Please adopt a German Shepherd
Please note that the adoption fees vary between £150- £200 depending on age. You are not purchasing a dog, you will be giving a donation that will provide kenneling or veterinary care for the many dogs that need our help.
Adoption

To begin the adoption process, please fill in the ADOPTION FORM which will be sent to our rehoming volunteer. Please be honest with your answers and don't put what you think we want to hear. Our rehoming volunteer will then telephone you to discuss adoption and to organise a homecheck.

When Sussex German Shepherd Rescue considers placing a dog in a new home, care is taken to ensure that there is a good match between the dog, its new owner and the new home environment in which it will be living. Not every dog will be right for a given environment and not all potential owners will be right for a given dog. Sometimes we get requests from individuals who attempt to give us a detailed description (possibly highly unrealistic) of a dog they would like us to provide them with and whilst we do try to find a dog that fits in with the wishes of the prospective new owner, dogs do not "come to order", they are all individual and have their own personalities. Both the dog and its new owners will have much learn from each other and will require time to adjust, but if approached with a practical and realistic attitude, adopting a German Shepherd can be a deeply rewarding experience.

The initial stages of the adoption process begins when you contact us. First we will discuss with you over the phone your specific situation, i.e. if you have owned a German Shepherd before, how the dog is to be accommodated, your other pets if any, how much time will you be at work/have available to spend with your dog, and your family commitments. We in turn can then advise you of a dog that may be suitable for you. If there is not a dog available at that time, we will contact you when there is.

If you decide after talking it through with us that this is what you want, we will arrange a convenient time for a home visit. Please do bear in mind that as we are all volunteers and many of us have day jobs so we cannot always arrange an immediate visit. We will however do our best to meet with you as soon as possible.

If all goes well and we are able to place a suitable dog with you, we will contact you again to arrange with you a suitable day and time to bring your new companion. To keep our costs down, you may be asked to travel to meet with a volunteer to pick up your new dog. On accepting you new dog you will be asked to fill in and sign an adoption form which sets out the legal conditions of adoption from Sussex German Shepherd Rescue.

In order to help you through the initial stages we will keep in touch to see how your new dog is settling in and how you are managing. During this period we will do our best to ensure you get any support and guidance you need. Telephone support is available, so there is no need to worry about being left to cope with any problems alone. Most placements do succeed well and some of our adopters even come back for more!
In general we do not re-home in the following conditions:

* where a dog is going to be left longer than 3-4 hours on a daily basis, as this is very unfair to the dogs.




* to any applicants who intend to use any dog for breeding, as we have a no breeding policy. The rescue is not in a financial position to spay/neuter before adoption, but at the time of adoption you will be asked to sign an agreement that the dog will be taken to the vet for this procedure to be carried out as soon as feasible after the adoption. You will be asked to provide evidence that the procedure has been carried out. Some dogs will have already been neutered or spayed by their previous owner.
* We do not re-home where there is no secure garden area for the dog to go into.
* Following adoption we ask that all new owners insure their new dog as soon as possible - Vet fees can be very expensive!

A GSD makes a wonderful friend and family pet but If you haven't had one before it is important to understand that this is a working breed and they can be 'difficult' to the uninitiated. A GSD needs a lot of exercise, some good basic training and companionship - they like to be with you. They can be very vocal and they are naturally protective towards their new family and property so you will need to think how you can manage this so as not to upset friends and neighbours. A bored GSD can be very destructive

If you are interested in adopting a Sussex German Shepherd Dog, could you please copy and paste these questions and send your completed application to the following email address:

rescue@sussexgermanshepherdrescue.com

Sussex German Shepherd Rescue Homecheck Form

Date:

Adopters names:

Adopters address:

Contact details: Telephone Home/mobile. Email address:

Names and Date of Birth of all Adopters and others living in the house hold:



Do any children live or visit the house regularly what are their ages and how much experience do they have with dogs?

Any other occupants:

How would you describe yourself as a dog owner? First time owner / have had some experience / very experienced.

Reason for adopting a rescue dog:
Family pet / guard dog /“PAT” dog / company for another pet. / Potential for competition i.e. agility/obedience. / Other

Do you have any pets at present? How many. What type?

If you own another dog. Name, breed, sex, age, and are they spayed/neutered.

About your property

Type of property : Bungalow / house / flat / detached / semi detached / terraced / other.

Owned or rented: If rented do you have landlords permission to have a dog: we may need to see this in writing.

What outside space will the dog have access to? Fenced yard/Enclosed patio/Balcony/Dog house/Unfenced common area/other

How secure is the garden/outside space

Height of wall at its highest/lowest points

What is it constructed of, brick, wood, hedging.

Is the garden/outside space secure or is there any repairs needed to make it secure.

Are there any gates. Are they secure?

Does anyone from outside the family have access to this area, i.e. gardener, neighbour.

About your dogs lifestyle

Will the dog be left alone for long periods? If yes, how long. If needed, is there someone who can come in and toilet/walk the dog?

Where will the dog stay when it is at home alone? i.e. will it have the run of the house, a specific room or be put in a crate?
Is the dog to be an indoor or outdoor dog? Where will it sleep at night?

What kind of daily exercise would your dog be likely to get. Short walks / Vigorous walks / Hike or jog regularly

Do you have access to a local vet

Do you have access to transport?

Are you aware of the cost implications of owning a dog. i.e possible neutering/spaying costs. Insurance costs, Micro chipping, worming/flea treatments. Yearly vaccination costs. Bearing in mind that the life span of the dog could be between 10 – 20 years.

Are you willing to live with hair on the furniture and carpets, a dog on your bed, an animal that could be destructive at times? Would you be willing to work on any behavioural issues that may arise with your new dog. Would you access training classes if needed.