Adoptions at Petsmart?

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Sport

I demand your- attention!!

Barked: Tue Jan 29, '13 4:09pm PST


	I am hoping to get a dog soon and I really want to adopt. Every weekend there is a local shelter that takes a few dogs (and cats) to Petsmart. I've never adopted before. Has anyone else adopted a pet like this before? And anything else about adopting would be welcomed too!

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Sarah,- CW-SR,- CW-G1, CGC

Million Dollar- Mutt

Barked: Tue Jan 29, '13 4:45pm PST


	The rescue I foster with does adoptions through Petsmart and Petco. What do you want to know about adoptions?

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Sport

I demand your- attention!!

Barked: Tue Jan 29, '13 6:06pm PST


	I know this about adoptions: You pick out a dog and make sure that you and the dog get along and that he is what you want in a dog. After all that, you go through a screening process. If you pass the screening process then you get the dog. What I need help with is the screening process. What all do you have to for it? If I left anything out then please fill me in!

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Mr. Blue

I'm not blue at- all!

Barked: Tue Jan 29, '13 6:21pm PST


	The dogs that are going to Petsmart are probably listed on petfinder.com. I just adopted Saturday. I looked at the dogs on petfinder and asked the rescue if I could meet one of them. They said to go to Petco. I went, my application was approved, and I adopted her. This particular rescue has a 2 week trial before it's finalized because all their dogs come from pounds and they don't know everything about them. A lot of the dogs are being fostered in homes. That's a great way to learn more about the dog.

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Natasha - 美花- ~Beautiful- Flower~

Let's play tag!- You're it!

Barked: Tue Jan 29, '13 6:29pm PST


	Here's what happened when I adopted my cat, Rocky, from Petsmart about 12 years ago... I saw Rocky, went "aw, how adorable!", had a chat with the girl who handled the adoptions, filled out an application, plunked down the money, and walked out the door with my Rocky. They called me a week later to see how things were going, all was well so they bid me adieu and good luck. That was it. I would assume it's different from rescue to rescue, but really their screening process was just a friendly short conversation and the application to make sure my landlord allowed pets, they didn't go into any deep details or anything.

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Rigby

Whisper Words of- Wisdom

Barked: Wed Jan 30, '13 4:19am PST


	Rigby was a Petsmart adoptee, and I also volunteered with a rescue that did Petsmart dates. The process varies from shelter-shelter and shelter-rescue. Rigby was from a shelter, I basically filled out the form, took her to the cash register, paid and walked away. This was a 2 day process for me, however that's because I lived over an hour away from their location and did not have the time to drive home and get Cobain to "meet" Rigby the first day. The rescue I was with had more strict regulations on the process. You could meet the dogs at the store, and you could interact with them in the stressful setting. You could also fill out an application, but you could NOT walk out same day with the dog you were interested in. After filling out the form, a volunteer would call you back within a few weeks to set up a "meet and greet" with your dogs or other members of the household. This takes place at their private dog park, which is a less stressful environment than the store. If all goes well there, they will do a home visit. From there, you do a trial adoption where you get up to 2 weeks (I think?) to decide whether the dog is a good match for you. If you decide yes, you start in their mandatory training classes. So it really all depends. On another note, I just got an email from Petsmart stating that Rigby's story will be featured in their blog tomorrow

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Opheila

It ain't over- till the fat- kitty sings

Barked: Thu Jan 31, '13 6:22pm PST


	I've had some bad experiences with rescues unfortunately. If you have an average house, a fenced yard is a plus but not an absolute, some nice references, a vet in mind, then you shouldn't have any problems. Rescues want to make sure they place in a good home but misunderstandings can happen. One rescue came to our house for the home check, saw two stray cats across the street and cancelled the adoption because they insisted the cats must be ours and we were letting them outside to roam The second adoption for a dog fell through because of the home check again, different rescue but the worker was afraid of Sophie from the time she came in the door..an animal rescue worker who is phobic about pit bulls...sad I personally prefer a city shelter. You know you're absolutely saving a life and the application process is pretty much proof of residence, application, adoption fee and you're good to go. The downside being they might not know anything about the animal whatsoever. They often have an open return policy if it doesn't work out. But to go the shelter route it helps to go in with a good idea what you're looking for and not looking for. Good Luck

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Ace

Mischief is my- middle name

Barked: Fri Feb 1, '13 9:26am PST


	I would suggest going to Petfinder to find all of the dogs with the particular rescue or shelter doing the Petco/Petsmart adoptions. If there's one you have particular interest in, they may make the extra effort to get that dog to the store, if they know you are interested. Or you can just arrange a meet and greet outside of the store environment, with a foster or rescue or at the shelter.

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Twister-Miss- ing

Have you seen- me?

Barked: Fri Feb 1, '13 3:16pm PST


	It is a good idea to check out the rescue who will be doing the meet and greet at the Petsmart, then if you see a dog you are interested in, they could likely bring it along (they don't usually bring every animal available). As others have said, the process will vary with the individual rescue whether or not you will be approved for a same-day adoption. The cats are actually handled a bit different (btw, I used to work at a Petsmart). Unlike the dogs, there are some cats that stay at Petsmart (though there are some rescues who will bring cats on Saturdays as well). The cats that stay at Petsmart can be brought home the same day. Of course there is paper-work to fill out for them, including address and phone number so they CAN be checked up on if needed. Also, Petsmart workers DO reserve the right to refuse to sell any live animals to anyone they think may not have the best interests of the animal in mind (I don't think many people know about that rule...). They will be looking at how you handle/treat the animal while you are meeting it. I have refused to let people (usually teens or small children) handle some of the animals before. Anyhow, you probably weren't interested in the cats...hope you find the pup that is meant for you! Adoption is a wonderful idea!

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Taggert

Semper Vorax

Barked: Sat Feb 16, '13 2:41am PST


	The screening isn't anything tough. It sounds exactly like what the humans society does where I live. In fact, petsmart usually teams up with the local HS to get those pups and kitties to the store where they will be seen. It sounds like your local rescue is using the find your match color system. Basically, they have assessed the personality and temprement of the available animals and they know the dog, in your case, they just want to find a match for you that won't be too terrible for wither side. A screening is simple. It is usually a questionaire. YOu'll see questins like this: How many hours a day are you home? Are you an active person or sedentary? How old are you? Do you have other animals in the home, how many, what kinds, what ages and what genders? How big is your home? Do you rent or own? Do you have a backyard? How many hours a week are you willing to spend grooming? Is there anyone in your home other than you? Are there persons under 18? Are there persons over 65? Do you plan on having children in the next 5 years? How long have you lived at your address? DO you describe your home environment as: busy, with lots of people coming and going all the time, insular, with only occasional well known visitors. Do you want to participate in dogs sports: lure coursing, agility, schutzhund, nosework, flyball, canine dance It's mostly questions like that. Sometimes they will ask for employment or income, but not everyone. Private groups do more than shelters. Please answer screening honestly. ODn't worry about the questions of backyard size. A shelter usually won't mind if you don't have one, but they'll steer you towards picks that will do well in apartments. Screening does 2 things: it helps match a person with an animal, and it helps you and the shelter finalize the thought of getting another pet. OUr HS uses the color system which rally helps, when we got taggert, the screening questions helped us narrow down the available dogs to ones that were most likely to fit. It narrowed things down because most of the hard questions were answered for us, and all we had to do was go through and pick the one we wanted. In our case, we wanted a specific size and gender, and there were only two that day that fit all of our criteria and our screening color.

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