Animal Welfare Professionals

This message was posted by a user wishing to remain anonymous

Hi everyone! I'm the Adoption Manager at a private, non-profit cat rescue organization in California. We are reviewing all of our adoption policies and procedures to make sure we are best serving our communities and our cats. I wanted to reach out to this group to ask what your policies are, what have you found that works best, what doesn't work at all, and for any advice you have. These are some of the specific questions we are discussing:

- What is a reasonable adoption fee?
- Under what circumstances should we waive the fee?
- Should our fosters have to pay the adoption fee if they adopt their foster cat(s)?
- Should our volunteers have to pay the adoption fee if they adopt a cat?
- Should we require that our cats be indoors only?
- Should we allow single kitten adoptions?
- What should the minimum age be for adopters?
- What factors disqualify an applicant from adopting?

What does your organization do on these issues? Any and all input, suggestions, and advice is most welcome! Thank you!
#AdoptionsandAdoptionPrograms

We charge no fees.
We allow indoor/outdoor and outdoor only cats.
We adopt out single kittens.
We do ask that someone be 18 to sign the adoption contract.
Nothing is an automatic disqualification - cruelty/neglect convictions are a likely "no," but we will still have a conversation.

------------------------------
emily wood
Broward County Animal Care and Adoption
------------------------------

Original Message:
Sent: 08-19-2022 09:09 AM
From: Anonymous Member
Subject: What are your adoption policies?

This message was posted by a user wishing to remain anonymous

Hi everyone! I'm the Adoption Manager at a private, non-profit cat rescue organization in California. We are reviewing all of our adoption policies and procedures to make sure we are best serving our communities and our cats. I wanted to reach out to this group to ask what your policies are, what have you found that works best, what doesn't work at all, and for any advice you have. These are some of the specific questions we are discussing:

- What is a reasonable adoption fee?
- Under what circumstances should we waive the fee?
- Should our fosters have to pay the adoption fee if they adopt their foster cat(s)?
- Should our volunteers have to pay the adoption fee if they adopt a cat?
- Should we require that our cats be indoors only?
- Should we allow single kitten adoptions?
- What should the minimum age be for adopters?
- What factors disqualify an applicant from adopting?

What does your organization do on these issues? Any and all input, suggestions, and advice is most welcome! Thank you!
#AdoptionsandAdoptionPrograms

This message was posted by a user wishing to remain anonymous

This is really helpful! Thank you!!
Original Message:
Sent: 08-22-2022 08:05 AM
From: emily wood
Subject: What are your adoption policies?

We charge no fees.
We allow indoor/outdoor and outdoor only cats.
We adopt out single kittens.
We do ask that someone be 18 to sign the adoption contract.
Nothing is an automatic disqualification - cruelty/neglect convictions are a likely "no," but we will still have a conversation.

------------------------------
emily wood
Broward County Animal Care and Adoption

Original Message:
Sent: 08-19-2022 09:09 AM
From: Anonymous Member
Subject: What are your adoption policies?

This message was posted by a user wishing to remain anonymous

Hi everyone! I'm the Adoption Manager at a private, non-profit cat rescue organization in California. We are reviewing all of our adoption policies and procedures to make sure we are best serving our communities and our cats. I wanted to reach out to this group to ask what your policies are, what have you found that works best, what doesn't work at all, and for any advice you have. These are some of the specific questions we are discussing:

- What is a reasonable adoption fee?
- Under what circumstances should we waive the fee?
- Should our fosters have to pay the adoption fee if they adopt their foster cat(s)?
- Should our volunteers have to pay the adoption fee if they adopt a cat?
- Should we require that our cats be indoors only?
- Should we allow single kitten adoptions?
- What should the minimum age be for adopters?
- What factors disqualify an applicant from adopting?

What does your organization do on these issues? Any and all input, suggestions, and advice is most welcome! Thank you!
#AdoptionsandAdoptionPrograms

This message was posted by a user wishing to remain anonymous

I don't work for an organization that does adoptions, so these thoughts come from the adopter and foster perspective, and from general working-in-animal-welfare experience.

A "reasonable" fee is subjective and depends on your expenses and your area. As an adopter, I assume the fee covers expenses related to the animal I'm adopting and some overhead, and that's it. I would not want to pay a fee someone was charging just because they wanted to charge a fee. Reasons for no fee....someone on a fixed income might not have hundreds of dollars of cash for a fee but they can have enough regular income to feed and care for a cat, so that would be a good reason to waive it. Another reason to waive fees is to get cats adopted out quickly. My local county shelter is currently doing this for all pets: no adoption fees for anyone!  And their normal policy is no-fee adoptions for veterans and for pets sponsored by various organizations. I think waiving the fee for your longer-term fosters and volunteers is a nice thing to do. They are providing free labor and helping your organization survive!

