have others”.

I was beginning to wonder about some things. My only pets have come from either my vets office or from the animal shelter where I just went in to pick one out.

I have decided to only look at places like ’shelter’, ‘humane society’,or ‘animal control’ in their listings – or ‘free to good home’. Hopefully I’ll find what I’m looking for!

By: cc

cc — Sat, 13 Feb 2010 22:32:36 +0000

I find most of these dog rescue groups are run by militant frigid crazy ladies that want to control your life and rip you off.

You would HAVE TO BE TOTALLY NUTS to deal with ANY of these dog rescue groups! Basically, if you sign ANY agreement, you are leasing a dog from them, not adopting. If they can take the dog away, than YOU don’t own it. If you buy a dog from a breeder you don’t have to sign ANY agreement or wavers like these groups want you to.

After reading about all the hoops I would have to jump through, I will buy a puppy from a breeder or get one from the pound.

By: Steph

Steph — Fri, 15 Jan 2010 12:20:52 +0000

Posting an article like this is VERY misleading. It generalizes and only explains one side of the story. I TOO am a rescuer. One person took your article and took it too the bank. She reported a rescue to the state and started publishing on public forums. Does the rescue have a bad rap, perhaps, but the point I am trying to make is that because this article is out there, she took it great lengths to publicly state that rescues that charge high adoption fees are only doing it to make money and I can assure you, good rescues struggle to make ends meet. If it’s in the best interest of the dog, I have even seen fees waived if someone is willing to take on the responsibility of a troubled dog. There are BAD rescues, there is a bad version of everything. It’s up to people to do their homework. Sometimes you have to have a profit, if you don’t you can’t take the next one in that needs $4000 worth of surgery. I am not misguided at all. I am actually very well educated.

By: admin

admin — Thu, 14 Jan 2010 20:49:07 +0000

Steph,

First, to answer your questions:

Who are you? I am a pit bull advocate, rescuer, and volunteer with my local rescue in San Diego. I will be happy to answer any other questions you may have about my personal life via email.

How dare you? I created this website to help inform people about the pit bull breed and other dog-related issues. As an active volunteer with a rescue organization, many issues surrounding animal adoption are brought to my attention on a regular basis. I wrote this article as a warning to people to be careful who they are adopting from, because I have seen first hand the dishonesty described in the article.

I think you are missing the point the article is trying to convey, which is that people need to exercise caution when adopting a dog from a “rescue”. Unfortunately, not all rescue organizations are what they seem. With regard to adoptions being tax deductible, you are absolutely right; IF you adopt from a rescue with 501c3 status. The underground rescue scams I am referring to in the article are not these types of organizations. They are instead people/groups that are obtaining pure bred, high demand dogs from shelters, only to turn around and re-sell them at a profit to unsuspecting people who adopt the dogs thinking they are getting them from a reputable rescue organization.

I am glad to see that you care enough about animal welfare to get angry about this subject, but I do feel you are perhaps a bit misguided in your efforts. Keep in mind, the point of a “good rescue” is not to turn a profit, but to save animals.

By: Steph

Steph — Thu, 14 Jan 2010 16:46:10 +0000

This article disgusts me. Who are you and how dare you! Good rescues don’t make any money at all. They take the really sick and injured dogs, rehabiliate them and yes, charge a fairly high adoption fee which is completely tax deductible, which I see you failed to mention. Even though the dog the rescue has may not have needed $400 worth of care, the next dog that comes in may have needed $1000 worth of care because of the abuse and neglect they suffered at the hands of humans. There are bad rescues out there, it’s up to you to do your homework before you adopt.Yes they check your home adn your references. If you don’t like it, too bad, go to the shelter. Nodboy forced you to go the route of rescue. Shelters are funded at a state and federal level, most rescues are private.

By: jan sebald

jan sebald — Thu, 15 Oct 2009 18:27:37 +0000

Deal with a rescue that is a 501c3. Ask alot of questions!! Dog should have ALL shots including Boratello, de-worming and heartworm test. If the rescue gives out a dog that is not spayed or neutered, then they should have a spay/neuter contract and then rescue follows up on it. All dogs should be spayed and neutered. Adopter should recieve all paperwork showing dog is vetted…proper paperwork with a vet name and # to call and verify. Ask how long the dog has been in rescue, who has had it, where did it come from. Ask alot of questions and deal with honest rescue groups that are a 501c3!