- If I see a pet I am interested, how do I adopt
it?
The first step is to complete an
application. We have it on our site under the adoption
application link. You can copy and paste the form into
an e-mail and include the requested information on your
current and past pets from the last 5 years.
After we receive the application
and confirm all information we may or may not schedule a
home visit with you prior to allowing you to adopt. If
we do not schedule the home visit first, we may schedule
it within two weeks of adoption to ensure the process is
going smoothly.
After you’ve been approved to
adopt, you must still complete the contract and pay the
adoption fee. Until the fee has been paid and the
contract has been signed, the pet will still be
available for anyone else to adopt. This is vital to
know in the case of high demand pets such as rare or
purebred pets. We will not under any circumstances hold
a pet for anyone without the contract and payment of the
adoption fee.
If you need a week or two before
you can take the pet to your home, we can arrange
boarding for you. You must still sign the contract and
pay the adoption fee first and pay an additional $30 per
week in boarding with a maximum of two weeks.
- What if I am interested in a
pet but not sure I want to adopt it?
You can feel free to contact us at
any time by phone or e-mail to ask questions about the
pet you are interested in. We can put you in touch with
the foster parent for the pet and they can answer any
specific questions you have.
If you’d feel more comfortable
meeting the pet in person, you can stop in and see us
every Saturday at the Petco in Murfreesboro in the
Avenue shopping plaza. We are usually there from 11-4.
If you plan on doing this, you must call us ahead of
time to so we know to bring that specific pet for you.
At any given time we have 30 – 50 animals or more in our
program but can only safely bring along 12 – 15, so it’s
essential you contact us and let us know you’d like to
see a specific pet.
Aside from adoption events, special
days / times may be arranged for you to see a pet.
Because our pets are not in a shelter, we don’t have
adoption times set up. We have to make arrangements
between you and the foster parents for meetings, so the
days and times may not be as flexible. Almost all of
our foster parents have full time jobs and families of
their own, so we have to work around their schedule.
- Can I ‘try out’ a pet before
adoption?
This is no longer an option. We
found moving pets from foster homes to potential
adoptive homes and back to us if the adopters weren’t
sure they wanted to commit to be too hard on the pets.
Since our adoption fees are non-refundable, we strongly
encourage you to put a lot of thought into this
decision. Pets are a life-long commitment. Larger
breeds may only live 8 to 10 years, but if you’re
looking at smaller breeds, keep in mind they can live up
to 20 years or so. Adoption of a pet should not be a
spur of the moment decision.
- What happens after I decide
to adopt?
Once you’ve signed your contract
and paid your adoption fee, in most cases you can take
your pet home right away. In some cases, if we’re
waiting on vetting or home visits, it may be a week or
two before you can bring them home.
We send home every adopter with a
folder with literature on adopting a pet and the things
that may happen. Just like all people are different, so
are all pets. Some of our pets are happy moving in with
anyone. They seem to move from ‘pack to pack’ quite
easily. Others may be nervous and take a week or two
before you see their true personality.
During this time you may or may not
have issues with housebreaking or other behaviors. We
send home a very detailed instruction sheet on
housebreaking your pet. It was written by someone
that’s been doing dog training and rescue work for a
long time and is the most comprehensive, detailed
guideline we’ve ever seen. If you lose your copy, we
have it below as well.
Included in your paperwork is
information on intestinal parasites, external parasites,
kennel cough, vaccination schedule, etc. Please take
some time in the first few days to read through this
information. Many of the dogs in our program are pulled
off euthanasia lines in shelters. They frequently come
to us in poor health with issues such as emaciation,
intestinal parasites, kennel cough, allergies from fleas
or food, etc. Before adoption they are all de-wormed,
brought up to date on their vaccinations, spayed /
neutered, and treated for any serious diseases such as
heartworm.
However, they may still be
recovering from kennel cough, or if adopted quickly may
be harboring kennel cough. Please refer to the
literature provided in this case. Kennel cough is
usually non-life threatening and seldom even requires
veterinary care. Robitussin can be used to treat the
cough until the virus runs it’s course. Kennel cough in
dogs is similar to the common cold in children.
·
What are
they adoption fees and what do they cover?
As of July 1, 2010, our
adoption fees for most dogs are $175. This includes
their spay / neuter, all annual vaccinations including
rabies, a negative heartworm test from the last year,
de-worming in the last 3 months, current on
preventatives for fleas / ticks and heartworms, as well
as a micro-chip through Home Again with a lifetime
pre-paid activation. Some dogs will have a higher
adoption fee if they will require specialized veterinary
care for prepare them for adoption. Puppies may be
higher as they need more vaccinations that an adult
dog. Cats are all courtesy listings and $30. They
include their first vaccinations and you must sign a
spay / neuter contract for them.
·
What do I
do if the pet I adopt gets sick?
Any sick pet needs to be
taken to a veterinarian. You can always feel free to
contact us any time for advice, but please keep in mind
we are not a veterinarian, nor are we seeing your pet in
person, so though we can try to give you sound advice,
your veterinarian is by far the best person to see your
sick pet. Also keep in mind, if your pet is sick after
adoption, HART is not responsible for your vet bills.
If that sickness is passed on to another of your pets,
we are not responsible for that bill either. Full
veterinary care of your pet is your responsibility after
adoption.
At what age can a dog be spayed
or neutered?
As young as six weeks old (although male puppies must
have both of their testicles descended before being
neutered). In the past, many people have waited until a
dog is at least six months old before having her or him
spayed or neutered. However, it is far better to do the
surgery at a younger age, before the animal reaches
sexual maturity. Therefore, we recommend spaying or
neutering by four months of age.
