adoption policy

Our aim is to ensure that all unwanted dogs which come into our care should be found loving new homes, where a lifestyle, appropriate to their breed and temperament can be reasonably assured

• Prospective owners must be aged 21 yrs or over

• We will not re-home to potential owners who are likely to leave a dog alone for long periods of time (over 5 hours)

• We welcome owners with families but will not rehome where there are children under 5 yrs old

• All dogs must be neutered. Should the dog be offered for adoption before being neutered (for example bitches who have only just finished a season cannot be neutered for 3 months as this may compromise their health) then the new owner MUST neuter the dog. Follow up by West Yorkshire Dog Rescue will ensure this happens and if the dog is not neutered within 3 months of the adoption date, West Yorkshire Dog Rescue will retrieve the dog back into our care.

• We will not re-home to where a dog is kept outside the home

• The new owner is responsible for veterinary treatment and third party liability from the moment the dog leaves the West Yorkshire Dog Rescue foster, irrespective of whether an Adoption Contract has yet been signed

• We expect new owners to give the dog a reasonable amount of time to settle and adjust to a new life, however if an incompatibility arises the dog MUST be returned to West Yorkshire Dog Rescue at the owner’s expense West Yorkshire Dog Rescue cannot accept responsibility for the temperament of any dog once it has been re-homed. All our dogs are given thorough health and temperament assessments. However once a dog has settled into a new home his or her behaviour can sometimes change. We can only advise on the temperament of any dog while it is in our care, or in rare occasions based on the information provided by previous owner

adoption procedure

Our adoption procedure is as follows...

• We will interview to discover what you want from owning a dog, your lifestyle and home circumstances so that we can match one of our dogs to suit

• we go through a process of checking your suitability for a particular dog that you are interested in - you may be turned down for one particular dog that you are interested in but offered one that is better suited to your lifestyle and needs

• we may take up references from a veterinary surgeon

• all family members must meet the dog and demonstrate commitment to owning a rescue dog

• all owners are asked to sign an adoption contract [Adoption Contract.pdf]

• donations provided on adoption help to cover veterinary expenses.

• all puppies must attend training classes so you must provide information on training classes in your area

West Yorkshire Dog Rescue cannot accept responsibility for the temperament of any dog once it has been re-homed. All our dogs are given thorough health and temperament assessments. However once a dog has settled into a new home his or her behaviour can sometimes change. We can only advise on the temperament of any dog while it is in our care, or in rare occasions based on the information provided by previous owners.

Please consider carefully the responsibility of adopting a lost and abandoned dog - the whole family must be 100% committed to wanting a rescue dog. The rewards are tremendous - rescue dogs understand they have been saved so make loyal and faithful pets.

However you need to remember that they are needy and often disturbed by their past treatment. Please consider whether you have the time, patience and love to give such a dog. Many have been to hell and back and they feel deep sadness when people adopt them then return them within a short time without giving enough time to settle into their new life.