# Getting ready to perform my 2nd home visit...



## SouthernThistle (Nov 16, 2005)

Unfortunately, the first time I performed a home visit for a rescue...the adopter was denied (well, I guess that's fortunate since they had a chain downstairs in the basement attached to the stairs, a dog bed, and a dog house....meanwhile saying that the dog would be a "loved part of the family" who would hang out on the couch and sleep in the bed with their daughter. Oh...and they neglected to mention the three cats they owned when they applied to adopt a VERY cat aggressive dog.)

A Pit Bull rescue contacted me to perform a home check through word-of-mouth from a trainer friend of mine. They sent me the person's application and highlighted some things they have red flags about (the use of "wee wee pads," letting the puppy roam freely around the house when no one is home along with their neutered male dog, etc.)

I, too, have some reservations with some answers on the application, BUT...we know how it can be, too. So I'm hoping some of the things were just an oversight on the potential adopter's part.

Wish me luck!


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## sagelfn (Aug 13, 2009)

good luck!

I hope the people have a good loving home for a future pet


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## GSDTrain (Apr 21, 2008)

good luck


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## pamela berger (Jun 19, 2008)

I'm a reference checker for an East Coast rescue and usually when an app lies/omits other pets, they are denied. Was wondering if you know how the vet ref checked out. That should always be checked first so if there are problems/issues there, you can address them with the app before deciding whether to invest any more time in checking out the personal refs and doing a home visit.


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## doggiedad (Dec 2, 2007)

you don't need any luck. if you see things
you don't like once you get there that's
it, no dog for them.



> Originally Posted By: SouthernThistle
> 
> I, too, have some reservations with some answers on the application, BUT...we know how it can be, too. So I'm hoping some of the things were just an oversight on the potential adopter's part.
> 
> Wish me luck!


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## SouthernThistle (Nov 16, 2005)

Their vet reference was fine. It's funny. This rescue sent me a "cheat sheet" that starts off with..."all potential adopters are guilty...until proven innocent, or at least that's the amount of detective work that should be involved when performing a home check." 

There are some flagged "issues" on the application that the rescue wants me to talk to the potential adopter about and to get clarification.


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## doggiedad (Dec 2, 2007)

don't let me influence your opinon but
i don't like the way this sounds already,







.



> Originally Posted By: SouthernThistleTheir vet reference was fine. It's funny. This rescue sent me a "cheat sheet" that starts off with..."all potential adopters are guilty...until proven innocent, or at least that's the amount of detective work that should be involved when performing a home check."
> 
> There are some flagged "issues" on the application that the rescue wants me to talk to the potential adopter about and to get clarification.


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## pupresq (Dec 2, 2005)

> Quote:the use of "wee wee pads," letting the puppy roam freely around the house when no one is home along with their neutered male dog, etc.


If those are the only red flags, then depending on how the question they answered was phrased, I think any of those could be fine. I don't see them as obvious dealbreakers anyway. I use piddle pads for some small breed dogs and they may have meant they plan to let the new dog be loose with the other dog once she or he is trustworthy in the house. Maybe not the safest plan, depending on the dogs in question, but certainly not the sign of a bad owner. Plenty of people leave their dogs together when they're not home if the dogs are compatible. And if their plan is to leave the puppy and other dog roaming free with pee pads when they're not home right off the bat, perhaps they can be educated on why that's not a great method of housebreaking and can be instructed on the use of a crate instead.

I'm definitely not one to assume the best in this sort of situation, but those red flags really do seem like they might be oversights/misunderstandings. Hopefully you'll be able to determine that during the home visit. 

The first people you checked out definitely seem like they should have been denied. Yet another example of why home visits are such an important part of the process.


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## SouthernThistle (Nov 16, 2005)

There are definitely some other little red flags that have been marked on the application, but there are a few that are merely marked to get further clarification from the potential adopter or to talk to the potential adopter about (as in crating vs. "wee wee pads.") 