You can suggest that it's better for cats to be indoor-only but you can't require that. I mean, yes, you can make people sign paperwork saying their cat will be indoor-only. But there's nothing to stop someone from signing the paperwork and then doing what they want. This is VERY common. Even me...I've adopted two dogs from a private rescues that had ridiculous unenforceable rules. I simply ignored the ones I didn't want to follow because it let my dogs have better lives.

Yes, to single kitten adoptions. Obviously a bonded pair you want to adopt together, but requiring people to adopt two cats just restricts your pool of available adopters for no reason. Yes, kittens like to play with each other, but they also love to play with people! And it's not hard to provide enough playtime for a single kitten, especially if you already have other pets and kids. Another way it restricts your adoption pool is rental restrictions. Many landlords only allow one or two pets. So some people can't adopt two cats because two aren't allowed, or because they already have one pet.
Original Message:
Sent: 08-19-2022 09:09 AM
From: Anonymous Member
Subject: What are your adoption policies?

This message was posted by a user wishing to remain anonymous

Hi everyone! I'm the Adoption Manager at a private, non-profit cat rescue organization in California. We are reviewing all of our adoption policies and procedures to make sure we are best serving our communities and our cats. I wanted to reach out to this group to ask what your policies are, what have you found that works best, what doesn't work at all, and for any advice you have. These are some of the specific questions we are discussing:

- What is a reasonable adoption fee?
- Under what circumstances should we waive the fee?
- Should our fosters have to pay the adoption fee if they adopt their foster cat(s)?
- Should our volunteers have to pay the adoption fee if they adopt a cat?
- Should we require that our cats be indoors only?
- Should we allow single kitten adoptions?
- What should the minimum age be for adopters?
- What factors disqualify an applicant from adopting?

What does your organization do on these issues? Any and all input, suggestions, and advice is most welcome! Thank you!
#AdoptionsandAdoptionPrograms

Hi,
 I have worked in large and small scale HS and currently work at a small, open admissions municipal shelter . I really like my current shelters adoption policies compared to my past shelters. 


-What is a reasonable adoption fee? I think between 75-125$. Our fee is 85$ an animal (or 2 kittens/85), includes all vetting.
- Under what circumstances should we waive the fee?  If I could waive fees for all animas I would but we will waive for long stay animals, older animals, bully breeds etc. We run 2-3 adoption promotions a year that have fee-waived adoptions (one promotion called "summer of love" runs from may-sept)We also have sponsored adoption fees by members of the public/volunteers etc.
- Should our fosters have to pay the adoption fee if they adopt their foster cat(s)? I think   "first foster fail free" but after that they must pay. 
- Should our volunteers have to pay the adoption fee if they adopt a cat? I think if you do "first one free" for fosters, it would be fair to do it for volunteers as well, but after they must pay.  I know this isn't always feasible though, especially if you are a big shelter with lots of volunteers. Or you could do; after X amount of volunteer hours, you get a free adoption? Gives incentive and helps with retention of volunteers maybe. 
- Should we require that our cats be indoors only? No! There are some cats who truly THRIVE as indoor/outdoor, or outdoor only cats.  Requiring an adopter to keep the adopted cat indoors only definitely does not guarantee they will follow that rule either; most won't in my experience. 
If we know a cat would do best in a indoor or outdoor home, we usually sepcifiy. 
- Should we allow single kitten adoptions? Yes- especially if they have another cat at home, but we will let them either way.
- What should the minimum age be for adopters? 18- I dont think going any higher makes any guarnetee the adopter will care for them better/keep the animal. 
- What factors disqualify an applicant from adopting? Cruelty or neglect
We try to have conversation based adoptions vs an application to adopt (feels more like a background check when you do this). You often learn a lot more from an adopter and are able to match make better by having a conversation vs having them write out/check boxes on an application.
Hope this helps :)

------------------------------
Lexie Dorn
Forsyth County animal shelter
------------------------------

Original Message:
Sent: 08-19-2022 09:09 AM
From: Anonymous Member
Subject: What are your adoption policies?

This message was posted by a user wishing to remain anonymous

Hi everyone! I'm the Adoption Manager at a private, non-profit cat rescue organization in California. We are reviewing all of our adoption policies and procedures to make sure we are best serving our communities and our cats. I wanted to reach out to this group to ask what your policies are, what have you found that works best, what doesn't work at all, and for any advice you have. These are some of the specific questions we are discussing:

- What is a reasonable adoption fee?
- Under what circumstances should we waive the fee?
- Should our fosters have to pay the adoption fee if they adopt their foster cat(s)?
- Should our volunteers have to pay the adoption fee if they adopt a cat?
- Should we require that our cats be indoors only?
- Should we allow single kitten adoptions?
- What should the minimum age be for adopters?
- What factors disqualify an applicant from adopting?

