Animal Welfare Professionals

Mary Lou-this is so true! Owner surrenders of larger, older dogs are a major issue around here at the county shelter as well. We are a foster-based rescue, so only really take dogs in if we have a foster available, although we have had owner surrenders reach out to us, most of the time we do unfortunately turn them down unless we have a foster available. The dogs that have been in our program for 5+ years really takes a toll on the fosters involved and makes it hard for them to ever want to foster for us again since the "keep" rate of a foster dog is so long. 

Hello Everyone,

We have a few older pit mix dogs that have been a part of the rescue for years. Some of them have been adopted in the past, but have been returned and others have not even had an application come through. Unfortunately, most of them are not dog friendly, so they don't do well at adoption events. We use petfinder and adopt-a-pet to try and network to a broader audience, use them in our tails on trails program to get exposed to others, but still we have not had much luck. 

I'm looking for input for marketing suggestions, additional ways other rescues/shelters have adopted out harder to adopt dogs, and any additional material you feel would be helpful. 

thank you!

Morning, Kelsey, as someone happily sharing their home with a pitt mix who quite unashamedly is fearful and reactive with all manner of people (an dogs and ironing boards, boxes, planks of wood and fireworks/guns!), my strategy is to market these animals to people, often women, who live alone and need a companion animal that will not only provide affection and company but also the "impression" of security. I say "impression" because I firmly believe that Biggie is as likely to hide under the bed as he is to actually "guard" me! So I stress that the dog is often starved of/unused to affection so will need slow and careful acclimatization to the home as well as regular and intensive socialization training. I provide links to online sources and reputable humane trainers. I also post "good news" and "milestone" stories of similar dogs who have moved from fearful shelter animals to loving and positive companion animals. Social media is my main venue.

I guess access to an audience of single women would be a plus!!

Hello Everyone,

We have a few older pit mix dogs that have been a part of the rescue for years. Some of them have been adopted in the past, but have been returned and others have not even had an application come through. Unfortunately, most of them are not dog friendly, so they don't do well at adoption events. We use petfinder and adopt-a-pet to try and network to a broader audience, use them in our tails on trails program to get exposed to others, but still we have not had much luck. 

I'm looking for input for marketing suggestions, additional ways other rescues/shelters have adopted out harder to adopt dogs, and any additional material you feel would be helpful. 

thank you!

Hello Everyone,

We have a few older pit mix dogs that have been a part of the rescue for years. Some of them have been adopted in the past, but have been returned and others have not even had an application come through. Unfortunately, most of them are not dog friendly, so they don't do well at adoption events. We use petfinder and adopt-a-pet to try and network to a broader audience, use them in our tails on trails program to get exposed to others, but still we have not had much luck. 

I'm looking for input for marketing suggestions, additional ways other rescues/shelters have adopted out harder to adopt dogs, and any additional material you feel would be helpful. 

thank you!

Hello Everyone,

We have a few older pit mix dogs that have been a part of the rescue for years. Some of them have been adopted in the past, but have been returned and others have not even had an application come through. Unfortunately, most of them are not dog friendly, so they don't do well at adoption events. We use petfinder and adopt-a-pet to try and network to a broader audience, use them in our tails on trails program to get exposed to others, but still we have not had much luck. 

I'm looking for input for marketing suggestions, additional ways other rescues/shelters have adopted out harder to adopt dogs, and any additional material you feel would be helpful. 

thank you!

I help run Autumn Acres Animal Rescue which is located in a rural town about an hour away from Kansas City. We've always taken in the large mixed breed dogs and we did so knowing they were harder to place and the ones least likely pulled. The 'harder to place' has been EVEN harder the last 2 years. I've tried marketing towards college towns thinking those kids are likely just starting out and need to get their first dogs...but even people with no other dogs still want a dog friendly dog to take to dog parks, etc. If we can get more media attention more education on how these dog selective dogs can be just as safe and loving as a dog park dog maybe we can get more people to consider them. They think because the dog doesn't like other male dogs it won't be safe with their child. That's not the same thing. I try to tell people, but they don't believe me. We need more education, more wider reaching media ads, etc. 

