Puppies are wonderful, but the job of raising one isn’t for everyone. Placing adult dogs can be a good option, enabling breeders to move along with their breeding programs while making a dog and someone seeking a canine companion very happy.
Though it’s hard to say goodbye to their puppies, breeders expect to place them when they are old enough to go to their permanent homes. But it is very different when placing a dog they’ve lived with for a few years and become attached to. Knowing these dogs will be in a home as the center of attention makes it easier. Not all breeders place adult dogs, but there are good reasons why many do:
- A beautiful dog, even an AKC Champion, may not have turned out to be the breeding prospect hoped for.
- A health screening may not have had the ideal outcome. This would be something that does not affect the dog’s own well-being. For example, a perfectly healthy dog may be a carrier of a genetic disease that a breeder does not want to pass on.
- Female dog has had a few litters and is being retired from breeding program.
- Male dogs – with frozen semen storage being routine, it is possible to keep the dog in a breeding program while placing him in a home where he’ll get more attention.
- The breeder may have adult dogs who don’t get along with each other. She wants each dog to be someone’s special companion, so placing one in a home where it will be the only dog brings harmony. Each dog gets to be the star.
Most people seeking a new companion don’t know that getting an adult dog is an excellent option. Questions breeders may hear: Why would you want to give up an adult dog? What’s wrong with him/her?
Prospective owners often think an adult dog won’t bond with them as a puppy will, but the fact is that the bonding time is the same as with a puppy. There are just different things for the dog and new owner to learn, and the dog’s breeder will know the adult dog’s characteristics and temperament.
Nancy Pemberton of Rowan Border Terriers usually only re-homes if a dog is not getting along with another. When canine rivalries develop, it is difficult, if not impossible, to keep the two enemies in the same house. When it became apparent that she would have to do this, she contacted breeders she knows well, and in each case, this resulted in finding wonderful homes for the dogs.
If the potential new owner is local, Nancy visits the home. She spends lots of time on the phone with them, as well as communicating by email. She maintains co-ownership with the dog and has a contract that states she will take the dog back at any time for any reason or if the new owners don’t agree to the care requirements. Female dogs are spayed before placing.
How long does it take for an adult dog to adjust to a new home? About the same amount of time it takes a puppy, except the adult is generally housetrained and past the stage of wanting to chew everything up. But it’s a whole new life in a different home and can be like a human being thrown into a new home in a foreign country whose language he doesn’t understand. New owners can focus on the bonding without worrying about the housetraining and chewing stages.
Amy March, of Bracco Dynasty, breeds Bracchi Italiani. In considering prospective homes for adult dogs, she wants to know that potential owners have the financial resources to provide for regular and unexpected veterinary costs. She also asks about what the dog’s day-to-day life in a new family will look like. Are there other pets? Who will be home and how much time and attention will the dog get? Most important: if it does not work out, the dog must be returned to her, nowhere else. “Keep in touch. We become friends and family,” Amy said.