What does your organization do on these issues? Any and all input, suggestions, and advice is most welcome! Thank you!
#AdoptionsandAdoptionPrograms

I work in a private non profit rescue in Middle GA.  Prior to our group of ladies starting this rescue, we all volunteered at another one. We disliked several of the policies and procedures & when concerns were voiced - we were asked to leave. So we started our own rescue.  Here are answers for us.

- What is a reasonable adoption fee? We charge $150 per cat/kitten and $250 for 2 kittens. All our animals are microchipped, altered, and vaccinated as appropriate for their age, dewormed, and on heartworm/flea/tick medications (vital here in the south) prior to going home.  We use 2 local spay/neuter clinics that do kittens when they reach 2lb and pups at 8wk. 

- Under what circumstances should we waive the fee?  We don't waive fees. We have done half fee if we find ourselves inundated in cats.

- Should our fosters have to pay the adoption fee if they adopt their foster cat(s)?  We do half cost so $75.
- Should our volunteers have to pay the adoption fee if they adopt a cat?  We do half cost for volunteers as well. I love the idea of hours but we don't track our volunteers hours to know when they've hit any "milestones".

- Should we require that our cats be indoors only?  We say indoors only bc all of ours are kept indoors.  Our local Animal Control adopts out barn cats for the cats that really despise being indoors.

- Should we allow single kitten adoptions?  We do allow single adoptions but we also do encourage them to get 2. In the end, we'd rather get 1 into a home than none.

- What should the minimum age be for adopters?  Ours is 18. 

- What factors disqualify an applicant from adopting?  We do vet checks on applicants. Make sure all animals in the home are current on vaccines and altered. GA requires a minimum of rabies. If its an indoor cat, we allow just that. Dogs must be current on everything.  We also look at their social media & inquire on references.

------------------------------
Sarah Hoadley
Paws in Middle Georgia Animal Rescue
------------------------------

Original Message:
Sent: 08-19-2022 09:09 AM
From: Anonymous Member
Subject: What are your adoption policies?

This message was posted by a user wishing to remain anonymous

Hi everyone! I'm the Adoption Manager at a private, non-profit cat rescue organization in California. We are reviewing all of our adoption policies and procedures to make sure we are best serving our communities and our cats. I wanted to reach out to this group to ask what your policies are, what have you found that works best, what doesn't work at all, and for any advice you have. These are some of the specific questions we are discussing:

- What is a reasonable adoption fee?
- Under what circumstances should we waive the fee?
- Should our fosters have to pay the adoption fee if they adopt their foster cat(s)?
- Should our volunteers have to pay the adoption fee if they adopt a cat?
- Should we require that our cats be indoors only?
- Should we allow single kitten adoptions?
- What should the minimum age be for adopters?
- What factors disqualify an applicant from adopting?

What does your organization do on these issues? Any and all input, suggestions, and advice is most welcome! Thank you!
#AdoptionsandAdoptionPrograms

This message was posted by a user wishing to remain anonymous

Just out of curiosity, how does looking at their social media work? I've never heard of a rescue doing that. Do you only look to see what if anything is publicly available and searchable?  I would definitely not give someone access to mine, which is locked down unless I know/approve you, and it's not searchable under my real name. If a rescue asked to see it I would say no. Or I would say I don't have any...
Original Message:
Sent: 08-24-2022 05:23 AM
From: Sarah Hoadley
Subject: What are your adoption policies?

I work in a private non profit rescue in Middle GA.  Prior to our group of ladies starting this rescue, we all volunteered at another one. We disliked several of the policies and procedures & when concerns were voiced - we were asked to leave. So we started our own rescue.  Here are answers for us.

- What is a reasonable adoption fee? We charge $150 per cat/kitten and $250 for 2 kittens. All our animals are microchipped, altered, and vaccinated as appropriate for their age, dewormed, and on heartworm/flea/tick medications (vital here in the south) prior to going home.  We use 2 local spay/neuter clinics that do kittens when they reach 2lb and pups at 8wk. 

- Under what circumstances should we waive the fee?  We don't waive fees. We have done half fee if we find ourselves inundated in cats.

- Should our fosters have to pay the adoption fee if they adopt their foster cat(s)?  We do half cost so $75.
- Should our volunteers have to pay the adoption fee if they adopt a cat?  We do half cost for volunteers as well. I love the idea of hours but we don't track our volunteers hours to know when they've hit any "milestones".

