Adopting a Rescue Dog
Adopting a rescue dog can be a challenging yet exceptionally rewarding experience. Most of our dogs are very sweet and loving. Some can be high energy and need lots of activity. Many are puppies, and can evolve into fabulous pets when raised with love and gentleness. However, some dogs we rescue often come to us with significant behavior and medical care needed. We provide one-on-one behavioral support to some extent and extensive medical care often needed for dogs that have been abandoned or abused. These include but are not limited to; a wide range of diagnostics, dental work, complex spay surgeries, mammary gland tumor removal, and of course vaccines and other preventive care. Our adoption fees and donations are our only funding for these care services and we very much appreciate your support.
Waymaker Rescue, like most rescue organizations, was started to help give abused/stray/neglected animals an opportunity to live in the care of people with great respect for the lives of animals. We rescue dogs wandering around Cherokee and Adair Counties, owner surrenders, elderly, and hospice patients. Many of these dogs have been rejected because they were no longer wanted by their previous owners, or released because the owner moved. Rejection by an owner and denial of a caring hand have a profound psychological impact on the rescued dog’s personality. Many of these dogs have trust issues in the presence of unfamiliar people. Many habits are formed due to the abuse given by previous owners or simply by living on their own for an extended period of time. The rejected dog may be more aggressive, regress from house training, and suffer from separation anxiety. The stray dog has been denied a loving hand from birth. They are never touched with kindness. When they are touched, it was most likely aggressive and painful. Most stray dogs are not properly socialized and might have lived with a vicious pecking order in a wild pack. Many have to fight for the available food and water, and do not have access to climate controlled environments. In these cases, the adopting human will need to show patience, love, kindness, positive reinforcement, and did we say ... PATIENCE. We disclose what we know about a dog's issues, so you can be prepared for anything from high energy to resource guarding to fear of strangers. And again, MOST OF OUR DOGS DO NOT HAVE THESE ISSUES!
Requirements for Adopting
- We often require adopters to have securely fenced yards. However, some of our dogs may be considered for homes with smaller enclosures (i.e. secure patios) and we do occasionally adopt to apartment-style homes or homes without fenced yards.
- Our dogs will make amazing personal companions and should not be adopted for the sole purpose of being a service, working, or guard dog.
- Should it be necessary to find another home for the dog, we do require that adopters contact Waymaker Rescue. We may require the dog be returned to us and that should be a consideration for long-distance adopters.
- Other pets in the home must be spayed or neutered.
- Our adoption fees range from $50 – $450. Every pet 6 months old or older has been spayed or neutered and often has received other immediate medical care when needed. Your adoption fee helps to cover a portion of these costs.
- We do adopt dogs to out-of-state residents and each application is handled individually. After the application, interview, and approval, adopters must travel to our Rescue in Tahlequah, Oklahoma to finalize the adoption.
- Waymaker Rescue will not ship dogs under any circumstances.
- Waymaker Rescue reserves the right to refuse any adoption. Please keep in mind that every decision we make is in the best interest and safety of our dogs and the families we place them with.
- For dogs with special needs, we are looking for adopters with past or current experience caring for a dog, preferably, people who are familiar with nurturing a previously abused animal. Everyone in the family should be committed to your new dog. We understand that abandoned/abused dogs might not work out in every home, but we do ask that you give it a few weeks to see if the dog will adjust to your home and routines. These dogs are traumatized and harmed by multiple environment changes, so it can take some time for them to settle in and feel safe.
