Our Adoption Programs

All of our adoption programs include:

  • age-appropriate vaccinations
  • spay/neuter
  • current parasite prevention
  • microchip and registration
  • discounted boarding for life
  • lifetime counseling to assist in a quality life for you and your adopted dog
  • lifetime returns – we are committed to you and your dog for their entire life
  • one month of free pet insurance or a wellness program policy that will refund your first vet visit with no waiting period
  • a coupon for $20 off $50 at Hollywood Feed

All adopters have the option to choose either our 14 Day Express or 28 Day Ultimate Off Leash Training programs at 50% OFF!  This offer is valid at the time of adoption only.  One of these two training programs is required if you are adopting an active dog or puppy and do not have a fenced yard.

In the event of multiple approved applications on any given dog, preference is given to applicants who select a training program.  Why?  Because we want each of our dogs and their families to be safe and happy together.  We want to know that if a leash slips off, or someone leaves a door open, or a squirrel comes by that your dog will not run off and get hurt, lost or worse.  The goal of our program is peace of mind for the families that adopt our dogs and a happy, active life for our dogs with their families.

PLEASE REFER TO EACH DOG’S LISTING TO SEE WHICH PROGRAMS THEY ARE ELIGIBLE FOR.

ADOPTION PROGRAMS:

We’re offering discounted pricing through August 31st. To learn why click here.

BASIC – $399

  • Fenced yard required (must be in good repair and suitable for free run exercise)
  • 10% off boarding for life
  • Free through August 31

EXPRESS – $1049

  • Fenced yard optional
  • Includes our 14 Day OFF LEASH EXPRESS TRAINING program (normally $1,249)
  • 20% off boarding for life
  • Private lessons for life
  • 24/7 support
  • Remote training collar
  • $650 through August 31

ULTIMATE – $1499

SENIOR OR SPECIAL NEEDS – Negotiable

  • Negotiable based on dog and home (older dogs or dogs with special needs, fenced yard usually required)

HOMEBUDDIES – Free

  • This program is for difficult to place dogs that may have behavior issues that have not been responsive to training, but will still make great companions when matched with the right home; only expense is the cost of a remote training collar at $200) –  INCLUDES our 14 day OFF LEASH EXPRESS program, valued at $1249;  READ MORE ABOUT THIS TRAINING PROGRAM

OUR ADOPTION PROCESS

  1. Complete our adoption application (available online only). We start each application in the order received.  We can often process them within 1-2 business days if the application is completed in full.  If your application is missing information, we have trouble contacting your references or there are issues with your veterinary history, it will take understandably longer to process.
  2. Once you are approved, we will set up a visit (by appointment please so that we can be available for you) to our facility to meet the dogs that are a good fit based on your application. Visits are scheduled for the dog’s location (either of our two shelters or a foster’s home).  Shelter visits are scheduled in one-hour blocks of time where we are dedicated to you for that block
  3. Once you select your companion, we may do a home visit if needed.
  4. You complete an adoption contract and payment (via email). Until both of those items are received, dogs remain adoptable to other parties.
  5. Bringing your new dog or puppy home:  For puppies and dogs that are not going directly into formal training, we set up a follow up appointment for pickup.  This allows us to do a final exam, prepare your adoption packet and records and give your new dog or puppy a spa day (bath, ear clean, nail trim).  For dogs old enough to enter training (typically 6+ months), they will begin their formal training program.  We do occasionally have a slight delay for space.  And there are rare cases where we may send a nervous or timid dog home first to get comfortable with you prior to doing training.
  6. For dogs adopted through a training program, we do 2-4 visits/lessons (depending on selected program) at our Temple location, with the last being the day you take your new pup home. This time frame and the lessons can vary by dog and adoptive individual and family. They can be affected by weather and holidays, but we work hard to get your dog home as quickly as possible, while completing the training lessons that are important to your new dog and your family.

ABOUT OUR OUR FULL SERVICE TRAINING PROGRAM:

THIS IS **NOT** your typical “pet store” or group class training. The result is a dog that you can enjoy in any setting and know that it’s safe and a pleasure for everyone it visits with. You will be able to run, bike, hike, camp, garden and just plain relax with a dog that isn’t going to run off or cause trouble or get itself hurt or worse.

With the exception of seniors and special needs dogs, we recommend that all of adoptables receive either our “14 Day Express Off Leash” or “28 Day Ultimate Off Leash” training program, which are available to the general public.