- Should we require that our cats be indoors only?  We say indoors only bc all of ours are kept indoors.  Our local Animal Control adopts out barn cats for the cats that really despise being indoors.

- Should we allow single kitten adoptions?  We do allow single adoptions but we also do encourage them to get 2. In the end, we'd rather get 1 into a home than none.

- What should the minimum age be for adopters?  Ours is 18. 

- What factors disqualify an applicant from adopting?  We do vet checks on applicants. Make sure all animals in the home are current on vaccines and altered. GA requires a minimum of rabies. If its an indoor cat, we allow just that. Dogs must be current on everything.  We also look at their social media & inquire on references.

------------------------------
Sarah Hoadley
Paws in Middle Georgia Animal Rescue

Original Message:
Sent: 08-19-2022 09:09 AM
From: Anonymous Member
Subject: What are your adoption policies?

This message was posted by a user wishing to remain anonymous

Hi everyone! I'm the Adoption Manager at a private, non-profit cat rescue organization in California. We are reviewing all of our adoption policies and procedures to make sure we are best serving our communities and our cats. I wanted to reach out to this group to ask what your policies are, what have you found that works best, what doesn't work at all, and for any advice you have. These are some of the specific questions we are discussing:

- What is a reasonable adoption fee?
- Under what circumstances should we waive the fee?
- Should our fosters have to pay the adoption fee if they adopt their foster cat(s)?
- Should our volunteers have to pay the adoption fee if they adopt a cat?
- Should we require that our cats be indoors only?
- Should we allow single kitten adoptions?
- What should the minimum age be for adopters?
- What factors disqualify an applicant from adopting?

What does your organization do on these issues? Any and all input, suggestions, and advice is most welcome! Thank you!
#AdoptionsandAdoptionPrograms

Many of the rescues here do that. Some other local rescues will specifically ask for your social media and/or to be friended so they can look. They won't approve your application if you decline.

We look at all social media platforms, see if anyone we know is friends with them, and google searches for the name. We will also use google maps to find the address to see what kind of yard and home condition. We aren't interested in adopting a dog to a home with no yard or a yard full of old cars or junk.  Middle GA has a serious problem with dog fighting, neglect, abuse, overbreeding, strays, etc. so we take every precaution we can to not place one of our animals into one of those situations. 



------------------------------
Sarah Hoadley
Paws in Middle Georgia Animal Rescue
------------------------------

Original Message:
Sent: 08-24-2022 02:48 PM
From: Anonymous Member
Subject: What are your adoption policies?

This message was posted by a user wishing to remain anonymous

Just out of curiosity, how does looking at their social media work? I've never heard of a rescue doing that. Do you only look to see what if anything is publicly available and searchable?  I would definitely not give someone access to mine, which is locked down unless I know/approve you, and it's not searchable under my real name. If a rescue asked to see it I would say no. Or I would say I don't have any...
Original Message:
Sent: 08-24-2022 05:23 AM
From: Sarah Hoadley
Subject: What are your adoption policies?

I work in a private non profit rescue in Middle GA.  Prior to our group of ladies starting this rescue, we all volunteered at another one. We disliked several of the policies and procedures & when concerns were voiced - we were asked to leave. So we started our own rescue.  Here are answers for us.

- What is a reasonable adoption fee? We charge $150 per cat/kitten and $250 for 2 kittens. All our animals are microchipped, altered, and vaccinated as appropriate for their age, dewormed, and on heartworm/flea/tick medications (vital here in the south) prior to going home.  We use 2 local spay/neuter clinics that do kittens when they reach 2lb and pups at 8wk. 

- Under what circumstances should we waive the fee?  We don't waive fees. We have done half fee if we find ourselves inundated in cats.

- Should our fosters have to pay the adoption fee if they adopt their foster cat(s)?  We do half cost so $75.
- Should our volunteers have to pay the adoption fee if they adopt a cat?  We do half cost for volunteers as well. I love the idea of hours but we don't track our volunteers hours to know when they've hit any "milestones".

- Should we require that our cats be indoors only?  We say indoors only bc all of ours are kept indoors.  Our local Animal Control adopts out barn cats for the cats that really despise being indoors.

- Should we allow single kitten adoptions?  We do allow single adoptions but we also do encourage them to get 2. In the end, we'd rather get 1 into a home than none.

- What should the minimum age be for adopters?  Ours is 18. 

- What factors disqualify an applicant from adopting?  We do vet checks on applicants. Make sure all animals in the home are current on vaccines and altered. GA requires a minimum of rabies. If its an indoor cat, we allow just that. Dogs must be current on everything.  We also look at their social media & inquire on references.

