Near or Far?

[Susan, Zeke. Lily & Jasper]

How far did you travel?
What did it take to get your doodle home? etc...adoption process, visiting a shelter, answering an ad
Did your doodle travel to you?
Did you reley on a service to help you? etc...petfinder, doodle train, pet flyers
What mode of travel did your doodle take to arrive home?

Please discuss anything that might be useful to someone considering rescuing a pet.

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

Most local rescues and shelters, both public and private, do not offer transportation, and in fact, most have narrow restrictions on the geographical location of would-be adopters. Very few adopt out of state, or outside of a certain mile radius.
Nationwide rescues such as IDOG RRR and the DRC try to transport dogs from kill shelters to safe homes, (doodle trains) no matter where they are, if possible. But this is only done in cases where the dog's life is at stake and there is no other choice. The amount of time, planning, communication, coordination, money, etc., that this requires on the part of a dozen volunteers is mind-boggling. These groups also permit out of state adoptions, but it is completely up to the adopter to transport the dog, and shipping would not be allowed; they would have to drive there & drive back with the dog. There are a few private rescues that have limited transport within a certain geographical area, but that is between rescue groups, not to individuals.
In my case, I filled out applications with 2 rescue groups in Northern Illinois, for specific dogs I saw on Petfinder. I didn't take/get either dog, (one was unsuitable for me and the other went to another applicant) but allowed my application to be approved and kept on file. When Jackdoodle was relinquished to one of the shelters, they called me immediately, before he was listed on Petfinder. Many doodle adoptions happen this way; by the time you see a doodle on petfinder, there are often several applications already being reviewed.
The shelter where I got Jack is about an hour and a half from me. I drove there to see him the first time, spent 2 hours with him, and left without him. It was too big a decision to make without some soul-searching; Three days later, I went back and got him. The shelter was closed for 2 of the 3 days that I waited, but there was a chance I could have lost him to someone else. The fact that I didn't reinforced for me that he was meant to be my dog.

[Doris]

My family adopted Bodi from a local family who was moving away. Our adoption was quite simple - We visited once and then returned to pick him up as the family packed up to leave town. Bodi was advertised on our teacher webpage. If we hadn't adopted him, he would have gone to a local rescue shelter. Oh, by the way, it was the best thing we have ever done!

[AndySharon BoomerShaynaMariner]

Mariner was a different type of adoption than you normally see. We already had two GD's one was Mariner's brother. The breeder had another litter and one of the (Mariner) had an accident, fractured his skull. This left Mariner blind and with a seizure disorder. We were unaware of his seizure disorder bt were very aware of him being blind. We knew of his situation from another forum. As time went on the breeders decided that they would not be able to keep him for the long term. If someone didn't adopt him he would be put to sleep. For us that could not be an alternative. We decided to adopt him. We did do all the research we could on blind dogs and what to expect. I spoke to Steve at Rolling Dog Ranch and to our vet.

Sharon (DW) and Samantha (DD) drove from NJ to NC to get him. On the drive back Samantha held him.

Important information:

If adopting a disabled dog learn everything you can about the disability - most important speak to people who have dogs with similar disabilities. Be prepared for surprises. We were unaware of Mariner's seizures and this is now his main medical issue as he has regained substantial eyesight - another surprise.

Also don't listen to the people that say "How can you adopt a dog that is blind (or what ever)? What kind of life can he have?" BTW that was my son, who now is Mariner's best buddy.

[Adrianne Matzkin]

We were asked to foster Mickey by the DRC. Such a sad, sick boy but over the 6 weeks we had the priveledge we realized we loved having 2 doodles. I searched PetFinder and fell in LOVE with this face - who could resist??

Her story is that she came from an Amish Puppy Mill, born with an umbilicl cord hernia so she was 'damaged goods' so a pet store wouldn't want her. TG this PM owner decided not to kill her but surrender her to a rescue! That is not the norm for PMers - can't make a buck so they aren't worth living.
I just started working with the DRC and had no clue about how things work on the rescue side. It took 5 days for them to let me know my application was approved! I got my email at 10am. Oh, did I mention Lucy Lei as she was known then, was in a Toledo, Ohio rescue and I live in NJ? At 230pm I was on a flight from Newark, NJ with crate in hand to Detriot. I then had to drive to Toledo and by 530pm she was mine!! We spent the night getting to know each other in a motel at the Detroit airport and flew back to NJ the next morning.
Charli was maybe 5" tall when I picked her up - they told me she was 10 weeks old, already spayed and had her umbilical hernia fixed. Her birthday is supposedly May 15 which would make her a year old this weekend. I believe she was closer to 6 weeks when I got her -she is now just shy of 27" tall!!
Life with Samantha and Charli is just a wonderful one!
July 2009 - so tiny

February 2010 - so huge

[Susan, Zeke. Lily & Jasper]

What a sweet story and a beautiful doodle family!