1. Medical Screening/Vaccination/Sterilization/Microchipping
All our rescue dogs undergo a complete medical check and are given a clean bill of health before being put up for adoption. They are screened for Parvo Virus, Distemper, Heartworm, Tick Fever, and undergo tests for their kidney and liver functions. Upon request, we can provide you with the medical records.
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| Goldilocks, caught by AVA and bailed out by us. At the vet waiting for her full medical. (Adopted) |
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| Compulsory blood test and full checkup for ALL our rescue dogs to ensure they are healthy before we put them up for adoption. (Bonnie) |
They are fully vaccinated, sterilized, microchipped and put on monthly tick and heartworm prevention medication.
All of the above are just the basics that we do for each dog we rescue, for a minimal adoption fee of $350. It barely covers the above procedures, which could easily run into a thousand dollars, especially for the more complicated cases. We do all this for the welfare of the dogs we rescue, to ensure that they are well and have no underlying diseases or illnesses before we hand them over to the adopters.
2. Home-Cooked Diet
Research has shown that dogs on commercial pet food diets tend to have health issues in their senior years, and many eventually die from kidney and liver failure. Imagine eating instant noodles for all your life, and the amount of toxins your kidneys and liver have to flush out! At HOPE Dog Rescue, we advocate home-cooked meals for all our rescues. The benefits are evident, as our adopters spend less time and money on vet visits to treat medical conditions caused by poor diet, which are preventable. There is no good quality kibble. Kibble is kibble.
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| Healthy, nutritious home cooked food, perfect for dogs and their humans too! |
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| Delicious meatloaf for the doggies, all human grade |
If you are unsure about cooking for your new dog, we can come over to guide you and cook some sample meals to show you how simple it actually is to cook a nutritious meal for your furkid!
3. Mandatory House Visits
We conduct house checks to ensure the safety of the dogs. We teach you how to leash your dogs and how to walk them properly and safely. This is primarily to prevent escapes, as some newly-adopted dogs will take time to get used to their new environment and surroundings, and their first reaction is to take flight. It is a nightmare when rescued dogs escape. You may have come across on Facebook many instances of dogs escaping (almost every other day) and usually they end up injured, dead or lost forever. This is the last thing we wish to happen after all the effort it took to rescue them. It takes a lot of experience to understand how strays think and behave. We have the experience and we will gladly share that with you to ensure that your newly-adopted dog is safe from harm and risks.
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| Athena (previously known as Fat Sister) (Adopted) |
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| Amber (Adopted) - seeing such things make our day. |
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| Ariel Beanie (Adopted) |
4. Dogs from Foster Homes
We are proud to say that most of our dogs come from foster homes, not kennels or commercial boarding, and thus are used to human contact, elevators and general urban living. Every rescued dog also goes through basic training from us and we also have a professional trainer available to provide advice and behavioral training. The dogs have also been taught to walk on leash (somewhat), and are generally quiet, calm, non-jumpy and well-behaved. In comparison, some dogs from kennels inevitably pick up the habit of barking, through no fault of theirs; it’s just due to the environment they live in.
The main reason we put them up in foster homes is to acclimatize them to home living, which will in turn shorten their adaptation period at their adopter’s place, and reduce their fears and wariness at an unknown place. Another excellent benefit that dogs from foster homes get is the chance to interact closely with humans 24/7. By placing dogs in foster homes, we get to know their temperament and character 100% inside out, rather than rehoming a dog that we don’t even know. We will share this information with you so that you'll know what to expect. We would have gotten to know their fears, quirks and behaviour, how they behave on walks, their attitude towards cats, kids, etc.
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| Matthieu (left) in his foster home with the resident dog. |
The main reason we put them up in foster homes is to acclimatize them to home living, which will in turn shorten their adaptation period at their adopter’s place, and reduce their fears and wariness at an unknown place. Another excellent benefit that dogs from foster homes get is the chance to interact closely with humans 24/7. By placing dogs in foster homes, we get to know their temperament and character 100% inside out, rather than rehoming a dog that we don’t even know. We will share this information with you so that you'll know what to expect. We would have gotten to know their fears, quirks and behaviour, how they behave on walks, their attitude towards cats, kids, etc.
5. Matching Dogs to Owners
We try to match dogs to owners as best as we can. As mentioned above, as most of our dogs are fostered; we are aware of each and every temperament/trait of the dogs, and will recommend a suitable furkid that fits best into your lifestyle. We do not rehome for the sake of rehoming, as we believe that is not how it should be. Adopting a dog should be a fun and happy experience for the whole family, not stressful and unhappy, so we find a dog that will complement your lifestyle. We even have specific dogs good for first-time pet owners, dogs that love babies, dogs that are perfect to be a second pet etc. That is how detailed and thorough we are. We take immense pride in our rehoming process. By finding a good match between the dogs and the owners, we are ensuring the lifelong welfare of the dog, as well as providing a fitting companion for the humans. All this takes a lot of effort on our rehoming team but we believe in doing the best for these rescued dogs, for their chance at a forever family.
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| Amber and her new Papa |
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| Marley, with his new family, looking healthier, happier and younger too! |
6. After “Sales” Support
HOPE Dog Rescue provides excellent support after adoption. We don’t just give you a dog and turn our backs on you. We follow up, we visit, we check on the dogs and are concerned with how the new owners are coping. If there are issues, we'll step in to mediate before they escalate.
Best of all, we have a no-questions-asked return policy. Even after 10 years of adopting your dog, if you can’t keep it, call us. We’ll gladly take it back. We would rather you return the dog to us, than abandon or rehome it to someone we don’t know. Once we rescue a dog, it is our responsibility for all its life, so return it to us and we will continue to care for it and love it. Of cause we hope that this doesn’t happen, as it would be traumatising for the poor pet, but we do want to let the adoptive family know that this is an option in the event that they are unable to care for the dog any longer.
7. Honesty
Honesty – we always believe in that. When we rehome a dog, if the dog is unwell, has aggression or any fears, we will inform you because we believe in being upfront and open. We don’t believe in keeping the truth from you. It is best that you know and understand the dog’s background and accept them as they are. Honesty works best when the adopters know what to expect, which thus increases the chance of a lifelong fit.
Visit http://hopedogrescue.blogspot.sg/p/adoption.html to adopt a dog from HOPE.
Written by: Jamie Faith