Hello Everyone,

We have a few older pit mix dogs that have been a part of the rescue for years. Some of them have been adopted in the past, but have been returned and others have not even had an application come through. Unfortunately, most of them are not dog friendly, so they don't do well at adoption events. We use petfinder and adopt-a-pet to try and network to a broader audience, use them in our tails on trails program to get exposed to others, but still we have not had much luck. 

I'm looking for input for marketing suggestions, additional ways other rescues/shelters have adopted out harder to adopt dogs, and any additional material you feel would be helpful. 

thank you!

I love the idea of more media attention Jenifer! I just don't know how that would happen :( 

I help run Autumn Acres Animal Rescue which is located in a rural town about an hour away from Kansas City. We've always taken in the large mixed breed dogs and we did so knowing they were harder to place and the ones least likely pulled. The 'harder to place' has been EVEN harder the last 2 years. I've tried marketing towards college towns thinking those kids are likely just starting out and need to get their first dogs...but even people with no other dogs still want a dog friendly dog to take to dog parks, etc. If we can get more media attention more education on how these dog selective dogs can be just as safe and loving as a dog park dog maybe we can get more people to consider them. They think because the dog doesn't like other male dogs it won't be safe with their child. That's not the same thing. I try to tell people, but they don't believe me. We need more education, more wider reaching media ads, etc. 

Hello Everyone,

We have a few older pit mix dogs that have been a part of the rescue for years. Some of them have been adopted in the past, but have been returned and others have not even had an application come through. Unfortunately, most of them are not dog friendly, so they don't do well at adoption events. We use petfinder and adopt-a-pet to try and network to a broader audience, use them in our tails on trails program to get exposed to others, but still we have not had much luck. 

I'm looking for input for marketing suggestions, additional ways other rescues/shelters have adopted out harder to adopt dogs, and any additional material you feel would be helpful. 

thank you!

Hello Everyone,

We have a few older pit mix dogs that have been a part of the rescue for years. Some of them have been adopted in the past, but have been returned and others have not even had an application come through. Unfortunately, most of them are not dog friendly, so they don't do well at adoption events. We use petfinder and adopt-a-pet to try and network to a broader audience, use them in our tails on trails program to get exposed to others, but still we have not had much luck. 

I'm looking for input for marketing suggestions, additional ways other rescues/shelters have adopted out harder to adopt dogs, and any additional material you feel would be helpful. 

thank you!

Hello Everyone,

We have a few older pit mix dogs that have been a part of the rescue for years. Some of them have been adopted in the past, but have been returned and others have not even had an application come through. Unfortunately, most of them are not dog friendly, so they don't do well at adoption events. We use petfinder and adopt-a-pet to try and network to a broader audience, use them in our tails on trails program to get exposed to others, but still we have not had much luck. 

I'm looking for input for marketing suggestions, additional ways other rescues/shelters have adopted out harder to adopt dogs, and any additional material you feel would be helpful. 

thank you!

Hoo boy, large dogs have so many knocks against them - some people are afraid, homeowners' insurance may not cover, an apartment may not allow. I think primarily, people think that small dogs are so much "easier," so making certain people know about how "easy" your large, older dogs are (housetrained, enjoy sleeping and TV time with the family, etc.), can free up resources for those more energetic dogs, who need a home more interested in high activity and training activities.

But the number one standout to me of your post is a mention of "applications." I'd take a look at your adoption policies - how easy is it for the foster to process their own adoption when they've found an adopter? It should be relatively easy to go over the medical history of the animal, what comes with an adoption (register that microchip, next vaccines are due on X date), and hand over the leash. These dogs belong to the community and are in your organization's care while they wait to go back to the community. How can you make that process easy and fast so your organization can help more dogs? Empower fosters, who know the dogs well, to go to spaces they know the dogs will be their best (will they like a pet store adoption event, a farmers market, a Home Depot, or just walks around the neighborhood and to the park wearing an "adopt me" vest). The spaces the dogs enjoy are the ones they are most likely to meet people who share their preferences...

