Turned down

[Chris W.]

difference between good dog owners and bad dog owners

That's exactly my point. In a perfect world, people who own dogs would ALL be responsible people.
UNfortunatly, 99% of the dogs in rescue right now got there due to irresponsiblity. Part of a home visit is SO stressfull, because you have to determine whether or not the person is telling you lies, or has good intentions, but is simply not responsible enough to follow them thru. Some rescuers have decided in order to alleviate that stress, they are not going to deal with a non-fence situation. They may not be able to place as many dogs, but the ones they do place they will feel MUCH more relieved about placing. The good thing about being involved with rescue too long, is the fact that you come to the realization that you alone, or alone as a rescue group, will NEVER be able to save them all, but the ones you do save, will be saved well.
Another point about a rescue dog, is that almost all of them came into rescue from Animal Control or a shelter. With no background whatsoever. And usually NO training whatsoever. Since foster parents would never risk the dog off leash, they wouldn't be able to tell you if the dog would run off or not. Most dogs go into the shelter because they were stray. Either allowed to run free in the first place, or they escaped their yard.
(BTW, the whole point behind a home visit is so that you cannot lie about your environment, believe me, you saved them and yourself a lot of wasted time by telling the truth)
LAYLAMOMMY, if you want this rescue to see YOU as an individual with good, responsible intentions, you will have to volunteer to let them get to know you. I can think of NO stranger in the world I would bend a rule for when it came down to the life of a rescue dog. Do a search over the passed few years on this SAME EXACT subject on BW. You will see plenty of people who wanted to PROVE their intentions, and did! by joining the rescue, myself included. You can stand there and blow as much smoke as you want for the next 10 pages of posts here, but until you get UP and DO something about it, NO ONE will ever know.

 

[adeinert]

Hi Laylamommy24!
I work in boxer rescue and believe me, we don't want to let good homes go, but fencing is an issue in many rescues. With us, we let the foster home decide if that individual dog could be happy/safe in that situation. Unfortunately, we have had a few dogs hit by cars after adoption and that makes you want to be stricter.
As someone pointed out, these pups come in and we have to wonder how they got into animal control in the first place. Some are fence jumpers, some are runners/bolters, etc.

I say you are a super boxer lover and could really help out by volunteering with them! After they got to know you they would feel wonderful to send a baby home with you! Volunteering is wonderfully rewarding. Rescued boxers are such little lovers!
Good luck with your quest to adopt a rescued boxer!
I have adopted four so far and would have it no other way!
Ashlie, owned by Jillian, Tulley, and Desi:p :p :p
www.flbr.org

 

[shells]

hello, I just wanted to share my pain, as I live in an apartment and am also currently trying to adopt a second boxer. make sure you check other rescues, i am working with 3 at the moment (i wasn't sure if i would get approved living in an apartment, so i'm trying to up my chances and increase the number of dogs that are available) and am now waiting for my home visits. i am not sure why you were automatically turned down my NBR, because i am working with them too (of course, i am still waiting for my visit) and have NOT been told that i cannot adopt becasue i live in an aparmment. check with some of the other rescues, i'm working with second chance boxer rescue and boxer angel rescue, i know that they say they sometimes place in surrounding states. it sounds like you are a great boxer mommy (i get that same question all the time - "what did you buy [for the dog] now?") and you sound like you exercse your baby well. don't give up, try try again, and check with anyone that will listen. petfinder.com is also a great place to check for dogs, but you lose the information that you can gather about a dog from a rescue org that fosters. keep telling the truth, though, it would be very bad if you lied because they will come to visit your home to make sure you are telling the truth, and then you'll never get approved! i also agree that a fenced in yard is a plus, but should not be a mandatory if the dog(s) are well exercised and taken care of. afterall, dogs are adopted in places like NYC all the time, and everyone lives in an apartment. i hope you can find a rescue organization that will work with you, good luck!!!:D :D and let us know if you get your second baby

 

[kelseighgirl]

LAYLAMOMMY24,

wow!! you do not know how glad i was to read your thread. i just had the samething happen to me with NortheasternBoxer Rescue!!
i was soo dissappionted!! they not ony gave me a fit about not having a fence but also because they could not find anyone in my area to do a home inspection!!! you would think that if someone showed as much interest as i did in a rescue they could have found someone to go alittle above and beyond to take care of it.
I dont know what dog you were interested in but i was interested in Tyler who is being fostered in the delaware valley area. when i read his bio on their site he sounded perfect and when the foster mother responded to my email it was like she was describing a completely different dog. she also said that she didnt think he would get along with my 7 yr old beagle and would be to rough for my 9month old boxer female.
i was really upset at that when again his bio states he gets along with all dogs and is abig snuggle bunny etc etc.
i can really understand where you are coming from, i was upset too. as far as the fence thing i tried to explain to them that i have 3/4 of and acre and its a little expensive to fence right now since we just had our house built. the bio said he knows basic obedience but didnt htink he could be outside in the yard off lead supervised by me or my husband like we do with our female.
yet and all my female has never been through obedience class and has learned the boundaries of our property just fine. go figure!!

good luck with finding another baby.
if you want you can pm me and we can talk more.

robin

 

[adeinert]

