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Writer's pictureShel Graves

Rehoming a Dog. Rehoming a Cat or Other Animal Companion: Help for Difficult Decisions and Emergencies

When we take an animal into our home, into our family, it is meant to be for a lifetime. We want it to be for their lifetime. We work for it to be “forever”.


Then, sometimes, life happens and time intervenes. A person dies. A child gets bit or is in danger. Our health puts us at risk or makes us unable to be a caregiver. So many life events…


I believe strongly that we should “do our best for animals” and that animals are family. At the same time, in some families at some times, rehoming will be their best. 


The decision to rehome an animal companion comes with a lot of big feelings.


Here are some ways to “do your best” when you decide that that best must be rehoming.


HOME-TO-HOME PLACEMENT

To save your animal the stress of spending time at a shelter or rescue, a good option can be to use your networks (friends, family, co-workers) to find a new home for the animal. This is the time to tell as many people as possible about the animal’s need for a home. Share on social media! Keep sharing!


Think about all the people who might know or care about the animal – veterinarians, groomers, pet sitters, dog walkers, trainers. Be sure to let everyone know about the animal’s need. Ask them to share the need with their networks, too.


In preparation for rehoming it also helps: If you can, take your animal to their vet first. Make sure they have all their medical needs taken care of and are up-to-date on all their vaccines. Let your vet know of the situation: Can they recommend anything to help the animal with the stress of the transition? Are they able to help share the animal’s need? Practice and share your animal's skills. If your dog has practiced any communication skills like “sit,” “down,” “shake," or your animal knows any skills like targeting or "go to mat," keep practicing these with them. Make sure potential adopters know what behaviors the animal has offered for rewards. These skills can help the animal make new friends more easily and be less stressed when meeting new people.


Tips for sharing on social media when seeking to rehome a dog or cat:
  • Go ahead and use ALL CAPS. Now is one of the rare times when it makes sense to use ALL CAPS on social media. Let people know the need to find the animal a home is URGENT. 

  • Ask them to PLEASE SHARE. Every share helps. It may not be your friend, but a friend of a friend of a friend who is able to give the animal a loving home. If you ask people to share, they will.

  • Use lots of cute pictures – and videos! 

  • Reply to every share. Say “Thank you!” and comment with a photo of the animal. This helps boost the post!

  • Be honest about special needs. People will want to know if the animal is spayed/neutered, good with cats, good with dogs, good with children, has any medical needs including medications and allergies, has any behavioral issues (bite history, anxiety). Be honest and accurate about all of the above.

  • Be honest about the animal's best attributes! Although, you may be rehoming the animal because they are not a good fit for your home (and may have been thinking a lot about the issues of keeping the animal), be sure to mention the animal’s BEST attributes that will make them a good fit for another home and family as well as what a great home looks like for them.

  • Be honest about the need. It can be difficult and uncomfortable to ask for help or share details of a personal tragedy that may necessitate rehoming (a death in the family, a medical emergency, an accident). If you can do so, however, this will make people more likely to share and help the animal find a home. Let people in if you can and are able. It doesn’t have to be long, but share a little of the story behind the need.

  • Keep sharing! Make a new post a few days or a week later. Let people know the animal is still in need. Be ready to answer any questions. Be responsive. 

  • Update your original post to let people know the animal still needs a home. Absolutely update your post and share the good news when the animal has found a home!

  • Use groups. There are many rehoming Facebook and rescue groups like PNW Rescue and Rehoming Network and Washington Animal Rescue Resources and some specific to locations. Join these groups. Follow their guidelines and post in these groups. Screen potential adopters.

  • Ask for help! If due to the circumstance you are not able to spend time being your animal’s social media rehoming advocate, ask a friend or family member to do this for you. They can help screen potential adopters, too. This can relieve some of the emotional burden.


HOME-TO-HOME RESOURCES

You can also list your animal on a home-to-home network. If you are near a local shelter or humane society like Homeward Pet Adoption Center or Seattle Humane, they may help share home-to-home placements.


HELP FOR SPECIAL CIRCUMSTANCES WHEN REHOMING AN ANIMAL

There are resources available to help with rehoming or temporary foster care in some circumstances. If these circumstances apply to you, there may be additional help


Do you need to rehome your animal due to domestic violence? There are services to help with this and even to provide temporary foster care aimed at keeping people and animals together. Beck’s Place has a Foster Boarding Program.

Do you need to rehome your animal due to a financial circumstance? Seattle Humane's SPOT program offers temporary care for animals for people experiencing housing insecurity, hospitalization, or a personal crisis.

Did your animal come from a reputable rescue? The rescue may be able to take the animal back and/or be willing to help share the animal’s need for a new home.

Did your animal come from a reputable breeder? The breeder may be able to take the animal back and/or be willing to help share the animal’s need for a new home.

Is your animal a specific breed? Seattle Purebred Dog Rescue may be able to help. There are breed-specific rescues for cats, too.

Do you need to rehome or find a temporary foster due to military deployment? Check out Dogs on Deployment.

A medium-sized pitbull with a relaxed open-mouthed expression and a person kneeling behind him with their hands placed lightly on his back.
A "velvet hippo" in a dog park with Shel Graves.