And as for owner surrenders, there are a lot of resources for people to rehome their own pets - it's going to be better for the pet and all the people involved if they go from one loving home to the next without a stay with an institution. If they need spay/neuter or other basics, perhaps you can work through your organization and/or with the local municipal shelters to ensure that care is done prior to placement, when wanted by the current guardian?

Hello Everyone,

We have a few older pit mix dogs that have been a part of the rescue for years. Some of them have been adopted in the past, but have been returned and others have not even had an application come through. Unfortunately, most of them are not dog friendly, so they don't do well at adoption events. We use petfinder and adopt-a-pet to try and network to a broader audience, use them in our tails on trails program to get exposed to others, but still we have not had much luck. 

I'm looking for input for marketing suggestions, additional ways other rescues/shelters have adopted out harder to adopt dogs, and any additional material you feel would be helpful. 

thank you!

All  of these dogs tend to have "issues" - need to be the only pet, don't like other male dogs, resource guard, etc and so the pool of adopters becomes smaller and smaller.  A lot of the adopters for these dogs tend to be older single females.  Face it, demographically, there are a lot more older single females than males.  But then again, many of this pool are smaller and weaker and can't handle a big pittie mix.  For the dogs that we've had for a while, we always do a lot of media and have a  "Foster For Keeps" option which gives the adopter 2 weeks to live with the dog and then decide if they want to adopt.  During that time we try to throw all kinds of resources and follow up and support to the potential adopter.  We don't sugar coat anything.  We were fortunate enough to just FFK out two that we had had for 6 months.  So far only one has come back...

Hoo boy, large dogs have so many knocks against them - some people are afraid, homeowners' insurance may not cover, an apartment may not allow. I think primarily, people think that small dogs are so much "easier," so making certain people know about how "easy" your large, older dogs are (housetrained, enjoy sleeping and TV time with the family, etc.), can free up resources for those more energetic dogs, who need a home more interested in high activity and training activities.

But the number one standout to me of your post is a mention of "applications." I'd take a look at your adoption policies - how easy is it for the foster to process their own adoption when they've found an adopter? It should be relatively easy to go over the medical history of the animal, what comes with an adoption (register that microchip, next vaccines are due on X date), and hand over the leash. These dogs belong to the community and are in your organization's care while they wait to go back to the community. How can you make that process easy and fast so your organization can help more dogs? Empower fosters, who know the dogs well, to go to spaces they know the dogs will be their best (will they like a pet store adoption event, a farmers market, a Home Depot, or just walks around the neighborhood and to the park wearing an "adopt me" vest). The spaces the dogs enjoy are the ones they are most likely to meet people who share their preferences...

And as for owner surrenders, there are a lot of resources for people to rehome their own pets - it's going to be better for the pet and all the people involved if they go from one loving home to the next without a stay with an institution. If they need spay/neuter or other basics, perhaps you can work through your organization and/or with the local municipal shelters to ensure that care is done prior to placement, when wanted by the current guardian?

Hello Everyone,

We have a few older pit mix dogs that have been a part of the rescue for years. Some of them have been adopted in the past, but have been returned and others have not even had an application come through. Unfortunately, most of them are not dog friendly, so they don't do well at adoption events. We use petfinder and adopt-a-pet to try and network to a broader audience, use them in our tails on trails program to get exposed to others, but still we have not had much luck. 

I'm looking for input for marketing suggestions, additional ways other rescues/shelters have adopted out harder to adopt dogs, and any additional material you feel would be helpful. 

thank you!

Why are we assuming that women are small and weak? So many of our best volunteers are older women! They walk out big dogs all day. One of them just celebrated her 80th birthday with us.  Just like dogs, people are individuals. :) 

All  of these dogs tend to have "issues" - need to be the only pet, don't like other male dogs, resource guard, etc and so the pool of adopters becomes smaller and smaller.  A lot of the adopters for these dogs tend to be older single females.  Face it, demographically, there are a lot more older single females than males.  But then again, many of this pool are smaller and weaker and can't handle a big pittie mix.  For the dogs that we've had for a while, we always do a lot of media and have a  "Foster For Keeps" option which gives the adopter 2 weeks to live with the dog and then decide if they want to adopt.  During that time we try to throw all kinds of resources and follow up and support to the potential adopter.  We don't sugar coat anything.  We were fortunate enough to just FFK out two that we had had for 6 months.  So far only one has come back...

