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Bad experiences with rescue groups

12K views 99 replies 38 participants last post by  wolfy dog 
#1 ·
Hi everyone, this is my first time on this site! I have spent a couple hours reading through posts and have leant a bunch.
I am currently on the market for 2 GSD dogs. I have been looking for over a year now.

I originally was going through rescues and shelters because I see "Adopt Don't Shop" campaigns all over. The first dog I got from a local rescue group was a 6 year old German Shepherd mix(he looked like a giant long coat shepherd). He died 2 weeks after I got him of heart failure from having bad heart worms. The rescue group said it was my fault because their vet cleared him healthy. My vet said there was no way he could gotten heart worms that badly in the 2 weeks I had him. Plus, supposedly the rescue had him on HW preventative when I adopted him.
After that I went to shelters and after a while met and fell in love with this little shepherd girl. She couldn't be adopted at the time because she had a new litter of puppies. I offered to foster them all but they said you have to take a class and be a member of a rescue group to do so. I gave them my number and came and visited her every couple days. After 5 weeks the shelter calls me to say a rescue group is taking her and the puppies to find them homes. I call the rescue group to say that I really want to adopt her and that I already have a connection with her. They wont adopt her out to me because I live outside of their adoption area!(side note, she is still to this day not adopted!!)
Next I started looking at rescue groups again. I found a beautiful shepherd cattle dog mix that sounded like her personality would fit me perfectly. I contacted the rescue and they agreed that it sounded like a match. I asked to meet her and they said they don't schedule meetings without a deposit so that they know they aren't wasting their time. I put a deposit down and didn't hear back from them for 2 weeks. Finally they sent me an email saying that they don't actually have her yet. They had adopted her out to a farm in another state and she didn't adjust well to farm life so the people wanted to give her back to the rescue. The recue had no way to bring her back yet and wouldn't until this following winter when farming season is over.

Needless to say, I am through with rescues and shelters! They have been some of the most un-honest people I have ever delt with. I have spent just over $3500(vet bills and deposit fees only) so far trying to get a dog and have nothing to show for it besides a terrifying story of having your new dog die of heart failure while up on Runyon Canyon and trying to carry 135# of dead weight back down.


I am looking for a very honest breeder.
But having gone through all this already I have put together exact profile of what my 2 ideal GSDs will look like and behave like.
Would it be presumptuous of me to send exactly what I am wanting to a breeder I find? I am more than willing to wait for the right dogs to come along once I find the right breeder(or breeders probably for what I am wanting.)

Any advise on how to spot an honest breeder? I have already contacted a few breeders in my area and was not impressed with any of them. One actually told me I ask too many questions!

Is it bad to be precise on what color of dog you want?
 
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#2 ·
I'm sorry that you have had such a bad experience with the rescues and shelters in your area. :( We, too, had a bit of an issue with the rescue where we got our dog. It definitely opened my eyes to the fact that all rescues are not created the same. I now have the pleasure of volunteering with a very credible, stable rescue, and it taught me that I would never get another dog from the rescue we originally did. It also makes me sad that rescues/shelters can be so radical. I think it can push people toward breeders, and especially backyard breeders since many people don't take the time to educate themselves about the differences. So, I applaud you for reaching out to do your research about breeders. We might be able to help you locate a reputable breeder based on your location and the type of dog you are looking for. It is not presumptuous to know what you're looking for in a dog--in fact, it's great! A good breeder should work with you, get a grasp of your goals and the qualities you like, and will match you with a dog accordingly. Although I always put temperament first, it doesn't hurt to have a color preference, but I wouldn't make it my first priority. :)
 
#4 ·
Post your location, people will give recommendations.

I'll tell you this much though...a reputable breeder is extremely unlikely to sell you two GSD pups at the same time. And if they have older dogs that they're looking to rehome, they're still unlikely to give you both at the same time because its just a well known fact that dealing with two dogs at the same time is exponentially harder than just one.
 
#38 ·
:thumbup: I agree with this.

Get 1 puppy, raise it, train it, bond with it, love it, and when that puppy is around 2 or 3 years old you can get another puppy if you have the time, money and patience to handle a 2nd GSD puppy. :)
 
#6 ·
I am sorry for the trouble you have encountered trying to adopt. It's very sad.

As for getting a puppy from a breeder. I would plan on getting 1 puppy at a time. Don't go in to it wanting 2 puppies at the same time. Many good breeders will not even do that. It makes it much harder to bond with each dog as an individual.

There is nothing wrong with color preference.

Asking a breeder to sell you a dog that adheres to very certain behaviors. Well that's going to turn any breeder off, why? Because it's your job as the owner to teach what you want. The best a breeder can do us give you a general personality, activity and drive level. That's it.


