*ADOPTION FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
Why do I have to pay £5.00 to be registered
This fee is to prevent people from applying on impulse because they found the form on the web site and then not remembering they had done so when a dog was offered to them. This was an idea stolen from another rescue to try and ensure that those that applied were genuine about their request. It also ensures that the costs involved in processing the applications are covered without taking any money away from the dogs that need it. ▲
How long will I have to wait for a dog
The wait could be anything from a day to a year, every dog that becomes available for rehoming will be placed within a home within a 2 hour radius of his current location. Each dog requires a different type of home, some need to be placed with children and/or other dogs, whereas some need to be placed in a home where they are no other dogs and/or no children. Some are fine as someone's first bulldogs, whereas other need breed experience. We look at everyone waiting in the area until we find a home that matches that dogs requirements. If that's you then we call you and the rehoming process begins. If not you will stay on the file for a year. ▲
In order to maintain a solvent charity, we need to charge an adoption fee on every dog that is adopted. This fee is decided by the age of the dog and is the same regardless if we have spent £10 or £1000 on the dog before it could be rehomed:
You agree to paying this fee at the time of application and it will be requested when we send you the adoption papers ▲
Why do I have to be in the dog's area
There are a couple of reasons for this. Firstly, the waiting list is so extensive it is much easier to split it into regions and give everyone registered a fair chance, but also by keeping the dog local means that the same volunteer can deal with the move from start to finish which is not only best for the dog as the volunteer that knows him can do the homecheck, but reassuring for the owners that the same person will look after their dog during the rehoming process. We have also found in the past that where people are happy to travel long distances to collect a dog, they're not quite so keen to do so if for any reason the placement fails, besides it's fairer on the dog to keep his travelling time down and in the case that this is someone's first bulldog they really don't want to be dealing with a dog that's become distressed in the car on the M1 with 100 miles still to go. ▲
Why am I only kept on the list for a year
Because despite the fact that everyone that applies to us is asked to tell us if they get a bulldog from a different source, few of them actually do. It takes a long time to select and check a family for a dog and becomes very frustrating to be told at the end of it that they no longer want a bulldog from the rescue. Many people forget they applied or get a dog elsewhere and never tell us so the list is updated on a weekly basis and you will be emailed when your application expires. ▲
Why am I not homechecked until there's a dog for me
Sadly, we don't have enough volunteers to homecheck everyone on application, but we've found that by doing the home check when there is a dog available for that specific family means we can check your home against that particular dog, making the home checking stage much more reliable and you will most likely be homechecked by a volunteer who has met the dog. ▲
I've applied for a bulldog but haven't heard anything yet, am I being ignored?
No you are not being ignored, we get a lot of applications in on a daily basis, and we aim to collect all the applications for a particular dog over a period of time and then look to see who is the most suitable so please don't reapply as it won't get you nearer the top of the list. We aim to let everyone know if they are un-successful in their application for a dog, but cannot enter into private correspondence. You will not hear until a family has been selected so please expect a delay. If you are the successful application you will be contacted by telephone.
Please also be aware that Bulldog Rescue is run by people who have jobs elsewhere, office work and admin is undertaken around an existing business and most tasks are done on a weekly basis: The web site is updated and new dogs are usually listed each Tuesday. New homes are usually selected on a Thursday▲
The application form rejected what do I do?
Your application will be rejected if you have not included the £5 administration fee, you will be sent an email should this happen with instructions on how to rectify things ▲