Hoo boy, large dogs have so many knocks against them - some people are afraid, homeowners' insurance may not cover, an apartment may not allow. I think primarily, people think that small dogs are so much "easier," so making certain people know about how "easy" your large, older dogs are (housetrained, enjoy sleeping and TV time with the family, etc.), can free up resources for those more energetic dogs, who need a home more interested in high activity and training activities.

But the number one standout to me of your post is a mention of "applications." I'd take a look at your adoption policies - how easy is it for the foster to process their own adoption when they've found an adopter? It should be relatively easy to go over the medical history of the animal, what comes with an adoption (register that microchip, next vaccines are due on X date), and hand over the leash. These dogs belong to the community and are in your organization's care while they wait to go back to the community. How can you make that process easy and fast so your organization can help more dogs? Empower fosters, who know the dogs well, to go to spaces they know the dogs will be their best (will they like a pet store adoption event, a farmers market, a Home Depot, or just walks around the neighborhood and to the park wearing an "adopt me" vest). The spaces the dogs enjoy are the ones they are most likely to meet people who share their preferences...

And as for owner surrenders, there are a lot of resources for people to rehome their own pets - it's going to be better for the pet and all the people involved if they go from one loving home to the next without a stay with an institution. If they need spay/neuter or other basics, perhaps you can work through your organization and/or with the local municipal shelters to ensure that care is done prior to placement, when wanted by the current guardian?

Hello Everyone,

We have a few older pit mix dogs that have been a part of the rescue for years. Some of them have been adopted in the past, but have been returned and others have not even had an application come through. Unfortunately, most of them are not dog friendly, so they don't do well at adoption events. We use petfinder and adopt-a-pet to try and network to a broader audience, use them in our tails on trails program to get exposed to others, but still we have not had much luck. 

I'm looking for input for marketing suggestions, additional ways other rescues/shelters have adopted out harder to adopt dogs, and any additional material you feel would be helpful. 

thank you!

Lindsay, I'm not assuming.  I'm going by what we see.  I am 66, 6' tall and handle big dogs all the time.  But most of our adopters are not my size or strength or athleticism as a demographic.

Why are we assuming that women are small and weak? So many of our best volunteers are older women! They walk out big dogs all day. One of them just celebrated her 80th birthday with us.  Just like dogs, people are individuals. :) 

All  of these dogs tend to have "issues" - need to be the only pet, don't like other male dogs, resource guard, etc and so the pool of adopters becomes smaller and smaller.  A lot of the adopters for these dogs tend to be older single females.  Face it, demographically, there are a lot more older single females than males.  But then again, many of this pool are smaller and weaker and can't handle a big pittie mix.  For the dogs that we've had for a while, we always do a lot of media and have a  "Foster For Keeps" option which gives the adopter 2 weeks to live with the dog and then decide if they want to adopt.  During that time we try to throw all kinds of resources and follow up and support to the potential adopter.  We don't sugar coat anything.  We were fortunate enough to just FFK out two that we had had for 6 months.  So far only one has come back...

Hoo boy, large dogs have so many knocks against them - some people are afraid, homeowners' insurance may not cover, an apartment may not allow. I think primarily, people think that small dogs are so much "easier," so making certain people know about how "easy" your large, older dogs are (housetrained, enjoy sleeping and TV time with the family, etc.), can free up resources for those more energetic dogs, who need a home more interested in high activity and training activities.

But the number one standout to me of your post is a mention of "applications." I'd take a look at your adoption policies - how easy is it for the foster to process their own adoption when they've found an adopter? It should be relatively easy to go over the medical history of the animal, what comes with an adoption (register that microchip, next vaccines are due on X date), and hand over the leash. These dogs belong to the community and are in your organization's care while they wait to go back to the community. How can you make that process easy and fast so your organization can help more dogs? Empower fosters, who know the dogs well, to go to spaces they know the dogs will be their best (will they like a pet store adoption event, a farmers market, a Home Depot, or just walks around the neighborhood and to the park wearing an "adopt me" vest). The spaces the dogs enjoy are the ones they are most likely to meet people who share their preferences...

