Re-homing rescue dog

[Anonymous]

For reasons I won’t go into here, we need to re-home our rescue dog. In our adoption agreement, it states that we must return our dog to the rescue where we got it, the trouble is, the rescue is not responding to our attempts at contacting them. What do you do in this situation? I don’t want to take the dog to a shelter, where it will likely get euthanized. But we can’t keep it. WWYD?

[Anonymous]

Take the dog to the vet and have it euthanized. You signed up to be this dog’s guardian. Whatever is causing you to think of returning it (wtf) almost certainly precludes it from finding a good home. Do the right thing by the dog and your responsibility and have it put down.

[Anonymous]

Call around to other rescues and explain the situation to see if you can get help.

[Anonymous]

Humane Rescue Alliance has a behavior helpline if this is behavior related: https://www.humanerescuealliance.org/training

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Take the dog to the vet and have it euthanized. You signed up to be this dog’s guardian. Whatever is causing you to think of returning it (wtf) almost certainly precludes it from finding a good home. Do the right thing by the dog and your responsibility and have it put down.

No. And this is not helpful. You don’t know the situation so if you can’t be helpful, STFU.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Call around to other rescues and explain the situation to see if you can get help.

Good idea, thanks!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Take the dog to the vet and have it euthanized. You signed up to be this dog’s guardian. Whatever is causing you to think of returning it (wtf) almost certainly precludes it from finding a good home. Do the right thing by the dog and your responsibility and have it put down.

No. And this is not helpful. You don’t know the situation so if you can’t be helpful, STFU.

Nice, why would anyone be interested in helping you?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:For reasons I won’t go into here, we need to re-home our rescue dog. In our adoption agreement, it states that we must return our dog to the rescue where we got it, the trouble is, the rescue is not responding to our attempts at contacting them. What do you do in this situation? I don’t want to take the dog to a shelter, where it will likely get euthanized. But we can’t keep it. WWYD?

Why do you think it will likely be euthanized? Shelters aren't euthanizing willy nilly, if they think it should be put down, it should probably be put down. Probably for the same reasons you don't want it in your home, it wouldn't be a good fit for other families.

[Anonymous]

Many, many rescue dogs are not well-suited to the average family’s home life, especially if the family has young kids. Most rescues know this and screen thoroughly to find a good fit for each dog. That said, life happens. Sometimes a dog that a rescue thinks will do well in a specific home doesn’t. Sometimes a family’s dynamic changes in a way that doesn’t work well with a specific dog.

I don’t judge you, OP. I know you’re in a terrible situation, but re-homing a dog that doesn’t work well in your home is the kindest option for the dog. If the rescue you worked with is not communicating, contact another. You will find someone to help you.

[Anonymous]

Humane Rescue Alliance will allow you to surrender your animal, and many rescues will happily take him/her like Paws for Seniors.

[Anonymous]

What is the reason OP?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:For reasons I won’t go into here, we need to re-home our rescue dog. In our adoption agreement, it states that we must return our dog to the rescue where we got it, the trouble is, the rescue is not responding to our attempts at contacting them. What do you do in this situation? I don’t want to take the dog to a shelter, where it will likely get euthanized. But we can’t keep it. WWYD?

It really is difficult to offer suggestions without knowing why you need to get rid of the dog. Is it a 6lb Pomeranian mix that is not housebroken? It would be easy to find a home for that dog. Is it a 70lb "lab mix" that destroyed the baseboards in the house, ate your couch, and jumped through a window to attack a dog walking by? Euthanasia is probably the best option. Something in between? A life situation (divorce, death in family, job loss), and the dog itself is actually amazing? No one can answer your question, unless they know what is going on. If you don't explain the situation, you won't get helpful answers.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Many, many rescue dogs are not well-suited to the average family’s home life, especially if the family has young kids. Most rescues know this and screen thoroughly to find a good fit for each dog. That said, life happens. Sometimes a dog that a rescue thinks will do well in a specific home doesn’t. Sometimes a family’s dynamic changes in a way that doesn’t work well with a specific dog.

I don’t judge you, OP. I know you’re in a terrible situation, but re-homing a dog that doesn’t work well in your home is the kindest option for the dog. If the rescue you worked with is not communicating, contact another. You will find someone to help you.

OP here. I want to thank you for this post. Re-homing this dog has been one of the hardest decisions we’ve ever made. I don’t want to go into detail because it will inevitably become nasty (as evident by the first response to my post), and I’m already feeling terrible as it is. You are correct that the dog is not good for a family with young children. It would be great for a single person, or couple with no kids, but because of the breed mix and temperament, a shelter will likely just euthanize.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Many, many rescue dogs are not well-suited to the average family’s home life, especially if the family has young kids. Most rescues know this and screen thoroughly to find a good fit for each dog. That said, life happens. Sometimes a dog that a rescue thinks will do well in a specific home doesn’t. Sometimes a family’s dynamic changes in a way that doesn’t work well with a specific dog.

I don’t judge you, OP. I know you’re in a terrible situation, but re-homing a dog that doesn’t work well in your home is the kindest option for the dog. If the rescue you worked with is not communicating, contact another. You will find someone to help you.

OP here. I want to thank you for this post. Re-homing this dog has been one of the hardest decisions we’ve ever made. I don’t want to go into detail because it will inevitably become nasty (as evident by the first response to my post), and I’m already feeling terrible as it is. You are correct that the dog is not good for a family with young children. It would be great for a single person, or couple with no kids, but because of the breed mix and temperament, a shelter will likely just euthanize.

Hi OP. Mom of several rescue dogs here. I know it can be very challenging and at some point, no matter what the haters say, you have to protect your kids. I have several in my house right now who were returned by prior adopters for one reason or another, and I can see why. Know that rescues can and will make an effort to find your dog another loving home and in many cases, it will work out great. Shelter euthanasia is not the only option. If the rescue you used is not responding, I echo other PPs' suggestions to contact other rescues. Some may be able to take your dog quickly and place him/her with a foster family. Have you tried contacting multiple people at your rescue? Good luck!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Many, many rescue dogs are not well-suited to the average family’s home life, especially if the family has young kids. Most rescues know this and screen thoroughly to find a good fit for each dog. That said, life happens. Sometimes a dog that a rescue thinks will do well in a specific home doesn’t. Sometimes a family’s dynamic changes in a way that doesn’t work well with a specific dog.

I don’t judge you, OP. I know you’re in a terrible situation, but re-homing a dog that doesn’t work well in your home is the kindest option for the dog. If the rescue you worked with is not communicating, contact another. You will find someone to help you.

OP here. I want to thank you for this post. Re-homing this dog has been one of the hardest decisions we’ve ever made. I don’t want to go into detail because it will inevitably become nasty (as evident by the first response to my post), and I’m already feeling terrible as it is. You are correct that the dog is not good for a family with young children. It would be great for a single person, or couple with no kids, but because of the breed mix and temperament, a shelter will likely just euthanize.

Put an add on craigslist. But if it bit one of your kids or anyone you should let people know. Dogs from shelters are emotionally distressed and they take sometime to find peace in their new family, so I do not think it is a deal breaker for people who know dogs.