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#7 ·
ime
good breeders are like good rescues and will screen the homes
as others have said i doubt you can find one to sell u two dogs or pups at once
in the good breeder department

now a backyard breeder on the other hand will give u anything u want as long as you have money in hand

i am sorry about your rescue experiences
i can tell u not all rescues are like that
 
#8 ·
I am not sure how to do an actual reply to a single person on here.

I am in the SoCal area but am will to travel anywhere for the right breeder. My rescue dog that died was from Georgia. So I have no problem with traveling and shipping.


I should of better worded what I am looking for. I am pretty new to the world of breeders and am still learning some of the terminology used.
While I want 2 dogs, I don't want them at the same time but I realize most breeders seem to have a couple months to a years wait list so I want to go on and get on a wait list for them both.
Especially for what I am looking for the wait might be even longer.
I want a black and red from a west german show line and a long coat either black sable or red sable from, I guess where I have seen these produced is working lines(ddr)?
For personality I want ones that are not very high in drive but still very active as I am a very active individual with hiking and runs every single day along with daily beach trips(it's right out my back door). My work is very active(always outside and moving) and the dog would accompany me every day. I do NOT have an actual yard but I got one of my balconies fake grassed. It is 10 feet out, 25 feet long and then turns for another 10x24 feet(L shaped). The dog would never been home alone, and I'm only home at night from about 10pm-6am every day. So very active.
I have a trainer already lines up, and am wanting to get my dog into dog surfing and skating as well as trained in personal protection(more so for the dogs fun than my own).

I would be interested in retired breeders or possibly dogs held back that just didn't turn out as I love those little imperfections that breeders see in dogs, I think it makes them cute. As well as started younger dogs or puppies just ready to go.


I hope this gives some insight as to what it is I am looking for.
 
#10 ·
I have nothing to say other than the fact that I have seen some incredibly shady rescues and I hardly trust any of them, it doesn't surprise me at all of your encounters.

Do I dare say I think some of them even go as far as make a profit and the call themselves non profit ? -_-
- Maybe

Plan on one puppy, and then feel it out some before immediately putting a deposit on a future puppy.

But if you absolutely want to put down your name for two right now, almost any good breeder will be willing to move your deposit to a later litter if you decide you're not exactly ready for the second one when it comes available.


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#11 ·
Do I dare say I think some of them even go as far as make a profit and the call themselves non profit ? -_-
- Maybe
I agree completely! The boy I rescued that died was a owner surrender. He was already UTD on shots and neutered when the rescue got him. I rescued him 3 weeks later. They supposedly brought him to a vet(I don't believe that they ever did because he was badly infected with HWs).
His adoption fee was $350(not including his shipping, obviously).
Maybe $100 of that was spent on food during that time.
They didn't even get him groomed. I had to have him shaved down when I got him because his coat was so matted and flea infested.

I questioned the adoption fee and was told the adoption fee isn't just to help the one dog you adopt but give the rescue money to help other dogs. =/ It sounded good at the time to me.
 
#14 ·
Sorry to hear what you have been through. I had similar experiences with the rescues in our area. It's a shame really. There are really good people out there that want to adopt and some of these rescues are driving people away from saving dogs.

We ended up going to a breeder. We put down a deposit on a pup on the spot and they weren't even born yet. We were so impressed with the parents that it was a no brainer. We told the breeder exactly what we wanted in temperament. We gave her creative license with color and gender. We really didn't care about those things. She nailed it, I think our pup is exactly what we were looking for.

My point being a good breeder knows their dogs. They know what to look for and have experience enough to know what the pups will be when they grow up, so to speak.
 
#15 ·
Nine months ago, I wanted a rescue and my husband wanted a purebred GSD. I was haunted by a photo of an intense young working line dog who had been returned to her breeder. We just recently " rescued" her adolescent half brother who was also returned. Going this route has been amazing and provided my rescue guilt with an outlet while making my husband happy too. Returns are often quirky and what someone else gave up has been perfect for us :) Also, our breeder is reputable and does health checks on parents, trains and titles them so we know what to expect. She has some long coats available and is in WI if you are interested...
- Emily
Macro z Gildaf Von Schraderhaus
" Skadi"
Viking z Gildaf Von Schraderhaus
" Grim"
 
#16 ·
We already had a 1 1/2 yr old purebred male gsd from a rep. Breeder but wanted another. We found some GSD rescue groups were a real nightmare to deal with. No return calls, emails etc.. Its almost as though they didnt care about getting the pups / dogs into good homes.
After about a month and half of this I almost gave up.

Then one day I happened by the local ACSPA kennel and stopped in. Well I instantly fell for a little GSD? but he had distinct colors I've never really seen before ( grey, white and black brindle).