I am slightly concerned, however, that the potential adopter only wants me to come around 6:15-6:30pm at night to do a home visit (at that time, it's already dark here.) I already told the rescue that I would NOT perform a home visit...to someone's house that I don't know....by myself.....at night, and I wouldn't be able to see fencing, etc. either. I understand that they're excited about adopting (though I find it odd that someone in Georgia is adopting a Pit Bull puppy located 15+ hours away and not one here in the state.)


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## SouthernThistle (Nov 16, 2005)

*scratches head*
Just received an e-mail from the potential adopter that they've reconsidered adopting from the rescue and will be going to the animal shelter today to adopt a Pit Bull as they "don't want to wait any longer to get a companion for their dog."


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## Raziel (Sep 29, 2009)

Well, maybe it was for the best.
Sounds like they were obviously hiding something.


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## pupresq (Dec 2, 2005)

Only being available in the evening could be their work schedule or the desire for both people to be home or something, but yeah, adopting a dog from that far away when you live in an area overflowing with them is pretty weird and potentially sketchy. Sounds like it's a moot point. Hope whatever dog they get is okay!


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## SouthernThistle (Nov 16, 2005)

When I told them that I was only willing to do a home visit in the daylight, they told me, "that's fine. Let me know what day, and I will re-arrange my schedule." So we set a day...and a time...and then get an e-mail stating they're just going to animal control.

In the person's application, it said that the other member of the household "works from home." 

I told the rescue I thought it was sketchy that someone from the Atlanta area would try to adopt a dog from a Northeastern rescue instead of the one of two main Pit Bull rescues here in the area or the shelter. The rescue rep. said, "maybe they thought we wouldn't do a home check because we were in another state?"

Oh well. I'm sure the little pup-a-lup will be fine







There's no danger of her being rushed into a home.


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## pamela berger (Jun 19, 2008)

I don't think that most applicants have any idea of how thorough the whole adoption process is. I think they believe they fill out an application, that their vet will be contacted and simply asked if Buffy is UTD and that their personal references will only be asked if they think Jane Smith is a good pet owner. Hence, they purposely omit things from their app and the vet only has one of their pets on file and a personal ref mentions a dog they used to have but they gave away or that they take their pets to the mother-in-law's house everyday while they work, etc. Then, when you question them about these issues, if they become defensive, it is usually because they have something to hide. The first step should be to get a stellar vet ref which includes records for the entire time they have had the pet (if they've had the dog for 10 years, then they need to provide all vet info for those 10 years); also a good idea to ask if there are any other pets on file under their name (if you ask a vet about the care of Duke, some will only tell you about Duke, even though they know the owner had more pets) or any deceased pets. It's not enough when a vet says the pet has always been UTD; you need to get actual dates because I have had vet offices say this yet when I insist on having the actual dates for vaccines, it turned out there were significant gaps in care. If the vet is unwilling to provide this info, the applicant must request their vet to give us this info. If the applicant won't do this, it's another indication of trouble. This said, most vets are happy to reveal this info; I've only had one instance where the vet got really nasty with me and said the client had instructed them to give me limited info; when I inquired about the circumstances of the dog's death, they said it was invasion of privacy, blah blah blah. When we asked the applicant about her refusal to permit her vet to give the details of the dog's death, she told us that she already told us her dog had to be pts due to an illness and tht should be good enough. Needless to say, she was declined.


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## SouthernThistle (Nov 16, 2005)

I was just the person doing the home visit since the rescue is up in New York State, and this person lives here in Atlanta. Now, if that's not enough to raise a question mark right off the bat, I don't know what is.

With the hundreds and thousands of Pit Bulls in Pit Bull rescues and all-breed rescues here in Georgia, why would someone seek out a rescue hundreds of miles away?

The good news is...the little girl Pit Bull was adopted.....by someone in NYS.


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