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Chapter 42. Reasons for Rejection and Runaway Adopters
Along with Runaway Adopters, another intriguing phenomenon in the wacky world of animal give-ups and adoptions are the "reasons" people give when dropping animals off at the pound.
Of course there are always the common and uncreative excuses like "moving," "having a baby" or "fiance's allergic."
But, occasionally one sees something truly unique.
Once when at CACC, I noted a friendly black cat in a cage. The cat was an owner give-up. On his cage card, under "Reason for Surrender" was noted, "The cat is black."
This truly amazed me. I had to wonder what color the cat was when the people acquired him? I've never known a cat who changed colors, but apparently this one did -- much to the disappointment of his owner(s).
We rescued and later adopted the cat out to someone who wasn't color blind.
Another time I received a call from a woman veterinarian in a downtown clinic. "I am hoping you can help us," she told me. "A client brought in her 5-year-old declawed cat and requested euthanasia. The cat is very healthy and extremely loving. I can't bear to put her down." "Why did the woman want her cat destroyed?" I asked. "Because she said she was tired of dealing with cat hair on the furniture."
We took this lovely cat and had no trouble finding her a loving home where the adopter had a vacuum cleaner and didn't mind using it.
Another time, while at CACC a woman brought in her two-year-old beautiful purebred Samoyed. She informed the workers behind the counter that she was turning the dog in because she was "going on vacation." "But, if the dog is still here three weeks from now, I will be happy to take her back," the woman added nonchalantly. Apparently, she thought the city pound was a luxury and free doggie boarding facility.
We took this wonderful dog and had no trouble finding her a committed adopter who knew the difference between a boarding kennel and the city pound.
"Going on vacation," while not common, is nevertheless noted, particularly during the summer months. We once rescued a young, male Maine Coon from CACC whose owner also indicated he was "going on vacation." The cat turned out to have a urinary blockage and would have died in the cage had we not taken him. Apparently, the owner had been too busy "traveling" to notice what was really going on with his cat. (Or maybe he did and didn't want to deal with it).
Another fairly common, but fascinating reason for giving up an animal is "dog wants out."
Don't most dogs want to go out? I have never seen a dog who didn't like to go for walks. What were the people thinking when they got the dog?
I once took a call from a woman who told me she needing to find a home for her dog because the animal "isn't housebroken." "How often do your walk your dog?" I asked her. "Once a week," I was told, matter of factly. "Once a week?" I gasped, unbelieving of what I was hearing. "How do you expect the dog to hold his urine for a week? Could YOU?" Despite the fact there were four adult people in the home, the woman told me no one "had time" to walk the dog.
Though we normally don't take dogs directly from owners, I did in this case. Charlie was a sweet, four-year-old Shepherd who deserved -- and found a better home than this one. One where the people realized a dog needs to be walked at least twice a day.
But, if the reasons people dump animals are sometimes unbelievable, the reasons other people reject animals for adoption are equally mystifying.
Yesterday, a woman called to express interest in a fabulous Golden Retriever we have for adoption named, "Amber." Once again, the woman sounded lovely and caring. She told me about her Golden who recently died after a long bout with kidney disease. She had spared no expense and effort in keeping her dog going as long as possible. I informed the lady that Amber was a large Golden, but very sweet. "She is 82 lbs, but very easy to walk."
I told "Marian" that she could go and see Amber at "Run Spot Run, a boarding facility on Manhattan's Upper East Side where we board rescued dogs. The woman lived only two blocks from the facility, so it would be easy for her to go and spend some time with Amber. "One of the guys will bring her out for you," I told Marian. "You can see and get a feel for her. If you are interested in adopting Amber, call me and I will go over there."
A couple of hours later, Marian called to tell me she visited Amber earlier and liked her very much. Could I meet her back at Run Spot? "Sure, I can be there in fifteen minutes!" I told the woman eagerly. I was thrilled that Amber could find a nice home so soon!
I rushed to Run Spot and upon walking in, noticed Amber licking up and happily wagging her tail to Marian and her husband. Everything looked great! But, Marian got up from the leather couch where she'd been sitting with the smooching dog, came up to me and announced, "I think she's too big for us."
Too big?
For one of the very few times in my life I was completely speechless.
Didn't this woman and her husband spend more than an hour with the dog previously? Didn't she call me on the phone telling me she really liked Amber and could I come over?
Did she have me run to the place so she could tell me to my face Amber was "too big?"
I stood there with my mouth open and nothing coming out. I was aghast.
The woman turned with her husband and walked out the door without so much as an apology.
A few minutes later, I related the story to another rescuer at Run Spot. Doris specializes in the rescue and placement of Dalmatians. She wasn't at all surprised when I told her what "Marian" had just done. "I had some people look at one of our Dalmatians and tell me the dog has too many spots," she related.
I then turned to Carlos who runs the desk at Run Spot. He just shook his head. "I even let them walk Amber," he told me. "She was wonderful with them."
"Well, Carlos, I've seen a cat turned into the shelter for changing colors and I now have a dog who apparently grew a foot in the space of two hours."