Well long story short. Thru a lot of calls, tracking, ect I was finally able to track down his origins ( came from the southwest ). Had testing done to verify and it turns out my little GSD is actually a NAID.

So don't give up. You never know what's is just around the next corner..
 
#19 · (Edited)
The experiences people are relating here re: shelters/rescues are not in line with my experience both as a volunteer and adopter. Like BowWowMeow said, do your research no matter which direction you choose (breeder or rescue).... there are bad rescues out there, sure... nobody is denying that. But, in my opinion, it really is not that hard to find good ones.

According to what I have learned from this forum, a lot of people spend months/years researching breeders but yet when it comes to rescue, people think the first rescue they google must automatically be a good rescue without doing any further research. On top of that, if they do stumble upon a good rescue, they tend to get offended that the rescue will not immediately adopt a dog to them or cannot respond to their inquiries at lightning speed.

I can say that I have never volunteered for a breed-specific rescue, my experiences have always been with all dog/all breed rescues/shelters. The ones I work with do the vet checks, treat dogs with health problems, spay/neuter all dogs (or in the case of puppies contractually obligate the adopter to spay/neuter at 6 months) and are open and honest with people about problems. These places are out there! Do your research!
 
#21 ·
Happy rescue story.

My Tasha dropped at a shelter by POS owners who didn't take her to the vet. Tail was so infected they had to amputate it. She was rescued and brought to Nevada where she was x-rayed and found to have a rock in her stomach. Rescue paid over $300 dollars to have rock removed. The person who was supposed to adopt her backed out because she didn't like cats.



A application, and several references later and she was mine for a $100 adoption fee. I have a copy of her papers, she is AKC registered WGSL from fairly famous lines. We've had her for over a year now. She fit it so well with the rest of my pack that we went back.

Meet my pup Sarge



Same rescue same $100.00 adoption fee. There is also a spay/neuter deposit for puppies of $150.00 required by the state of Nevada but it is refunded when they are altered.

His mama was rescued as a very pregnant stray and transported to Nevada (I helped with the transport) where she gave birth to the puppies. They were raised and fed and given shots and micro-chipped all at rescues expense. The rescue is not making any money... It all goes back into the dogs and the $100 adoption fee is less that that the adoption fee I paid for my shelter dogs.
 
#22 ·
If I offended anyone with my story then I apologize. I'm not bashing anyone or belittling a truly needed resource But there's no reason repeated calls and emails over a four week time should go unanswered. Should it really matter if its a rescue or any other type of private or public organization? Just a bad way to manage ones business. I will not name the places I tried to contact out of respect for what rescues do. Maybe they were short handed or overwhelmed at the time. And both were not fly by night organizations. You are correct that there are great rescues out there. I was just stating my experience we with a couple that were not.
 
#30 ·
i agree with nikki!

it seriously amazes me when the mark of a good breeder is proper screening of homes!
some even choose the puppy for you!
why, if a breeder just gives the first person who shows up on the doorstep a puppy, they are labeled bybs!

but if a rescue should dare question where the dog will live? what it might eat or how it will be treated?
they are met with this attitude??
Your adopting a homeless mutt, they should be happy for your time and attention.

so the dogs rescues have are little more than trash on the street and what right do they have to know anything at all about you, because you are doing them a favor!

just sitting here shaking my head :cool:
 
#32 ·
I don't think that was the point of the post, IMHO. A rescue should be chomping at the bit to return any and all phone calls/emails from people wanting to adopt dogs. They can weed them out all they want after the initial contact, but rescues/shelters are always screaming about over crowding...they should be returning an email/phone call within 72 hours. The goal is to get a dog into a good home as quickly as possible.

I went the rescue route before deciding on a breeder. I gave up after the lack of returned calls or e-mails and not following through on home visits or applications.
 
#31 ·
I was just at the downy city shelter a few weeks ago and brought home a beautiful one year old male sable german shepherd. There about six other ones there, including puppies. I was fully prepared to get a puppy through a breeder and had been actively researching different breeders and bloodlines etc. The los angeles and orange county shelters are easy to adopt through. I rarely ever looked at dogs at county shelters because i had a bias that I would never find exactly what i was looking for. I was suprised to see what appeared to me a ddr or czech line shepherd. I dont have papers and this dog might be a mix or even have no gsd in him at all but he was exactly what i was looking for in a dog. I know the process of going through a rescue group can be a little trying on the patience, and i have nothing against buying from a reputable breeder (especially when you are looking for dogs of a specific line etc.) But keep an eye on what dogs show up in la, orange, riverside etc. county because there always seem to be at least a couple gsds at each one any time i have gone on the websites
 
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