Please read the information below before offering to rehome any of our dogs:
We try very hard to make sure our dogs and puppies have the best possible care, given that they are in a rescue environment. We hope to give them the best start to their new lives with you, their adopters, and our volunteers commit a huge amount of time and resources to this. We expect adopters to match this commitment.
When you take on one of our dogs, you are taking on the responsibility for the rest of his or her lifetime. Please look ahead to the future with your dog.
Are you really sure that you are sufficiently committed to the time, effort, training and expense that your dog will need, not just immediately but for a lifetime?
Are you going to be able to work through the challenges and issues that are part of dog ownership?
Rescue dogs are no different from other dogs: they all need to be continually trained and controlled, exercised and looked after, and loved and cherished.
The difference with rescue dogs is that humans have already let them down at least once.
Please do not book or adopt one of our dogs unless you are completely prepared to work with them, come what may, and that you are COMPLETELY determined that YOU will not be the human who lets them down again.
OUR ANIMALS ARE NOT AN “IMPULSE BUY”!
It is absolutely essential that you view adoption as a LIFETIME commitment before you even consider offering a home to any of our animals, bearing always in mind that we do not sell animals but instead seek responsible adopters who will care for them for life; regardless of age, sex and how much we have spent rehabilitating.
Adoption fees are;
- Puppies under 6 months from £450
- Dogs over 6 months from £300
- Dogs over 8 years old from £250
If you offer a home to one of our animals, we then reserve the animal to you while a home visit is arranged. Unfortunately, some people do this then change their minds. Time-wasters cost too much. Let us explain:
– This may cost the animal a chance of another home.
– It costs the time and resources of the branch which costs money.
– It costs the expense of keeping the animal in a kennel at £9.00 up to £10.50 a day (depending on the size of the dog) while we start the rehoming process all over again.
– It prolongs the time spent in a kennel whereby the dog’s well being is affected.
– It may cost the time and resources of our home visitors, which they freely donate as volunteers.
– It may cost the time and emotions of our fosterers and the Dog Rehoming Co-ordinator.
– And it costs the LIFE of other animals waiting to come into our care.
We are very disappointed when people waste our time in this way, nearly as disappointed as we are when people take on animals then return them after a short time without having the compassion and understanding to work with them, perhaps with training classes or with our advice and help.
After all, any relationship, whether with animals or people, requires work and commitment!
So please THINK very carefully before you book or adopt an animal.
This is not a decision to be taken lightly, but it is essential that you have done all your thinking before you offer a home to an innocent little soul who has already faced rejection and trauma.
There will be many more animals, so do not rush your choice or compromise the chances for an individual animal.
Please also consider your ability to meet the considerable ongoing expenses that responsible animal care represents.
All dogs that come into our care are given behavioural assessments to the best of our ability before they are rehomed. Some have come to us in traumatic circumstances and we work with them to help them settle and be ready for new owners. Some of the more common behavioural issues that can arise in dogs are – separation anxiety, aggression and even house training problems. You can download useful fact sheets about some of these problems here or email the dog rehoming coordinator for advice sheets on rehoming@rspca-macclesfield.org.uk.
We are able to offer basic advice, but for persistent behavioural problems we recommend you contact a reputable behaviourist that comes recommended either by your vet or your local RSPCA branch.
Please remember that even though we give you accurate and honest information on the dogs their behaviour can change when moved to a new environment, behavioural problems that didn’t show themselves whilst in our care could materialise later on.
We highly recommend that when you take on a rescue dog that you do not take him everywhere, especially to busy areas be it walks, town centres, events etc…and not to have many visitors to the home. The first couple of weeks are crucial in building a bond with your new dog, concentrating on building his trust in you and vice versa, walk in quiet areas is a must and don’t put your dog in any situations that might put them under stress which can cause your dog to react in a negative way. Getting a new dog is exciting for you but for the new dog to find itself with people he doesn’t know and starting from scratch again is a very daunting and scary experience. Dogs quite often appear confident and happy and signs of stress or uncertainty are not picked up by the new owners.
Do not try and force something off the dog i.e. toys, food.
Do not get into power struggles and do not test your new dog. He will not understand what your intentions are.
If any kind of force is used it can bring about a defensive mechanism and can create problems that weren’t there before i.e. toy/food possessiveness.
Do not take your dog to any form of training until at least a couple of months bonding with him and do not bring any trainers in to the home until the dog is fully settled after said time.
Do not attempt to groom or bath your new dog and be mindful that your dog may be all over the place in the new home and may be distressed and vocal when put into a closed room, please remember it takes time for your dog to calm down in a new home and to trust you and your intentions.
Do not expect a ready made perfect dog; time and patience is key!
Do read any leaflets/booklets/information as soon as you get your dog home as we hand them out for a reason.
Adopters quite often forget or ignore our advice so it’s paramount that we try and get new owners to follow the advice given to them to prevent problems, to make life easier for you and more importantly to give your new dog the best start in his new life with you!
Link to our dogs who need homes
Useful Links;
Our Terms and conditions of adoption
RSPCA Pet care for dogs
Consider a staffie
An important message using footage of dogs we’ve rehomed made by Dan who fostered Buster-the star of the show!