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Adoption Process

Our adoption process is designed to help you and the right dog find each other. Our goal is to place each dog into a permanent, safe, and loving home.

To adopt a German Shepherd Dog from us, you must:

  1. Complete an Adoption Questionnaire, either online, or hard-copy (pdf format). If you do not own your home, you must have your landlord complete the Landlord Letter.
  2. Be interviewed by an adoption counselor.
  3. Choose, and be chosen by, the right dog.
  4. Live in one of the 14 Northern California counties we serve.
  5. Allow a home visit by an adoption counselor.
  6. With our approval, sign our Adoption Agree ment, and pay the associated fee.

If you come to an Adoption Day, the process of adopting can be completed in any order; otherwise you must complete an Adoption Questionnaire before we can assist you further. Normally, all our requirements must be met. Home visits may be waived in rare circumstances. We do not adopt to homes outside of Northern California.

After we receive your online Adoption Questionnaire, we will call you to begin the adoption process. Due to our home visit requirement, we only adopt to homes in Northern California. We encourage potential adopters to come to one or more Adoption Days because that is the best way to meet several German Shepherds and to find your new companion.

If you attend an Adoption Day and choose a dog, you may be able to adopt the same day, if all adoption requirements are met. The entire adoption process can be completed on the same day, or it may take longer.

If you can not come to any Adoption Day, we will try to assist you using email, the mail, and the telephone. This will probably take longer because the people who will help you are volunteers who usually have jobs, and scheduling meetings with dogs can be complex because our dogs live in many homes and kennels.

 

                

Dancer
Post Date: 6/19/2013 7:13:40 AM

My son Michael and I met Dancer at an Adoption day in October 2010. We took one look at her and said "she's the one"! She was thin, had a severe overbite and feet like we had never seen. We were told she was rescued from a puppy mill and had never been outside her cage. The pads of her feet were like silk and when she was taken outside, she saw the world for the first time. She was about three.The tendons in her feet never developed so she couldn't stand up on them the way dogs normally do. Car rides, hugs, toys, walks were all new for her. Everything was a first and she greeted it all with a smile. She learned quickly and did very well with Clicker Training because it is such a gentle way to train. She rode in the back seat of the car like Driving Miss Daisy. She was a certified Therapy Dog and the patients adored her. When her eyes looked at you, she saw you and connected at a level few dogs can. A year ago we added Max to the family. An energetic, little guy who taught Dancer how to play and run and chase and team up with him making music out of a squeaker toy. She danced through the short time we got to have her, always a happy girl. Her teeth were worn to nubs, she had arthritis in her feet and hips and the worst hips my vet had ever seen. We knew we wouldn't have her long and we didn't. We lost our sweet Dancer yesterday to a severe case of heart failure. I thank GSRNC for finding our "forever dog" and giving her a few years filled with great wonders and most of all love.

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Important Note About Dog Descriptions

Please remember that the descriptions of dogs (of Dogs Available) have been written by GSRNC volunteers and are usually based only upon our observation of the dog since the time it was rescued. While we try to provide dog descriptions that are fair and accurate, the nature of our work involves contact with dogs whose background and history are unknown to us. GSRNC cannot warrant or guarantee any dog's future behavior. For example, if we say that a rescue dog gets along with children, cats, or other dogs, this statement is usually based upon the fact that one of our volunteers has observed the dog interacting with his or her own children or pets. While this information may be helpful, we cannot be certain of how a dog will do with the children or pets in your home. If you are considering adopting, we encourage you to come to one of our Adoption Days and meet our rescue dogs. Ultimately, only you can decide whether one of our dogs is right for you.