I thought they needed homes?? Little long

[An-D]

Hi I'm not exactly new but this is my first post. I use this website to find out info and opinions on boxers all the time. 5 months ago I got my first boxer after having had two rotties before I decided I'd like a little more playful pup. Non the less I got what I wanted and Love my new best friend to death. He is truly something else and I look forward to coming home everyday. Ok so here's where the subject comes in. Recently me and my wife decided we wanted another Boxer for us and to be a companion to "Stonewall". We decided to try to adopt a boxer because we understand what a handful boxers can be and that there are boxers out there in need of "Forever" homes. So when found a boxer we are interested in on the AZ boxer Rescue website and tried to get info on adopting. After months of waiting I recieved and email stating our application (which I have submitted twice, once before when we tried to adopt but ended up getting a pup cause they took over 3 months) would be sent to the next person in the adoption process. Around a week later I recived another EMAIL stating that we did not qualify becuase our boxer wasn't fixed. I responded telling the lady that he was scheduled to be fixed. NO Response. I sent another email to inform her of the date and asked if the dog we are intersted in is still available. NO Response. So today my pup got fixed (poor buddy) and I was just about to write an angry email telling her I have done all that I have been asked to do and haven't even heard if the dog is still avail. Now my question is. Don't these dogs need homes? Do the people that run these rescues always take 3,4-5 months. Why can't I contact them via PHONE!! they refuse to give a phone number. What is going on. Should I just by another pup?? Additionally they charge 200$ no big deal if I wasn't getting the run around the whole time. (I'm not buying a car) Is it possible the fosters become attached and don't want the dogs adopted??

Any opinion would be great before I write her back. Also I get "Read" confirmations on all my emails and NO!! response??? ARGHHH

Sorry it so long.

 

[Hs'ing Mom]

They sound really rude! Is there another boxer rescue close to you?

I really don't know what I would do if I were in your shoes. I'd probably watch the local pounds/shelters/animal control and see if a boxer turns up there.

 

[harley03]

What you need to remember is not every boxer they have in rescue is well suited to your home and situation. When they find the right boxer for you I'm sure you will be the first to know. It's not like you can just pick which one you want, some are dog or cat aggressive, some are special needs, etc. Those particular dogs may not fit your lifestyle, and adopting a boxer out to you without any thought to weither he is suited to your family may result in disaster. Just be patient, I'm sure one will come along that will be perfect for your family. Congrats on deciding to go the rescue route, there are many out there who need great homes

 

[Amysperry]

I have been going through the same thing with a rescue group in my area. I had a problem with my vet check that they initially did, but it was a minor record keeping error that was fixed immediatley. It has been a month and the rescue won't even answer my emails. Initially I was really confused and upset. I thought of just buying from a breeder as well. Heck it would cost about the same. However, the point is that reguardless of the ineffeciency of some of these organizations, I still really want to do this. I don't want to contribute to the pet overpopulation by buying my puppy. I want to help a dog in need. ( hopefully that doesn't sound to sappy)I am sure you feel the same way. DON'T GIVE UP.
I found another rescue organization that is in my area ( a little farther out ) and within a week they had me approved and did my house check. Unfortunitely, they don't have a perfect boxer match for my family and I, but I know I'll be first in line to help the next homeless dog that they rescue.
Also I am sure these people that you are trying to adopt from are not trying to be difficult....I am sure they are trying to do the best they can. Best of luck, I'll have my fingers crossed for you!!!!!

 

[Chicagosarah]

Dont write an angry email because that will go to me!LOL. We try our best. We are a small group of volunteers that are currently evolving into a larger rescue, this is an exciting time for us, but it has taken a lot of time, effort and work on all of the volunteers to get things moving in the right direction.
Our adoption coordinators are in over their heads with dogs, adopters, foster, hubbies,their 9-5 jobs, etc. They do a great job placing boxers and I am proud of them! without them, i dont know what the rescue would do!!
Harley hit it on the mark.. if we have a cute, young boxer, people email and say they want her, many want her and her only. That is 65 people that want one dog! And just because they all want her, doesnt mean that any of those 65 people would be the proper home for her. I am not sure of the details of qualifications for adopters as I dont do that part, but perhaps Christine can discuss this further off of the board.
Also, emails arent guaranteed to go through. I answer the boxer luv's emails(if sent to the email address listed on the website) and I can swear to you that I read them all and write back. Even if I dont have anything to do with the question at hand, I will let you know that I passed it to the correct people. So if you didnt hear anything, then the email probably didnt come through. I actually changhed my email from hotmail to yahoo because I was not getting emails send by family and friends.(i had them send test emails)
If you could actually send us an email updating up with the neuter info so we can put that note in with your original application, that would be perfect.
Christine can chit chat with you more when she gets a chance..
Sarah

 

[VTbxrFan]

To address the phone issue since no one has yet...keep in mind that rescues are run by volunteers. The phones we use are our personal phones - very few people I know would be comfortable with having their home phone numbers listed on a public website. The other issue is long distance calls - perhaps other rescues are different, but I know mine tries to do a lot of communication by email because it doesn't cost anything.

I'm sorry that your experience so far has been frustrating. Just try to remember that rescue volunteers are usually juggling a lot of different things in our lives, and there are often a lot of applications to wade through. While it's true that our dogs need homes, it's more important to us to find the right home for each dog rather than just going with the first home that might be available.

 

[adeinert]

It is hard being on the waiting side. I've adopted four times. Now I am a volunteer. I work the apps, have fostered, spend most of my time returning calls, carting dogs around, etc. I know there are boxer rescues out there that only have a few, very dedicated persons doing everything.

