We just adopted our first rescue. He came up from the South on a truck with dozens of other dogs (which is where most of the rescues in NE are coming from). I am 100% in agreement with placing the right dog in the right situation, and it can be challenging with distant rescues for many reasons - availability (if looking for a certain age, breed or personality type), not meeting the dog in person first, the dog not meeting other pets in the household first, problems that a rescue can have, inexperienced previous or new owners, incomplete or incorrect information on the dog, etc.
Fortunately I knew what I was looking for and was willing to wait until I found the right one, but it did take years. Every dog I applied for was gone before they got to me, or it wasn’t a great fit for some reason (like the dog that low growled and bared teeth at us for an hour). Fortunately we eventually found our dog, but I think the only reason we got him was because they thought he was a lot older than he actually is and we were looking for an older dog. (Joke was on us!) But he does have the personality we were looking for and is the breed we wanted. (Listed as a mix when he is a purebred. Also heartworm positive so no one bothered to get him preventative, apparently.) We are working on some bad habits he had (which overall, aren’t too bad): it’s obvious he had no training. Thankfully he is a sweetheart by nature, and that’s what I wanted. But boy, looking back, it wasn’t easy getting him.
I also have a purebred from a good breeder who is a great dog. I was looking to rescue a dog then, too, but several adoptions fell through, with one dog even biting my old dog in the face twice as we were about to leave the shelter. We were about to lose the older dog so we wanted another dog in the wings, and this worked out. But again, he wasn’t easy to find, either. I contacted a local breeder and got referred four or five times from there until I found one breeder who had a male puppy. (Many breeders of the same breed know eachother from breed clubs and such.) Her interview was like the Spanish Inquisition but I think it’s a good thing, because as a pp mentioned, good breeders want good homes for their dogs. FB is one way to find a breeder, but you can also go through the AKC website or google local breed club information.
I’m just going to put this out there, because I knew there are posters here who will say you should only rescue dogs, not buy them, but I don’t agree with that, nor do I agree that there shouldn’t be specific breeds raised by breeders. The [shameful] pet overpopulation we have here is because people don’t bother to spay and neuter their dogs and are irresponsible in many other ways, too. That’s why so many pets are euthanized daily in this country because there is no more room and no more money to care for them and they have to make room for others coming in daily. Watching rescue sites for the past several years has been completely heartbreaking at times (even thought it’s a subject that I’ve been passionate about since I was a youngster, though things are worse than ever now). People dump pets when they don’t want them anymore, they don’t care for them correctly when they have them, and they think nothing of mistreating them. It’s disgusting. So responsible breeders aren‘t the sole problem, imo. Irresponsible ”breeders” can be, too - people who don’t bother getting veterinary care and shots so that the whole litter winds up with Parvo or other health issues, selling them to anyone with a pulse to make money even if it’s not a good fit for the puppy, having litter after litter, even with dogs who shouldn’t be bred due to health or temperament problems, etc.
We need a major re-educational effort with pet ownership, but it feels like a losing battle. It’s a free-for-all, really, where anyone can do anything they want, practically. Everyone got pets during the pandemic so that shelters were emptied out. It’s tough getting a veterinary appt in some cases because practices now are so full. I see people doing things to dogs on Instagram that are meant to be funny that are abusive. I’m so sad when that happens because I know others will then to it to their dogs, too. Ok, off soapbox. But it is good to talk about, I think - maybe it will help one dog, somehow. Luvs, I hope you can find the dog you are looking for that’s right for your family!