------------------------------
Sarah Hoadley
Paws in Middle Georgia Animal Rescue

Original Message:
Sent: 08-19-2022 09:09 AM
From: Anonymous Member
Subject: What are your adoption policies?

This message was posted by a user wishing to remain anonymous

Hi everyone! I'm the Adoption Manager at a private, non-profit cat rescue organization in California. We are reviewing all of our adoption policies and procedures to make sure we are best serving our communities and our cats. I wanted to reach out to this group to ask what your policies are, what have you found that works best, what doesn't work at all, and for any advice you have. These are some of the specific questions we are discussing:

- What is a reasonable adoption fee?
- Under what circumstances should we waive the fee?
- Should our fosters have to pay the adoption fee if they adopt their foster cat(s)?
- Should our volunteers have to pay the adoption fee if they adopt a cat?
- Should we require that our cats be indoors only?
- Should we allow single kitten adoptions?
- What should the minimum age be for adopters?
- What factors disqualify an applicant from adopting?

What does your organization do on these issues? Any and all input, suggestions, and advice is most welcome! Thank you!
#AdoptionsandAdoptionPrograms

Sorry this is a little off topic, but just stopping by to say I'd be careful about using Google Maps as a source for adopter information.  It's not real-time, or even recent information. Most of the imagery is several years old if not significantly more, especially in rural areas where I've seen data that's 10-15 years old! The Street View data of my own house was collected in 2012 for example, and the yard looks totally different now. If I'd installed a fence this year and a rescue checked Street View to verify, it would not be there.  Or if a previous owner had a junk yard and that was now all gone, it could still be on Street View for years and years.

------------------------------
M Saucedo
GIS Analyst
Pets for Life
------------------------------

Original Message:
Sent: 08-25-2022 05:43 AM
From: Sarah Hoadley
Subject: What are your adoption policies?

Many of the rescues here do that. Some other local rescues will specifically ask for your social media and/or to be friended so they can look. They won't approve your application if you decline.

We look at all social media platforms, see if anyone we know is friends with them, and google searches for the name. We will also use google maps to find the address to see what kind of yard and home condition. We aren't interested in adopting a dog to a home with no yard or a yard full of old cars or junk.  Middle GA has a serious problem with dog fighting, neglect, abuse, overbreeding, strays, etc. so we take every precaution we can to not place one of our animals into one of those situations. 



------------------------------
Sarah Hoadley
Paws in Middle Georgia Animal Rescue

Original Message:
Sent: 08-24-2022 02:48 PM
From: Anonymous Member
Subject: What are your adoption policies?

This message was posted by a user wishing to remain anonymous

Just out of curiosity, how does looking at their social media work? I've never heard of a rescue doing that. Do you only look to see what if anything is publicly available and searchable?  I would definitely not give someone access to mine, which is locked down unless I know/approve you, and it's not searchable under my real name. If a rescue asked to see it I would say no. Or I would say I don't have any...
Original Message:
Sent: 08-24-2022 05:23 AM
From: Sarah Hoadley
Subject: What are your adoption policies?

I work in a private non profit rescue in Middle GA.  Prior to our group of ladies starting this rescue, we all volunteered at another one. We disliked several of the policies and procedures & when concerns were voiced - we were asked to leave. So we started our own rescue.  Here are answers for us.

- What is a reasonable adoption fee? We charge $150 per cat/kitten and $250 for 2 kittens. All our animals are microchipped, altered, and vaccinated as appropriate for their age, dewormed, and on heartworm/flea/tick medications (vital here in the south) prior to going home.  We use 2 local spay/neuter clinics that do kittens when they reach 2lb and pups at 8wk. 

- Under what circumstances should we waive the fee?  We don't waive fees. We have done half fee if we find ourselves inundated in cats.

- Should our fosters have to pay the adoption fee if they adopt their foster cat(s)?  We do half cost so $75.
- Should our volunteers have to pay the adoption fee if they adopt a cat?  We do half cost for volunteers as well. I love the idea of hours but we don't track our volunteers hours to know when they've hit any "milestones".

- Should we require that our cats be indoors only?  We say indoors only bc all of ours are kept indoors.  Our local Animal Control adopts out barn cats for the cats that really despise being indoors.

- Should we allow single kitten adoptions?  We do allow single adoptions but we also do encourage them to get 2. In the end, we'd rather get 1 into a home than none.

- What should the minimum age be for adopters?  Ours is 18. 

- What factors disqualify an applicant from adopting?  We do vet checks on applicants. Make sure all animals in the home are current on vaccines and altered. GA requires a minimum of rabies. If its an indoor cat, we allow just that. Dogs must be current on everything.  We also look at their social media & inquire on references.

