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Barking Up the Wrong Tree

In the wake of the Ellen DeGeneres adoption scandal, questions abound regarding the rights of pet owners

By Sharon L. Peters
CTW Features

Adoption rules vary from place to place, but a general rule of thumb is that animal rescue facilities will trust their ability to re-home an animal over yours.

The public brouhaha that erupted after the Ellen DeGeneres dog adoption/dog give-away/dog repossession mess has finally died down. But questions remain in many minds about how many rules are attached when a person takes home a pet from an agency, rescue group or shelter.

And there is no simple answer: Rules and stipulations vary.

Some, like Moms & Mutts, the California agency from which Ellen adopted fluffy little Iggy, stipulate that if an adoption does not work out for any reason, the animal be returned to them. The rationale: No one wants to see a dog passed around from person to person, and agencies trust their own skills most when it comes to re-homing a pet the adopters no longer want.

And some, like Moms & Mutts, also will not give some dogs to families with small children. The rationale: Lots of puppies and small dogs are seriously injured by kids who don’t understand how to keep a pet safe and who aren’t properly coached and monitored by their parents.

Others have few or no rules about returns or kids on the grounds that making a really good match between humans and a pet is a case-by-case matter.

City and county shelters “are generally more lenient,” than private or nonprofit rescue groups, says Cynthia Bullock, executive director of Dreampower, Colorado Springs, Colo., a pet rescue group. Such rescue groups often deal with smaller numbers of animals than city and county shelters and aren’t required to take in every animal someone doesn’t want, and as a result they often have more stringent rules for adopters.

Dreampower, for example, requires that adopters sign a contract vowing to return to the agency any animal that doesn’t work out. They also do not adopt small animals to families with children under the age of 3.

Although the give-away policy and the small-kids rules were the ones that prompted public discussion and debate during the Ellen controversy, the fact is some pet-adoption agencies have an even wider array of requirements. Many places mandate that adoption personnel make home visits to ensure the home is appropriate for the animal in question. Some insist the adoption personnel observe while pets already in the home meet the one that might be added to the family. And some do post-adoption visits to make sure everything is going OK.

None of this, experts say, is intended to make potential adopters feel bad or to exclude huge numbers of people from taking home a dog, but rather to protect the animals. The more conversation a would-be pet-parent has with adoption personnel, and the more information that professional can gather, the better the chances of a safe and happy adoption.

In reality, restrictions are looser at most facilities. Many shelters understand “that some adoptions don’t work out and many times the people re-home the animal with people they know, and it’s a successful match,” says Susan Britt of the Animal Refuge League of Greater Portland (Maine). Moreover, it would be almost impossible for most city or county authorities to enforce a don’t-give-away rule, she points out. That said, “We cheerfully take back any animal that doesn’t work out, and we make sure people know that when they adopt,” Britt says. Many city and country shelters take the same position.

As for children, “We absolutely embrace placing pets with families with children,” says Connie Howard of the Boulder (Colo.) Valley Humane Society in, as do many other shelters.

But most shelters like to meet the kids, see how the parents interact with them, learn what kinds of guidance and boundaries the parents are likely to set and based on what they see, may keep certain animals from certain families.

At the Kanab, Utah sanctuary operated by Best Friends Animal Society, the general rule of thumb is that puppies under 6 months aren’t adopted to families with children under 6. “But it depends on the size of the puppies,” says Barbara Williamson. “For instance, a bull-mastiff mix might be allowed if we were confident parents will be vigilant about the child’s interactions with the puppy but we would not send a Maltese mix to that same family.”

Experts say that to avoid adoption heartbreak, all would-be pet parents should read contract rules carefully and be prepared to abide by the letter of every detail.

What’s your question? Sharon Peters would like to hear about what’s on your mind when it comes to caring for, training and loving your pet. Email Sharon@Pets2008.com.

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