FORTUNATE POOCHES and LAB RESCUE

Are You Thinking About Giving Up Your Pet?
Research Your Options
Your Pet’s Life Depends On It

The surrendering of your feline or canine companion can be a very
difficult timefor you and your family. If you can no longer care for your pet,
it is important that you research and understand your options –
your pet’s life depends on it.
In 2005, 21,563 cats and dogs were euthanized in Chicago alone.
With time, effort, planning and resourcefulness you can ensure that
your loyal companion has a chance at life and does not become
part of this statistic.

Try to resolve problems before you decide to give up your pet.

Here is what you can do:

Planning Ahead - If you must give up your pet, planning ahead can save his or her life
It will take several weeks for your pet to find a new forever home.
Do Not Give Up! There are Solutions to Many Pet Behavioral Problems!

While many training facilities will readily take your money, before
resolving your pets issues, there are many resources such as
training books, and internet specific articles, which may help in the process.
There is no, one way, of training, and you may have to research
many techniques to see which one works with your particular dog.

Explore Alternatives to a Shelter
Do you know what happens behind closed doors in a shelter?

Do you feel good about yourself, that you are in control of choosing
the destiny of your dog?

When you stand in that line at the shelter, with the dog at your side,
and complete that form to surrender him/her, do you know what the
shelter will do with your dog? once behind the closed doors?

Many shelters will not release all of the information,
as far as their owner surrender process. As a matter of fact, your pet will most likely not make it!

Ask questions, before you sign that form, and require that you see,
where the dog will be housed? For how long? Will it be put up for adoption?
For how long? Are you allowed to follow up? You are paying a fee for the surrender, do you know what you are paying for?

If the shelter cannot give you this information most likely, they
will euthanize your companion. Most shelters and humane societies will not release this information since they do not want the public to know the truth! Most facilities are not No Kill! Read about behind the scenes media coverage, at several humane societies with staggering statistics! Some euthanize 50% to 90% of the pets they take in.
 

Surrendering to Animal Shelters: Do Your Homework First 

There are Humane Societies/Shelters in this area which will
euthanize owner surrenders, if they do not fit their adoption program.

What is the criteria for their adoption program? It is a grey area, and
most will euthanize your adult dog, and yet will rescue puppies
from the rural areas.

The safest place for your dog, is with you, and you taking
charge of their future, and not some agency!

If you do not have all of the details, DO NOT SIGN THEM OVER
TO A SHELTER or "HUMANE SOCIETY". A rescue is safe, in the case
that the rescue will allow you to meet the new family, and involve
you in the adoption process.
 

Giving Up Your Pet: Partnering with FPALR Chicago Guarantees Your Pet’s Life 

FPALR will assist in finding a safe home for your pet, when given
enough time, usually 3-4 weeks, and will involve you in the adoption
process, while you foster the dog! 
 

Helping Stray and Lost Animals

We assist the Animal Control Facilities in the Chicago Area and Rural
Area Humane Societies with placement of the stray and unwanted dogs.  

The facts from a rescue perspective: Rescuer's Answering Machine Message

Hello, You have reached 123-4567, Tender Hearts Rescue. Due to the
high volume of calls we have been receiving, please listen closely to
the following options and choose the one that best describes you or
your situation:

Press 1 if you think we are veterinarians and want free medical
advice.

Press 2 if you know we are a rescue organization but want to save
money and have us give you free, untrained medical advice anyway.

Press 3 if you make $200,000 a year but still want us to pay to spay
the "stray" in your yard (house).

Press 4 if you have a 10-year-old dog and your 15-year-old son has
suddenly become allergic and you need to find the dog a new home
right away.

Press 5 if you have three dogs, had a baby and want to get rid of
your dogs because you are the only person in the world to have a baby
and dogs at the same time.

Press 6 if your dog is sick and needs a vet but you need the money
for your vacation.

Press 7 if you just got a brand new puppy and your old dog is having
problems adjusting so you want to get rid of the old one right away.

Press 8 if your little puppy has grown up and is no longer small and
cute and you want to trade it in for a new model.

Press 9 if you are elderly and want to adopt a cute puppy who is not
active and is going to outlive you.

Press 10 if your relative has died and you don't want to care for
their elderly dog because it doesn't fit your lifestyle.

Press 11 if you are moving today and need to immediately place your
150 pound, 8-year-old, unneutured, aggressive dog.

Press 12 if you want an unpaid volunteer to come to your home today
and pick up the dog you no longer want.

Press 13 if you have been feeding and caring for a "stray" for the
last three years, are moving and suddenly determine it's not your dog.

Press 14 if you are calling at 6 a.m. to make sure you wake me up
before I have to go to work so you can drop a dog off on your way to
work.

Press 15 to leave us an anonymous garbled message, letting us know
you have left a dog in our yard in the middle of January, which is in
fact, better than just leaving the dog with no message.

Press 16 if you are going to get angry because we are not going to
take your dog that you have had for fifteen years, because it is not
our responsibility.

Press 17 if you are going to threaten to take your ten year old dog
to be euthanized because we can't get to your house in the next hour.

Press 18 if you're going to get angry because the volunteers had the
audacity to go on vacation and leave the animals in care of one trusted
volunteer who is not authorized to take your personal pet.

Press 19 if you want one of our perfectly trained, housebroken, kid
and cat friendly purebred tiny dogs that we have an abundance of.

Press 20 if you want us to take your dog that has a slight aggression
problem, i.e. has only bitten a few people and killed your neighbor's
cats.

Press 21 if you have already called once and been told we don't take
personal surrenders but thought you would get a different person this
time with a different answer.

Press 22 if you want us to use space that would go to a stray to
board your personal dog while you are on vacation, free of charge, of
course.

Press 23 if it is Christmas Eve or Easter morning and you want me to
deliver an eight week old puppy to your house by 6:30 am before your
kids wake up.

Press 24 if you have bought your children a duckling, chick or baby
bunny for Easter and it is now Christmas and no longer cute.

Press 25 if you want us to take your female dog who has already had
ten litters, but we can't spay her because she is pregnant again and
it is against your religion.

Press 26 if you're lying to make one of our newer volunteers feel
bad and take your personal pet off your hands.

Press 27 if your cat is biting and not using the litter box because
it is declawed, but are not willing to accept the responsibility that
the cat's behavior is altered because of your nice furniture.

Press 28 if your two year old male dog is marking all over your house
but you just haven't gotten around to having him neutered.

Press 29 if you previously had an outdoor only dog and are calling
because she is suddenly pregnant.

Press 30 if you have done "everything" to housebreak your dog and
have had no success but you don't want to crate the dog because it is
cruel.

Press 31 if you didn't listen to the message asking for an evening
phone number and you left your work number when all volunteers are
also working and you are angry because no one called you back.

Press 32 if you need a puppy immediately and cannot wait because
today is your daughter's birthday and you forgot when she was born.

Press 33 if your dog's coat doesn't match your new furniture and you
need a different color or breed.

Press 34 if your new love doesn't like your dog and you are too
stupid to get rid of the new friend (who will dump you in the next
month anyway) instead of the dog.

Press 35 if you went through all these 'presses' and didn't hear
enough. This press will connect you to the sounds of tears being shed
by one of our volunteers who is holding a discarded old dog while the
vet mercifully frees him from the grief of missing his family.

Author Unknown