------------------------------
Sarah Hoadley
Paws in Middle Georgia Animal Rescue

Original Message:
Sent: 08-19-2022 09:09 AM
From: Anonymous Member
Subject: What are your adoption policies?

This message was posted by a user wishing to remain anonymous

Hi everyone! I'm the Adoption Manager at a private, non-profit cat rescue organization in California. We are reviewing all of our adoption policies and procedures to make sure we are best serving our communities and our cats. I wanted to reach out to this group to ask what your policies are, what have you found that works best, what doesn't work at all, and for any advice you have. These are some of the specific questions we are discussing:

- What is a reasonable adoption fee?
- Under what circumstances should we waive the fee?
- Should our fosters have to pay the adoption fee if they adopt their foster cat(s)?
- Should our volunteers have to pay the adoption fee if they adopt a cat?
- Should we require that our cats be indoors only?
- Should we allow single kitten adoptions?
- What should the minimum age be for adopters?
- What factors disqualify an applicant from adopting?

What does your organization do on these issues? Any and all input, suggestions, and advice is most welcome! Thank you!
#AdoptionsandAdoptionPrograms

Yes, we realize not all areas of google maps are current. They put the date of the imagery on it so we can verify. We have also driven by in person for questionable areas/imagery. 

There are a lot of factors that are looked at & considered in adoptions. We have only a few things that are automatic denials. Each adoption is looked at individually bc every animal has different requirements. All the information available is compiled and a decision is made with a whole picture.

------------------------------
Sarah Hoadley
Paws in Middle Georgia Animal Rescue
------------------------------

Original Message:
Sent: 08-26-2022 11:44 AM
From: M Saucedo
Subject: What are your adoption policies?

Sorry this is a little off topic, but just stopping by to say I'd be careful about using Google Maps as a source for adopter information.  It's not real-time, or even recent information. Most of the imagery is several years old if not significantly more, especially in rural areas where I've seen data that's 10-15 years old! The Street View data of my own house was collected in 2012 for example, and the yard looks totally different now. If I'd installed a fence this year and a rescue checked Street View to verify, it would not be there.  Or if a previous owner had a junk yard and that was now all gone, it could still be on Street View for years and years.

------------------------------
M Saucedo
GIS Analyst
Pets for Life

Original Message:
Sent: 08-25-2022 05:43 AM
From: Sarah Hoadley
Subject: What are your adoption policies?

Many of the rescues here do that. Some other local rescues will specifically ask for your social media and/or to be friended so they can look. They won't approve your application if you decline.

We look at all social media platforms, see if anyone we know is friends with them, and google searches for the name. We will also use google maps to find the address to see what kind of yard and home condition. We aren't interested in adopting a dog to a home with no yard or a yard full of old cars or junk.  Middle GA has a serious problem with dog fighting, neglect, abuse, overbreeding, strays, etc. so we take every precaution we can to not place one of our animals into one of those situations. 



------------------------------
Sarah Hoadley
Paws in Middle Georgia Animal Rescue

Original Message:
Sent: 08-24-2022 02:48 PM
From: Anonymous Member
Subject: What are your adoption policies?

This message was posted by a user wishing to remain anonymous

Just out of curiosity, how does looking at their social media work? I've never heard of a rescue doing that. Do you only look to see what if anything is publicly available and searchable?  I would definitely not give someone access to mine, which is locked down unless I know/approve you, and it's not searchable under my real name. If a rescue asked to see it I would say no. Or I would say I don't have any...
Original Message:
Sent: 08-24-2022 05:23 AM
From: Sarah Hoadley
Subject: What are your adoption policies?

I work in a private non profit rescue in Middle GA.  Prior to our group of ladies starting this rescue, we all volunteered at another one. We disliked several of the policies and procedures & when concerns were voiced - we were asked to leave. So we started our own rescue.  Here are answers for us.

- What is a reasonable adoption fee? We charge $150 per cat/kitten and $250 for 2 kittens. All our animals are microchipped, altered, and vaccinated as appropriate for their age, dewormed, and on heartworm/flea/tick medications (vital here in the south) prior to going home.  We use 2 local spay/neuter clinics that do kittens when they reach 2lb and pups at 8wk. 

- Under what circumstances should we waive the fee?  We don't waive fees. We have done half fee if we find ourselves inundated in cats.

- Should our fosters have to pay the adoption fee if they adopt their foster cat(s)?  We do half cost so $75.
- Should our volunteers have to pay the adoption fee if they adopt a cat?  We do half cost for volunteers as well. I love the idea of hours but we don't track our volunteers hours to know when they've hit any "milestones".