What are the benefits of spaying
a female dog?
Spaying a dog will almost completely eliminate the risk
of her developing an infection of the uterus (pyometra).
This is a very common and severe condition in intact
female dogs, which is usually fatal unless the dog
undergoes emergency surgery. Up to 75 percent of female
dogs who are not spayed will develop this condition.
Other benefits include a reduction in the risk of
mammary (breast) cancer, elimination of the risk of
uterine cancer, avoidance of inconvenient heat cycles
and the risks associated with mating, pregnancy and
birth, and much lower dog licensing fees.
What are the benefits of
neutering a male dog?
Neutering a male dog completely eliminates the risk of
testicular cancer. It also greatly reduces the risk of
prostate infections, and often reduces certain problem
behaviors such as mounting,urine marking, aggression to
other dogs, escaping and roaming. Also, license fees for
neutered dogs are much lower.
Do
you know the cost for the first year of care for a puppy
you've purchased, compared to the first year cost of a
dog you've adopted? Check it out!
Purchase price of a puppy
$250
-
Vaccinations (figured at $50 per
set, 3 sets given) $150
-
Spay / neuter $120
-
Replacing carpet that puppy was
housebroken on (based on $3/sq ft for a 12x14 room) $500
-
Replacing a chewed up piece of
furniture that puppy cuts his teeth on $125
Total puppy
purchase cost in the first year: $1145
Adoption fee for a dog $150
-
Vaccinations will already be done
for you
-
Spay / neuter will already be done
for you
-
Most adopted dogs are already
housebroken
-
Most adopted dogs are already past
the chewing stage
Total
adoption cost in the fist year $150
The stress that you saved by not having to replace
furniture or carpet and the feeling you get knowing that
you saved a life:
Priceless
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Housetraining your dog (puppy or adult!)
The first thing you need to do is to remember that
you’re trying to reinforce a new behavior. That means
that the rewards for this behavior must be WONDERFUL.
NOT crap from the store. Wonderful treats are poached
chicken breast/turkey breast, cheese and steak. And
you don’t have to use big pieces. Tiny pieces (about
3mm cubes) are just fine! I poach a whole turkey
breast every few weeks, cut it into hunks when it’s
cool enough to handle, wrap them well and store them
in the freezer. When I need some, I’ll thaw a hunk
overnight and cut off pieces and dice finely, storing
them in a plastic bag in the fridge. One hunk will
last about five days. Cheese is also popular, so
variety is fine.
I carry these plastic bags in my jacket pockets in the
winter and in a fanny pack in warmer weather. You HAVE
to have these with you, or this method won’t work,
because you need to reward as soon as the dog finishes
pooping or peeing. It’s not going to work if the
rewards are in the house.
Remember that you’re trying to change a very ingrained
behavior. Some dogs like to feel certain things under
their feet when they eliminate, like fabric, or
newspaper. This is called a ‘substrate preference.’
What you’re trying to do is change this substrate
preference, and to do that you have to make the treats
SO wonderful that the dog will change this very
well-entrenched behavior. Thus the chicken, cheese,
steak.
I love clicker training, but this can be done without
clickers. You just need a way to ‘mark’ the behavior
you want to reinforce. Use the word ‘YESSSSS!!!!’ very
enthusiastically – that works for some.
You’re going to need to GO OUTSIDE WITH your dog and
the dog needs to be on a leash. Yes, even in winter.
If you don’t reward IMMEDIATELY after the event (when
dog immediately finishes pooping or peeing) and wait
inside, the dog is going to be reinforced for coming
inside, not for doing its business. So, leash up your
dog. STAND IN ONE PLACE. Be boring. Bring a book or
magazine for yourself.
Eventually, the dog will do what you’re waiting for.
The NANOSECOND that the dog is finished, HAVE A PARTY
– lots of loud, high-pitched praise, treats and
running around. You want to make this memorable for
your dog! You’ll find that once the first event is
achieved, the others will come more quickly. Keep on
treating (you don’t have to throw a party except for
milestones – a milestone = if he only pooped outside
but now peed, too, or something equivalent to that)
until he’s good and used to peeing/pooping outside.
Before you know it, you have a trained dog.
Regarding accidents in the house: NO SCOLDING. Just
clean them up. If you scold you’ll get the dog to
think it’s bad to pee or poop and he’ll do it in
places you won’t see. Until you step in it. Invest in
a big bottle of Nature’s Miracle or Simple Solution
and use it liberally on accidents.
To quote Patricia McConnell, author of “The Other End
of the Leash” and co-author of “Way to Go” (a booklet
on housetraining), “Once you face the fact that you
just have take your dog out every time you turn
around, give them the treat immeditely after they
potty, and prevent accidents in the house… well, it
usually goes so smoothly.”
With young puppies, remember they have little control
of the muscle that holds the bladder closed. This is
something they grow into. Just as it’s not expected
that a human baby is toilet trained at six months,
don’t expect much from a puppy. Patience, patience,
patience!!!! The nervous system in a puppy has to
mature, and it won’t have much control over the
sphincter (closing muscle) at the neck of the bladder
until six or seven months. The same goes for the anal
sphincter. Until control is achieved, both of these
muscles operate on reflex: there are stretch receptors
in the bladder wall. When the bladder is full, it
sends impulses to the spinal cord and these, in turn,
send signals to the sphincter to open and the dog
pees.
In the stomach wall, there are also stretch receptors.
So when the dog eats and the stomach is stretched, the
impulses again go to the spinal cord, but this time
the reflex, outgoing, nerve signals are sent to the
anal sphincter, so the dog defecates. This operates in
people, too – which is why some people rush to the
‘reading room’ after a meal – especially breakfast.
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