About spaying and neutering.... It has to be a hard and fast rule, families with intact pets cannot adopt. I personally let a boxer be adopted to a family with an appointment to neuter their dog in two days and then they promptly canceled the appt, bred the dog, had puppies, and wanted to give away the rescued dog so they could keep a puppy. It happens way to much, and I truly believed this lady. We have to stick to the policies that protect our dogs. Just resubmit your app after your male is neutered, if there is a comment section, mention you applied previously but were waiting for the neuter appt and now it's been done. If I read your app, I'd be happy to see you reapply.

About the fee, which is actually a bit low nationally..... Our fees don't cover our vetting bills on average. We depend heavily on donations, so those fees at around $200 are lower that what it actually takes to care for the boxers, but thankfully due to generous donors, we make ends meet. The average dog may get vetted for $200, but many run us into the thousands and we never turn away a dog no matter how sick or needy.

I am sorry you have felt so frustrated. It's good for us rescuers to remember how it is "on your side". I know quite a few in my organization that I can hardly reach. One person receives around 300 emails a day! Eek!

Foster homes that "get attached" can adopt their boxer, but most don't so that they have room to help the next one.

I hope you reapply and go through the adoption process. Adopting a rescued boxer is one of the purest joys in life.

Ashlie

 

[marciafinn]

I would definately re-send the application and make sure you include that Stonewall has been fixed like Ashlie suggested. I know a woman who helps run the rotti rescue here in New England and she is a single mom of 2 boys, works full time, has two dogs plus fosters at least one at a time, has her sons games, etc to attend....I can go on & on with her daily activities. I know she puts what energy left into the rescue helping these rotti's and she works tirelessly to do it. I am not affliated with any rescue but I do understand, do to my friend, that these rescues are run by volunteers so it can take some time to process the applications. Please don't give up - I think you'll see a better response now that Stonewall has been neutered. Good luck! Please keep us posted with updates.
Marcia & Mason

 

[VTbxrFan]

I wanted to mention another thoguth after re-reading your original post. While I can't speak for all rescue groups, I can tell you that in mine, matching a family to a dog comes AFTER the application process has been completed and the family has been approved. We aren't really wanting people to apply for a specific dog for a couple of reasons. First is that there is generally not a lot of information available - a couple of pictures and a paragraph or two describing the dog - not enough to really determine if the dog is a good match. And certainly the other reason is that we are constantly adopting dogs out and getting new ones in. Now that's not to say that we don't get applications from people mentioning one specific dog, and if they are approved and that dog is still available, we will then proceed with discussion about that dog to determine if it's really a good match. But in general, we much prefer applicants who have just decided that they want to rescue a boxer and will allow us to help them find the right match out of the dogs we have available (or go on the waiting list until the right match does come in.). Sometimes people will decide based on the limited information on the website that they want a particular dog when in fact, that dog really isn't right for them. Or if it turns out that we go through all the steps of the application process only to discover at the end that the dog was adopted and the family won't consider any others, then we've wasted our time working on their application. I know that might not sound fair to you, but it's sometimes frustrating on our end when we get hundreds of applicants asking about a single dog and no one showing interest in any of the others. (And while it might not be the case in your situation, that often happens for the youngest, most attractive dogs currently on the website.)

So anyway, that's just a little additional information from the rescue perspective. I don't know about the rescue group you are trying to work with it, but if they approach it the same way mine does, it might help if you aren't so focused on the one dog that initially caught your eye. There are many wonderful dogs available in rescue, so try to be open to that as you work through the process.

I am sorry that your experience has been so frustrating. As Ashlie mentioned, I agree that it's important for rescuers to be aware of the other side. I adopted my first rescue before I was a volunteer, and I do remember the stress of deciding that I really wanted to adopt a dog and then having to wait for the approval process. It's hard to sit their waiting knowing that people who don't even know you yet are scrutinizing you and making decisions about your life. Just try to keep in mind that in the end, the volunteers are doing the best that they can to find the right homes for the dogs.

 

[rog1006]

Andy-

I am the one you have been corresponding with and I'm sorry that you felt the need to vent your anger about the rescue on a public forum. I will not go into details about your application here but I do feel the need to defend myself and the rescue. You did receive my first e-mail stating that I needed your spay and neuter certificate before we proceeded AND I provided you with the fax number to fax it to. I know you got the first e-mail because you responded directly to it telling me that he was being fixed on 6/7/04 and asking me if the dog you're interested in was still available. I then responded the very same day saying that I would be looking for the fax and that yes, she was still available, but we have to follow our rescue procedures before you could see or meet her. For the record, I also included my home phone number in the event that you had any other questions. So I'm stunned that you're saying that you've received no response. Maybe you're e-mail was acting up? I don't have a clue why you didn't receive the second e-mail, (and don't have a clue why you would say publically that you never received the first e-mail) but you could have easily e-mailed me again, being that you have my personal e-mail, rather than "venting" on BW. In addition, we will not proceed until we have received your neuter certificate, which I explained is a basic requirement for adoption with Boxer Luv Rescue. (Ashlie explained in detail the PERFECT reasoning behind this rule! Thanks Ashlie!) This process takes time because we want to find you the right dog for your family--AND this is all PRIOR to the phone interview, home inspection, and reference checks which we will have to also complete.

So this post is just to remind the other 14,000 members that are now reading this post thinking that our rescue is "giving people the run around", that there are two sides to this story. I've seen other rescues get trashed before, but I tell you when you have just a handful people working 25-30 hours a week to save these boxers, while working full time, and having a family, it's absolutely deflating to see your good name smeared especially when we've done our part.


Christine
Boxer Luv Rescue
www.arizonaboxerrescue.org