Puppy Ready or Puppy Fever?

Posted 4 years ago by Mocha

People often ask us if we have puppies available for adoption, this is a frequent question, so here is the deal.
Puppies are rare in rescue, while we have recently had more than usual, they are still rare in rescue. That being said, adopting out a dane puppy is a unique adventure. The fact that they are in such high demand is a part of the problem. Everyone wants that cute, floppy, uncoordinated adorable dane puppy. What MOST people fail to realize is that cute, adorable uncoordinated puppy is going to get big, and I mean GIANT.

The average age of shelter/surrender is 18 months, because at that age all those things that that GIANT puppy did that you thought were cute and adorable and knowingly or not you encouraged, are not so cute now that he is over 100 lbs. If it isn’t going to be cute at 150 pounds, it isn’t cute at 15 pounds.

So when we adopt out a puppy, we take great effort to ensure several factors beyond our normal screening process

  • Experience matters. we prefer that you have had prior dane or giant breed experience. This matters because you are better equipped to understand the commitment you are making. Danes don’t eat cheap dog food, well they don’t if you want to avoid thousands of dollars in vet bills. They are expensive to feed, their regular vet visits are not inexpensive either. An average well check for one of our dogs is 100-300 dollars. Most danes need TWO boxes of heart guard every month to meet his weight. Yes it doesn’t break the bank, but it is still upwards of $80-100 every six months just on heart guard.
  • Time on your hands? Puppies are like small children, they need a lot of attention. A three month old puppy can only be expected to “hold it” about three hours. Potty training, leash training, house manners and socialization take TIME… If you are working 8 to 10 hours and expect to leave your puppy at home alone… do not apply with us.
  • History of responsible ownership. this is true for all our applicants but especially for puppies. If you do not have a consistent record of minimum veterinary care, heartworm prevention and care for your existing dog.. why would you provide it for this dog?
  • Training. Are you willing to train the dog, and continue training the dog.? Because guess what, they are really big toddlers. Telling them once isn’t going to do the trick. You have to be consistent and continue to work at it, they will push the limits and trust me when I say they will train YOU more than you realize. They are smart, and just really good at making you think otherwise. If the behavior is not going to be cute when they are 180 pounds it isn’t cute at 18 pounds.
  • Family Furkids. We look for adopters who really treats their dogs as a member of the family. Because, that is what they are.

    and then some…..this list is not intended to be complete.. but only to serve as a reality check …..
    We don’t screen this thoroughly to be mean, we do it because these dogs deserve a home that will last furever. We ask the difficult questions because it is our job. Because if they are in rescue, odds are someone has already failed them.

    Yes, I understand that there are extenuating circumstances and sometimes things just happen. But it doesn’t change the commitment that we have made. Trust me we have made a lot of mistakes and learned every time. At the end of the day, I want to know that you are going to love them as much as I do.

    This is our responsibility. We choose each and every puppy adopter with great care. If you have adopted a puppy from us it is because of all the applicants we get (and we get a lot) you are the one that while reading your application I am chanting, YES. Have I been wrong, of course. But each time I learn from it and the next person has to go a little farther to ensure I don’t make the same mistake twice.

    We do not make the adoption process difficult and time consuming because we are jerks, we work very hard to be sure each and every adoption allows us to go to bed at night feeling good about what we did. I carry with me each success story, and each failure. I have to sleep with both every night.