And as for owner surrenders, there are a lot of resources for people to rehome their own pets - it's going to be better for the pet and all the people involved if they go from one loving home to the next without a stay with an institution. If they need spay/neuter or other basics, perhaps you can work through your organization and/or with the local municipal shelters to ensure that care is done prior to placement, when wanted by the current guardian?

Hello Everyone,

We have a few older pit mix dogs that have been a part of the rescue for years. Some of them have been adopted in the past, but have been returned and others have not even had an application come through. Unfortunately, most of them are not dog friendly, so they don't do well at adoption events. We use petfinder and adopt-a-pet to try and network to a broader audience, use them in our tails on trails program to get exposed to others, but still we have not had much luck. 

I'm looking for input for marketing suggestions, additional ways other rescues/shelters have adopted out harder to adopt dogs, and any additional material you feel would be helpful. 

thank you!

I would be very careful about judging someone's physical abilities unless you are their doctor, particularly based on what you "see". 

Lindsay, I'm not assuming.  I'm going by what we see.  I am 66, 6' tall and handle big dogs all the time.  But most of our adopters are not my size or strength or athleticism as a demographic.

Why are we assuming that women are small and weak? So many of our best volunteers are older women! They walk out big dogs all day. One of them just celebrated her 80th birthday with us.  Just like dogs, people are individuals. :) 

All  of these dogs tend to have "issues" - need to be the only pet, don't like other male dogs, resource guard, etc and so the pool of adopters becomes smaller and smaller.  A lot of the adopters for these dogs tend to be older single females.  Face it, demographically, there are a lot more older single females than males.  But then again, many of this pool are smaller and weaker and can't handle a big pittie mix.  For the dogs that we've had for a while, we always do a lot of media and have a  "Foster For Keeps" option which gives the adopter 2 weeks to live with the dog and then decide if they want to adopt.  During that time we try to throw all kinds of resources and follow up and support to the potential adopter.  We don't sugar coat anything.  We were fortunate enough to just FFK out two that we had had for 6 months.  So far only one has come back...

Hoo boy, large dogs have so many knocks against them - some people are afraid, homeowners' insurance may not cover, an apartment may not allow. I think primarily, people think that small dogs are so much "easier," so making certain people know about how "easy" your large, older dogs are (housetrained, enjoy sleeping and TV time with the family, etc.), can free up resources for those more energetic dogs, who need a home more interested in high activity and training activities.

But the number one standout to me of your post is a mention of "applications." I'd take a look at your adoption policies - how easy is it for the foster to process their own adoption when they've found an adopter? It should be relatively easy to go over the medical history of the animal, what comes with an adoption (register that microchip, next vaccines are due on X date), and hand over the leash. These dogs belong to the community and are in your organization's care while they wait to go back to the community. How can you make that process easy and fast so your organization can help more dogs? Empower fosters, who know the dogs well, to go to spaces they know the dogs will be their best (will they like a pet store adoption event, a farmers market, a Home Depot, or just walks around the neighborhood and to the park wearing an "adopt me" vest). The spaces the dogs enjoy are the ones they are most likely to meet people who share their preferences...

And as for owner surrenders, there are a lot of resources for people to rehome their own pets - it's going to be better for the pet and all the people involved if they go from one loving home to the next without a stay with an institution. If they need spay/neuter or other basics, perhaps you can work through your organization and/or with the local municipal shelters to ensure that care is done prior to placement, when wanted by the current guardian?

Hello Everyone,

We have a few older pit mix dogs that have been a part of the rescue for years. Some of them have been adopted in the past, but have been returned and others have not even had an application come through. Unfortunately, most of them are not dog friendly, so they don't do well at adoption events. We use petfinder and adopt-a-pet to try and network to a broader audience, use them in our tails on trails program to get exposed to others, but still we have not had much luck. 

I'm looking for input for marketing suggestions, additional ways other rescues/shelters have adopted out harder to adopt dogs, and any additional material you feel would be helpful. 

thank you!