If you are adopting a puppy, they will go home with you and then head to our Temple center some time after 6 months of age to complete their training.

Both of our training programs includes behavior training, socialization and obedience training.  They both include off leash recall.  The big difference between the 14 and 28 day programs is leash training and two more weeks for the overall training to be formally reinforced.

When dogs complete our program, they will walk with you off leash and respond to recall off leash.  We will also have addressed any manners/behavior issues that would cause problems in their new homes. Some dogs do have lingering issues that we fully disclose and work with you to mitigate — the most common is dogs that can jump 4′ fences (which is probably why they ended up in the shelter in the first place!).  You will need to reinforce the training throughout the day and occasionally practice the lessons you learned to keep the training reinforced.

When you come out for lessons, our typical lessons are:

Week One:  Manners (no jumping, mouthing, barking), proper greeting, sitting for attention and treats, possibly some initial recall work within a fenced area
Week Two:  Continued review of manners, off leash work within and outside a fenced area.  Dogs enrolled in our 14 Day Express program go home following this lesson.
Week Three:  Continued review of manners, off leash work outside a fenced area, beginning leash walking.
Week Four:  Continued review of manners, off leash work outside a fenced area, leash walking

Your new dog is ready to go home when we’ve completed the lessons and both you and we are confident and comfortable with your new pup’s relationship and response to you and your family.

As part of our programs, we offer lifetime private lessons as our form of a guarantee.  No owner/adopter or dog is perfect.   People get busy or distracted and training can be set to the wayside.  You can always set up a private lesson by appointment for us to help you get back on track.

Adoptions with training also include:

  • Private lessons prior to adoption and UNLIMITED private lessons as needed once adoption is complete (for dogs that have completed training and to reinforce our program)
  • 20% off boarding at our home-based facility for LIFE
  • Unlimited access to us for advice and assistance for ANYTHING you need in relationship to your adopted dog

The nature of our rescue program requires that dogs are with us for a holding period from the time we take them into our program. During this time, they are living in and around our home with a variety of other dogs (and in some cases other animals) and general activity. We are assessing them 24/7 so that we know them very well and can confidently help you make the perfect match for a new companion. And we are training them daily (once they are happy and healthy) to prepare them for adoption.

We understand that some people are shocked by this adoption fee. Please understand that this is NOT about making money. We care for 100 or more dogs in our program on a daily basis. All of our dogs are here typically 2-3 or more times longer than most rescues in other programs. We feed them high quality food, administer parasite prevention and provide food, toys, bedding, crates and a staff that helps care for them while we assess their behavior and temperament and conduct training. ALL of the proceeds from our adoptions go directly back to our rescue program.

Our adoption fee for the 28 Day Off Leash (which was our only program at the time we started the rescue) was originally set by taking a traditional adoption fee of $250 and then adding our commercial training program at half price (687.50 back in 2009). We originally offered the training as an option. Almost every adopter did the training. The few that didn’t were calling with behavior and training issues. We felt that there is a value to our training, both to the adopter, but even more importantly to the dog. We want our dogs to be LOVED and to become INSEPARABLE members of the family. We don’t want them to cause stress or frustration. So we do give preference in the placement of dogs to adopters who are willing to go through one of our training programs.

We hope that most people can see the value in the training and we encourage you to come out to visit and see the training in action if you are a potential adopter that’s skeptical or on the fence. This is not traditional sit/stay training. This is training that will give you a well-balanced dog that is a pleasure 24/7. They are not little robots and they are not 100% without fault. But when you have a dog that you can travel with, hang out with, go to the mailbox with and that your friends and family can enjoy, we know that we’ve done our job by matching you with a dog that’s a true companion and not just a pet…

For more information, please email us.

Our HomeBuddies adoptions require strict screening and matching. These adoptions focus on dogs that are well-behaved and loving, but may have specific issues that have not responded to training. Some examples include socialization issues with other dogs or not being able to be around small children (not aggressive, but reactive to things like grabbing or quick jerky movements). These are loving dogs that deserve a chance at a forever home, but that will require special homes (i.e. no children, no other dogs, etc.). They each do include our 14 Day Off Leash Express program and the only expense is the cost of a remote collar that comes with the program (approx $200).

READ MORE ABOUT OUR:

Adoptable dogs

Success Stories

Testimonials