- Should we require that our cats be indoors only?  We say indoors only bc all of ours are kept indoors.  Our local Animal Control adopts out barn cats for the cats that really despise being indoors.

- Should we allow single kitten adoptions?  We do allow single adoptions but we also do encourage them to get 2. In the end, we'd rather get 1 into a home than none.

- What should the minimum age be for adopters?  Ours is 18. 

- What factors disqualify an applicant from adopting?  We do vet checks on applicants. Make sure all animals in the home are current on vaccines and altered. GA requires a minimum of rabies. If its an indoor cat, we allow just that. Dogs must be current on everything.  We also look at their social media & inquire on references.

------------------------------
Sarah Hoadley
Paws in Middle Georgia Animal Rescue

Original Message:
Sent: 08-19-2022 09:09 AM
From: Anonymous Member
Subject: What are your adoption policies?

This message was posted by a user wishing to remain anonymous

Hi everyone! I'm the Adoption Manager at a private, non-profit cat rescue organization in California. We are reviewing all of our adoption policies and procedures to make sure we are best serving our communities and our cats. I wanted to reach out to this group to ask what your policies are, what have you found that works best, what doesn't work at all, and for any advice you have. These are some of the specific questions we are discussing:

- What is a reasonable adoption fee?
- Under what circumstances should we waive the fee?
- Should our fosters have to pay the adoption fee if they adopt their foster cat(s)?
- Should our volunteers have to pay the adoption fee if they adopt a cat?
- Should we require that our cats be indoors only?
- Should we allow single kitten adoptions?
- What should the minimum age be for adopters?
- What factors disqualify an applicant from adopting?

What does your organization do on these issues? Any and all input, suggestions, and advice is most welcome! Thank you!
#AdoptionsandAdoptionPrograms

Ditto everything in the two posts Sarah Hoadley has mentioned.    Great protocols !

------------------------------
Jody Beskin(i)
President/Founder
Dove Road Sanctuary and Safe Haven
------------------------------

Original Message:
Sent: 08-24-2022 05:23 AM
From: Sarah Hoadley
Subject: What are your adoption policies?

I work in a private non profit rescue in Middle GA.  Prior to our group of ladies starting this rescue, we all volunteered at another one. We disliked several of the policies and procedures & when concerns were voiced - we were asked to leave. So we started our own rescue.  Here are answers for us.

- What is a reasonable adoption fee? We charge $150 per cat/kitten and $250 for 2 kittens. All our animals are microchipped, altered, and vaccinated as appropriate for their age, dewormed, and on heartworm/flea/tick medications (vital here in the south) prior to going home.  We use 2 local spay/neuter clinics that do kittens when they reach 2lb and pups at 8wk. 

- Under what circumstances should we waive the fee?  We don't waive fees. We have done half fee if we find ourselves inundated in cats.

- Should our fosters have to pay the adoption fee if they adopt their foster cat(s)?  We do half cost so $75.
- Should our volunteers have to pay the adoption fee if they adopt a cat?  We do half cost for volunteers as well. I love the idea of hours but we don't track our volunteers hours to know when they've hit any "milestones".

- Should we require that our cats be indoors only?  We say indoors only bc all of ours are kept indoors.  Our local Animal Control adopts out barn cats for the cats that really despise being indoors.

- Should we allow single kitten adoptions?  We do allow single adoptions but we also do encourage them to get 2. In the end, we'd rather get 1 into a home than none.

- What should the minimum age be for adopters?  Ours is 18. 

- What factors disqualify an applicant from adopting?  We do vet checks on applicants. Make sure all animals in the home are current on vaccines and altered. GA requires a minimum of rabies. If its an indoor cat, we allow just that. Dogs must be current on everything.  We also look at their social media & inquire on references.

------------------------------
Sarah Hoadley
Paws in Middle Georgia Animal Rescue

Original Message:
Sent: 08-19-2022 09:09 AM
From: Anonymous Member
Subject: What are your adoption policies?

This message was posted by a user wishing to remain anonymous

Hi everyone! I'm the Adoption Manager at a private, non-profit cat rescue organization in California. We are reviewing all of our adoption policies and procedures to make sure we are best serving our communities and our cats. I wanted to reach out to this group to ask what your policies are, what have you found that works best, what doesn't work at all, and for any advice you have. These are some of the specific questions we are discussing:

- What is a reasonable adoption fee?
- Under what circumstances should we waive the fee?
- Should our fosters have to pay the adoption fee if they adopt their foster cat(s)?
- Should our volunteers have to pay the adoption fee if they adopt a cat?
- Should we require that our cats be indoors only?
- Should we allow single kitten adoptions?
- What should the minimum age be for adopters?
- What factors disqualify an applicant from adopting?

