Memphis Belle asked:
If a dog has to be rehomed through no fault of the owner, should the new owner or rescue contact the former owner to let them know the dog is settled and happy?
If a dog has to be rehomed through no fault of the owner, should the new owner or rescue contact the former owner to let them know the dog is settled and happy?
This could be done by a letter sent to the rescue and forwarded to the previous owner, so no contact information of the new owner would have to be divulged.
Yes it is not a bad idea but I think it should really be left to the choice of the new owners and not an obligation.
I would day it depends on if the previous owner wanted to know, but i wouldn’t make the new owners feel obligated to either.
I think it would be nice.
I would like to know how my dogs were doing if I had to rehome them for whatever reason.
I also know that when I rehome, I am giving up all rights to that dog. The new owner doesn’t owe me anything. They did me a favor by taking in my responsibility when I was no longer able to care for it.
I think that’s a lovely idea. I’m in the UK and this summer I rescued a puppy via the RSPCA. Apparently she needed re-homing as one of her previous owners developed an allergy to her. I just know if that was one of my family we’d want to know that she was eventually happy and settled. I often wonder if her previous family ever think about her.
NO
A clean break is advisable for the benefit of everybody.
Once an owner relinquishes a dog to a rescue or a new owner he also relinquishes access to any information he thinks should be provided to previous owners.
A call could be made to the previous owner before the dog is re homed.
Should they? No. But it’s a great idea, it gives the previous owner a peace of mind that the dog is happy and in a good home.
I had to re home one dog before and it broke my heart. I kept in contact with the new owner for a few months to check up on the girl and make sure everything was going okay. It’s a great feeling to know the dog’s in a good place and well taken care of, it gave me a peace of mind that I wouldn’t of had otherwise.
I had to re-home a dog once, and I still worry about him and how he is doing and it was several years ago. I wonder who took him home and had the benefit of his great personality. I couldn’t even mention his name for about a year without being in tears..
I think the answer is difficult. If the rescue facility has to euthanize the pet for any reason, wouldn’t it be kinder to the original owner to still be thinking their pet went to a good home. On the other hand, if the pet went to a loving home wouldn’t you as his previous owner have the urge to go see him or ask to visit.
I took in two horses as a foster parent on some land I had. The previous owner was happy to get pictures etc for a while. Then she asked if she could come over and ride them. I had to say no. The fact is that she wanted all the contact and pleasure of the animals with no responsibility or costs involved. It was a difficult thing to refuse her and I felt bad.
A cat I took in from a shelter in the UK lived with me for many years. I liked their way of doing things, which is similar to your plan. You sent a photo of the animal once a year to the shelter…they could pass it on or post it on a wall they kept for that purpose. You could go in and see if your pet was up there, and it made lots of people happy. They did have a no-kill policy.
Yes it’s nice, but not every previous owner will care – if they gave it away because they didn’t have the time or are moving away etc. then yes, it’s nice, especially if there’s kids.
But if the previous owner wasn’t taking care of it and didn’t really care in the first place, then no I wouldn’t bother.
If it was of no fault of their own as you describe, then yes I suppose it’s a nice thought
it all depends on if the old owners gave consent for the dog to be re-homed even if the dog is settled it culd have bean lost and the previus owners are looking for it. contact a rescue senter becose you dont know if the previus owner has abused the dog and it culd be puting you or the dog in a bad situaton.
If possible, it is a nice gesture. I have had some people who have had to release their dogs to rescue ask about that. I usually tell the potential adopter this and ask if it’s okay for me to pass on any updates they send me. Never had an adopter tell me no.
Sometimes an adopter will even offer to contact the owner directly. As long as they’re both okay with that I have no problem with sharing their email addresses.
Absolutely.
When I rehomed Dora I gave ALL of my contact information to her new owners. Yes- I rehomed her, but that doesn’t mean I don’t want to know that she’s healthy and happy.
They send me photos once a week along with a brief description of how she’s doing. All of this is via email.
BUT it should be the option of the new owner/rescue to do this.
i suppose it depends on the previous owner really
it is entirely up to you as the new owner when i rescued my bichon frise female the previous owner came to see her to buy her back after abusing her he didn’t get her though