I do understand your frustration. But, having contact with over 300 boxers a year, I know good dogs dart out in roads and get hit. We see it often. So, most rescues are very leary of sending a new dog to someone who will never have the safety of a fenced in yard when needed. Not to say all do though.
As for the home visit, there aren't enough volunteers! I am currently handling apps south of me by 2-3 hours and to the north for an hour. Home visits happen when the can, but there are some areas of the state, no one can visit! We are the same people who spend Saturdays driving dogs up and down the highways. I am on the computer most nights for hours and pop in here regularly for a break. What I am saying is, that these volunteers are often giving 110%. Most, like me work demanding jobs but squeeze in anything we can. I just wanted to share that no one being able to visit you is a valid problem. Hopefully someone in your area will start volunteering and open up more of your state.
Of course, I don't know the situation AT ALL, but I know as a foster mom, I have turned down TERRIFIC homes for dogs because of particular needs of a dog. The bios are general, but the homes know exactly what home they are looking for. We recognize great families but must often say that the dog needs a slightly different environment. Everything is done from the dog's needs.
Being a rescue worker that works with adoptions, I am very sorry that you had a bad experience with a rescue organization. I am just writing to share that most rescues have adopted out so many dogs that they have to go with a "formula". May it be no homes with intact dogs, no homes without fences, or whatever the particular rescue deems important. We know that if we set certain limitations that we can home the most dogs with no negative incidents(injury, return, etc) in the new home. I know this formula sometimes causes us to miss a terrific home. But in the case of my organization, we adopted out over 300 boxers last year. For every 5-6 apps, one fits the description of what a boxer needs. WOW, that's a lot of calls, home visits, etc to adopt out one dog. The formulas work very well.
I am not writing to go on and on of the work rescuers do, but just want you to know that they do care and because there was a reason not to adopt to you now doesn't mean they are saying you aren't a good boxer home.
The best advice I have is to get involved! Start working with them. They'll get to know you, and you'll get to help in the rescuing of this precious breed!:p
Ashlie
and my three rescued furkids: Jillian, Desi, and Tulley

 

[Claudia807]

There are some great posts here! It's nice to see both sides represented so well.

I think the old "walk a mile in my shoes" motto fits here. Yes, it is disappointing to be turned down by a rescue. But remember that we are talking about volunteers here. Like Ashlie said, rescue is practically a full time job and most of us have "real" jobs besides!

The apartment issue is always a tough one. We placed a sweet Boxer girl in an apartment. The family lived on the second floor. They assured us that it was no problem to put Ginger on a leash and take her downstairs to go potty. They signed the adoption agreement which has a clause that states that the dog must be kept on leash. They assured me that they would take care of Ginger's needs and that they would walk her religiously. So what did they do? They got Lazy and sent Ginger downstairs BY HERSELF to go potty. They said they watched her from the balcony. Ginger got a little exuberant with a toy poodle and pinned the dog. The apartment manager said Ginger had to go. Sometimes I think it's things like this that force rescues to impose across-the-board policies. Unfortunately a lot of people say they will do things and then simply don't.

For those who apply to multiple rescues . . . some rescues share applications and some may not. I think it would be preferable to wait to hear from one organization before applying with another. If you apply with three rescues at once, that is three sets of volunteers who are occupied with processing your application, calling references, doing a home check, etc. I always find it a little disappointing when people come to BoxerWorld to complain about rescues. Like Chris said, it's not like a rescue is a store that must give you merchandise in exchange for your money. Everyone is just doing the best they can.

Claudia
Green Acres Boxer Rescue of WI

 

[LAYLAMOMMY24]

well new rescue new turn down. This place couldnt do a home check but they were okay with my application....on to the next one.

 

[LAYLAMOMMY24]

I am only applying to one at a time also. I understand that they have alot to do. Also I dont think I would be able to keep track if I applied to more than one at a time...thanks

 

[Spins1344]

LAYLAMOMMY24, I'm glad you posted this, and I came across this post. We were looking at NBR too and were going to be filling out the application, and we probably still will, but we don't have a fenced in yard either. It's kinda disheartening (although, I know they have their rules and are only looking out for the welfare of these dogs) :(

kelseighgirl - isn't tyler the cutest!! We were interested in him too! He has a similar situation to our Rocco (who was also just left at the vet for boarding and never got picked up by his owner!) I don't understand people!

Who posted about the white boxer rescue in so jersey? Could you give me some info on it?? Thanks!!

Keep looking though. I know we will if/when we get turned down by NBR for the fence issue.

Jo-Ann
Rocco's Mommy

 

[Doggy]

I adopted my boxer from rescue, and I was approved even though I did not have a fenced in yard at the rental property, but the lady from rescue made it very clear to me that you can never leave him outside off-leash, for his safety and other's safety. One time he wiggled out of his collar, and took off running, and I was scared. Boxers can run fast, and dont think twice about traffic, other animals, etc. Luckily he came back immediately. Also, certain dogs or other pets my boxer may not like, he is very picky on who he becomes friendly with - but I have accepted this characteristic and still love him, others may have returned him to rescue for this quirk, as it hinders him from trips to Petco, etc. where he may get upset if some dog looks at him the wrong way. I think the rescue groups are not trying to be overly picky but looking at the best interests of the boxers. It is also a shame when animals are returned to shelters, making it twice as hard on them emotionally. All my pets were adopted from humane societies and rescues, and I strongly encourage and congratulate people on going this route. If you can not get a boxer from rescue, perhaps try a mixed breed or other type of dog from your local shelter. Our other dog is a terrier mix and she is just as wonderful in her own right as our boxer. I have to send kudos out to rescue, for all thier hard work and dedication. It is not personal when you recieve a rejection so please dont take it that way, just look at other options. I also now have a fenced in yard at the house we recently bought, and it does wonders for our dogs behavior, they love the exercise, and you have peace of mind they can play safely. Good luck to you! :D