What does your organization do on these issues? Any and all input, suggestions, and advice is most welcome! Thank you!
#AdoptionsandAdoptionPrograms

We recently moved from a very restrictive adoption application and policy system towards a more open adoption model.  Previously we had a 4 page adoption application that required a full vet history, landlord approval verification, background check, and in person meeting with all members of the household.

After a review by our board committee, some outside consultants, and involving our staff, we did a partial move towards open adoption while still keeping some of current policies that staff felt were the most important.  At the same time, we also focused on making a culture change to the open adoption model idea of starting from yes.  Basically that looks at changing the application process from trying to find a reason to rule someone out as an adopter, to trying to figure out a way to get to an adoption with most applications.

Our policies are probably more restrictive than what you'd see at a true open adoption model shelter, but they so far have been a good balance in bridging the gap between staff concerns and the real need to make our adoption more accessible.  It's hard to say exactly how effective it's been so far as there were multiple factors in play, but for our first month in place, our adoptions were up by about 30%.

Our current policies are:

1. The goal of all interactions with potential adopters is to help adopters find the right animal for their home.  We will work to educate applicants and to help connect them to an animal that is a good fit for both the needs of the adopters and the animals.
2. Adoption applications must be completed by someone 18 years of age or older.
3. We will not approve adoption applications for any potential adopter with a history or pending charges of crimes against animals, children, or domestic abuse.  If an applicant has pending charges for a misdemeanor or felony, or has a conviction in the last 5 years for violent crime or theft, that application may be deferred.
4. All adopters should own their own home or have permission from their landlord or homeowner before an adoption application is approved.
5. If an adopter is applying to adopt a dog and already has a dog in the household, an interaction should be held before the adoption is allowed.
6. Applicants must meet animals in person before adopting.  Because of the range of dog personalities and preferences, we encourage all members of a household to meet with a dog before adoption.
7. Adopted animals from us are intended to live in the same household as the adopter.  For gifted animals, we will allow prepaid adoptions and will work with adoption-approved gift recipients to select an animal that is a best fit for them.
8. Applicants who own their own home and have completed background checks may be approved for same-day adoption if they have met with the animal and do not need a dog interaction.
9. If an adopter is applying to adopt a cat or kitten, they must agree to not declaw any animal adopted from us.  Adopters who want to declaw based on housing or medical requirements will only be allowed to adopt cats who have already been declawed.  Our staff will make every attempt to educate potential adopters about the danger of declaw surgery and provide alternatives to prevent or limit destructive scratching behavior.
10. If the adopter is a staff member, board member, or volunteer that is well known to the shelter, we may waive application form requirements.
11. All cats, dogs, and rabbits will be spayed or neutered prior to adoption unless there are specific conditions to delay a spay/neuter that benefit the animal.  In cases where an animal is not spayed/neutered prior to adoption, the adopter will be required to agree to have the animal fixed by us or another party at a future date.
12. If for any reason an adopter has difficulty keeping or caring for the animal, the shelter can assist in providing support or resources.  All animals adopted from us may be surrendered back to the shelter over the lifetime of the animal.
13. Within 14 days of adoption, an adopter may return an animal to the shelter for any reason and will receive a full refund of their adoption fee. 
14. If within 30 days of adoption an animal develops a life-limiting medical condition that is unrelated to the adopter's care, and the adopter is unable or unwilling to pay for treatment, the animal may be returned to the shelter and the adoption fee may be returned to the adopter.
15. We reserve the right to deny or defer an application if the shelter feels that it is in the best interests of the animal.

------------------------------
Jeff Okazaki
Humane Society of Jefferson County
------------------------------

Original Message:
Sent: 08-19-2022 09:09 AM
From: Anonymous Member
Subject: What are your adoption policies?

This message was posted by a user wishing to remain anonymous

Hi everyone! I'm the Adoption Manager at a private, non-profit cat rescue organization in California. We are reviewing all of our adoption policies and procedures to make sure we are best serving our communities and our cats. I wanted to reach out to this group to ask what your policies are, what have you found that works best, what doesn't work at all, and for any advice you have. These are some of the specific questions we are discussing:

- What is a reasonable adoption fee?
- Under what circumstances should we waive the fee?
- Should our fosters have to pay the adoption fee if they adopt their foster cat(s)?
- Should our volunteers have to pay the adoption fee if they adopt a cat?
- Should we require that our cats be indoors only?
- Should we allow single kitten adoptions?
- What should the minimum age be for adopters?
- What factors disqualify an applicant from adopting?

What does your organization do on these issues? Any and all input, suggestions, and advice is most welcome! Thank you!
#AdoptionsandAdoptionPrograms