The Rehoming Process
In order to maintain a calm environment for our dogs, we are not open for visits from the general public but by appointment only. If you have a genuine interest in rehoming a dog, you will need to make an application via email or by post. Please read on …
Thinking About Adopting A Dog
Adopting a rescue dog is not just about choosing the breed, there is so much more to think about:
- Dogs can live up to 15 years, and if you’re lucky, into their 20’s! That is potentially 20+ years of commitment from you in terms of training, exercising, food bills, vet bills, holiday boarding fees, etc.
- All dogs, but especially rescue dogs, will need settling in to a new environment. This means someone needs to be home for much of the day in the beginning. Some may suffer from separation anxiety, many will need house-training, and remember that puppies can be destructive.
- The majority of our dogs are brought in as strays. This means that often we do not have their full history. Our dogs are thoroughly assessed and we will only put up for adoption a dog that we consider to be of the right temperament to settle into a home environment.
Please bear in mind that many of the dogs here at Appledown have already been let down by at least one owner. But if you still think a rescue dog is right for you, the rewards are huge and you will have a wonderfully loyal and loving companion, hopefully for years to come. And we will provide support to you and your new addition for as long as you need it.
Our dogs are as individual as you are and that means we have a number of criteria that must be met to adopt a dog, criteria which are non-negotiable.
- You cannot adopt a dog if you live in the area in which it was found.
- If you have children living in your house who are under the age of 7 years you cannot adopt an adult dog, where an adult dog is defined as aged 5 months+. In effect, you can only adopt a puppy. If you live in rented or Council accommodation, you will need to bring with you written proof that you are allowed to keep a dog/an additional dog.
- If you are over retirement age, we will ask you to adopt age-appropriate dogs. This is not about questioning your current health or activity levels but thinking ahead and trying to minimize the risk of a dog that may have already had multiple homes, being returned to us.
- If you already have a resident dog at home, we may ask you to only consider a dog of the opposite sex in many circumstances.
- We do not always know if our dogs can live with other pets. We do not “cat test” any dog until we think you may be the right match in all other respects
Applying To Adopt A Dog
If you have thought long and hard about what it means to adopt a dog and you still think it is right for you, please complete our application form which may be downloaded here:
Word document APPLICATION TO ADOPT Pdf Document APPLICATION TO ADOPTYou can print this and complete it by hand or save it to your computer for completion in MS Word. Once completed please scan it or save it to an email and send to appledown.applications@outlook.com. Forms may also be posted, see the Contact page for details.
You must answer ALL questions on the form and we ask you to be honest and open in your answers. It is only by knowing everything about you and your circumstances that we are able to match you up with the right dog.
What Happens Next
Matching you with the right dog is really important to us and that is why it might take time to respond to you. We might not have a suitable dog with us when your application form arrives in our mailbox, but rest assured as soon as we do, we will be in touch.
When we think we have a dog that matches you and your circumstances, we will call you and arrange an appointment for you to come and meet him/her. On this first occasion, we expect all of the humans living in your house to come with you. If this first meeting goes well and we are happy, you are happy but most importantly the dog is happy, you can reserve the dog and pay your non-refundable £30 deposit. If you have a dog living with you already, you will not be able to reserve your potential new addition until he/she has met the new dog and the introductions have gone well.
A dog cannot be reserved until all humans and dogs living in the potential new home have been introduced and that introduction has been satisfactory.
In the next 7 to 10 days, you are encouraged to come and visit your dog as often as you wish. Please note that these visits must take place between kennel opening hours, 10am - 1pm and 2pm - 4pm. Also during that period, one of our trained home-checkers will arrange to see you. They will visit you in your home at a mutually convenient time and then report back to Appledown where a final decision will be made. Assuming everything is satisfactory, you will be asked to pay the remainder of the minimum donation for adoption. Our minimum donation for each dog is currently £180. For this, your dog:
- is neutered (or if too young for neutering, has a voucher for £50 toward neutering costs)
- is micro-chipped
- has at least the first part of its vaccination course
- is treated for fleas and worms
- has 4 weeks free insurance
At the end of the 7 to 10 day period and at a time convenient for both you and us, you will be able to take your new addition home. Don’t forget to be prepared for your new dog – you will need the basic equipment (collar and tag, lead, bowls for food and water, bedding) but also, you may need to increase the security of your garden to avoid escapes!
6 weeks later, we carry out a second home check to make sure that everything is working out for you and your dog. And remember, if you have any questions, or you need help with any issues that may arise, you can email us or telephone us any day between 10am - 1pm and 2pm - 4pm for as long as you have your dog