Viti

Yes, we went to the shelters looking for a Rottweiler after O'Shea died. We instead fell in love with....Duck. He has Rottweilerish coloring/markings on his face (but so do many mixes), he vocalizes like a hound, he has a tail that curls in a complete circle, he has a double coat and blows the undercoat like a polar dog, his overcoat is wiry and weirdly colored, his body is shaped like a barrell, he is clumsy and none too bright and weighs 100lbs. He also has the brightest eyes, the most curious nature, and the sweetest disposition of any of the dozen or so dogs I have shared my life with.

Oddly, that was the only time in my life I had actually been in a shelter or gone looking for a dog. All of my other dogs were aqcuired without any initial intent on my part.

Too bad we're so far apart Mav, I got a puppy at a garage sale that grew up to be 30lbs, short haired, and loving. I gave her to my niece. I got a purebred Siberian Husky from a guy at the dog park who had found her as a stray. I got O'Shea from a friend of a coworker. I have had, as I mentioned, a dozen or so dogs. I am good at them finding me I guess

Maverick

Well I visited a couple of shelters this weekend. Dangerous places - I could bring home a couple of dogs from each place . Took a smaller Dalmation girl for a walk and she absolutely adored my son. She was friendly to my daughter, but stuck to my son like a shadow. It was really cute. She shed like crazy, and was pretty agressive to other dogs, so we probably aren't going to pursue her though.

We are now pretty confident that we can find a dog in a shelter/rescue, so we are going to lay back for a month or so. As I mentioned before we are pretty busy this summer, so I would rather wait till September so I can devote more time to the dog.

BTW, I found that there is an "All breed" rescue not far from us. I am going to get in touch with them. Since all their dogs are in foster homes and therefore they have more intimate knowledge of the dogs they might be able to better match a dog to our family.

Thanks for all the help!

Viti

Oops, I forgot to mention breeds I would never, ever suggest for a home with children and Dalmation was one of them!

lisarea

I'm so happy to hear that, Maverick.

The rescue sounds like a great idea. Have you talked to the shelters as well? I know the one here in Boulder is really great about temperament testing and such, mostly because they're in Boulder, probably. They do very extensive assessment. They'd tested my dog with: men, women, children, babies, other dogs, cats, and small animals, and they gave me a thorough and accurate personality profile. The shelter workers had taken him for walks, hung out with him in the office (where he called 911 once, and got them in trouble), and just spent a whole lot of time with him overall. I have a friend who hated that shelter, even, because they rejected his adoption application, but to me, that just shows that they're conscientous. (He really didn't have time for a dog, and didn't seem to appreciate the responsibility.)

Most poorly funded shelters just don't have the resources to do things like this, but if you have maybe a relatively well-funded and well-staffed one, you might be surprised. As a rule, I'd guess that wealthy and marginally liberal enclaves are your best bet in terms of finding a shelter like that.

Anyway, good luck in your search. You're doing all the right things, and I fully expect you're going to end up crazy happy with your decision because of it.

Maverick

Yeah, we hadn't even researched them as a possibility. However, the card on her cage mentioned that she adored children. She was also the right size and didn't bark. Thought it was atleast worth a closer look. If nothing else she got some attention and a nice walk out of the deal.

Maverick

The shelter in town did seem understaffed. They had a very clean facility, but they didn't seem to know alot about their dogs. There appears to be a high turnover rate with the dogs (but low kill rate ), so they don't have much opportunity to get to know the dogs.

The other shelter was 45 minutes away in a smaller community. Each card had info on the personality and staff knew more about their animals. They were also more concerned about us finding the right fit.

The one thing I did learn is that when we go to seriously look at the dogs we should go during the week. It is just too nuts on the weekends.

brighid

I would also see if these shelter/rescue/adopt organizations in your area have websites. Most keep their sites pretty well updated and have varying degrees of info on the dogs, along with their pictures. This can save you a ton of time and you can keep an eye out for the dog that will fit you best. Of course meeting in person with the dog is a must, but with a schedule as busy as yours it's probably a good idea ... that is if you haven't pursued that avenue already.

Brighid

pescifish

Right here in SoCal: http://www.dobierescue.org/

brighid hit their fee exactly: I believe $150 their request for adopting one of their dobermans.