|
Our Adoption Process You may be surprised to find that adopting a pet is a more involved process than you'd imagined. Our adoption process is the same for everyone and it is not our intent to frustrate you. Rather, everything we do is in the best interests of the animals in our care. Our goal is to give them the best possible chance of finding a permanent, safe and loving home and to help your find the perfect match. Our adoption policies are based on our experience and the experience of many other shelters. Before meeting the animals, you will be asked to fill out an application. Adoption applications can be downloaded and then faxed or emailed to us, or you can fill one out at the shelter. If you fax or email your application to us our shelter director can visit with you by phone. Our process includes questions about your living situation, pet history, current pets, the type of pet you are looking for, and the way in which it will be cared for. We're not just being nosy! Some of our dogs and cats would be good with kids, or other pets, or appropriate for first-time pet owners. Others may have behavioral problems, special needs, or may be more appropriate for an experienced pet owner. The questions we ask enable us to better assist you with matching your needs and desires in a pet with the needs of our available animals. The Humane Society does reserve the right to refuse adoption. If your application for the adoption of an animal is not approved, we will do our best to explain the reason(s). Please bear in mind that denial is not a rejection of you, as a person; it is a refusal to place a particular animal in a particular situation. We generally do not adopt to homes outside of the KC metropolitan and surrounding areas. We do occasionally make exceptions. The most common situation would be when someone is a very good match for one of our pets who is difficult to find a home for. Please contact us if you have questions. Please note that many of our dogs do require a fenced yard, though there may some who are appropriate for apartment living or circumstances where a fence may not be required. We will do a yard-check before you take the dog home to be sure the type of fence you have is appropriate for the dog you have chosen. Once the application has been completed and meets the requirements of our adoption policies, an adoption counselor will show you the animals available for adoption. The counselor will fill you in on the history and needs of the animal(s) you are interested in. We're also there to answer any questions you have and offer helpful suggestions. We have get-acquainted rooms and outside fenced areas where you can visit and play with the pet you are interested in. If you decide you'd like to adopt one of our pets, we reserve the pet for you but we generally don't send the pet home with you that day (exceptions may be made by sending in an application and visiting on the phone with our shelter director). We want to give you some time to think about it-- it's a big commitment. This also gives us time to spay or neuter, do a yard-check, etc. You can pick up your pet the following day or arrange for another day that would be convenient for you and gives us enough time to meet our requirements. When you pick up your pet you will be asked to fill out an adoption contract and pay the adoption fee. Again, we do not intend to frustrate you. Our goal is to find a good match for you and to find permanent, safe and loving homes for the pets in our care. If you have questions about our adoption process, please call or e-mail us.
|
||||