Is your dog small? There are rescues that specifically help small dogs.

Is your dog a senior over the age of 8 and with medical needs? Old Dog Haven may be able to help.

Is your dog a pitbull? There are a lot of large dogs who are pitbull-ish in shelters so this can be harder, but there are also a lot of rescues dedicated to helping these dogs specifically and a lot of people with heart for these dogs. Take heart.

Are you seeking to rehome a barn cat, a senior cat, an FIV+ cat, or a cat with medical issues? There are rescues available that specifically help these cats, too.


REHOMING AND YOUR SHELTER, HUMANE SOCIETY, OR RESCUE

Rescues are overrun with requests and shelters and humane societies are full. Many people are afraid to take their animal to a shelter because of fear the animal will be euthanized. It is also true that the shelter environment can be extremely stressful for animals.


However, don’t discount your local shelter or adoption centers like PAWS, Homeward Pet, or Seattle Humane as a source of help. They may have resources like home-to-home help, temporary foster, resources to help animals escaping domestic violence, and financial services such as pet food banks and low-cost veterinary care.


Also, take heart, however overburdened, people who work with animals want to help them. Many sanctuaries and rescues work closely with shelters. They may not take an owner surrender, but may “pull” animals who have entered a shelter. People who volunteer at shelters frequently adopt and/or advocate to help animals find homes. Veterinarians and vet office staff who help animals with medical needs may adopt or help animals in need find homes, too. There aren't enough of them in this world and they certainly need more support, but animal advocates can be incredibly kind and resourceful.


Tips if you must take your animal to a shelter:

  • If you can, take your animal to a vet first and make sure they have all their medical needs taken care of. Let your vet know of the situation. Ask your vet if they have any recommendations to make this less stressful for the animal (anti-anxiety aids, for example).

  • Make sure you communicate all medical/behavior information to the shelter staff to help them best help your animal. Provide vet records. Any info re: good with cats, good with dogs, good with children, has any medical needs including medications and allergies, has any behavioral issues (bite history, anxiety). Be honest and accurate about all of the above including their best attributes, too! Share what will make them a good fit for another home and family as well as what a great home looks like for the animal.

  • Has your animal practiced any communication skills like “sit,” “down,” “shake”? Let shelter staff know. These skills can help the animal make new friends and be less stressed when meeting new people.


PRO TIPS FOR TALKING ABOUT YOUR ANIMAL’S NEEDS

Do your best to describe the specific behaviors you are seeing.


“Doesn’t like” could mean barking, lunging, snapping, growling, hissing, swatting or it could mean cowering, running away, or ignoring. These behaviors can mean really different things to an animal welfare professional and in terms of finding them a home.


“Likes” could mean paws, jumps up, approaches, wiggles, offers play bows, lies next to, brings a toy, or rubs up. Specific behaviors tell more of a story and provide useful, helpful information.


HELP FOR TALKING ABOUT BITES

You may feel that if your animal has a bite history, they can’t be rehomed. It’s true that many rescues will not take or must be more conservative about taking an animal who has bitten. However, for shelter and rescue workers seeking to help find animals an adoptive home and for potential adopters, there can be a big difference in the kind of bite and the circumstances. Bite incidents can be emotionally jarring. Give yourself a moment. Then, focus on the facts.


Do your best to give specifics about the bite. For example, did the dog give a warning –freeze, snap, growl before the bite? Were there bruises, punctures, multiple bites? Who was bitten? Where on their body?


Do your best to describe the circumstances of the bite. What did the animal look like before the bite? What was the animal and the person bitten doing right before the bite?


REHOMING AND CONSIDERING EUTHANASIA

If you are seeking to rehome your dog, at some point, someone may mention euthanasia as an option to you or you may wonder, “Would it be kinder to euthanize rather than rehome?” The advice I can offer here is that there may be no clear answer. We cannot know the future. Unfortunately, I can caution only against absolutes and advocate for compassion. Advice that you CAN’T or WON’T be able to rehome may be wrong. Advice that you MUST or SHOULD euthanize may be incorrect. There may be circumstances in which someone who would NEVER consider euthanasia for an animal might be contemplating it with some distress.


It can be incredibly hard to make decisions for the animals we love. We cannot always tell exactly what would be right for them or what they would choose if they could tell us clearly in our language.


A close up of a small dog's face resting on a cushy chair. The dog has soft eyes and a sleepy expression.
Tish Graves relaxed at home.

What we can do is do our best to: 

  • Pay attention to what they are communicating. Watch the animal’s body language. Get to know their likes and dislikes. Treat them as individuals. 

  • Consider their individual perspectives and unique sensory experiences of the world.

  • Give them as much choice and control as possible whenever possible.

  • Act with love and compassion.

  • Know that when we seek to do our best, we will do the best we can with the information we have at the time. Extend compassion to ourselves as caregivers and decision-makers as well.


Whether you are seeking help for a troublesome behavior to prevent rehoming or seeking a compassionate conversation about rehoming, Shel Graves Animal Consulting can help. Book an initial consultation for personalized assistance.



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