How does the surrender process work?
Dogs are surrendered to us for various reasons. We believe in providing non-judgmental assistance in finding appropriate and approved homes for all our dogs in rescue.
Our surrender process works like this:
- We will have a telephonic or personal conversation with the surrendering family to discuss possibilities of keeping the dog and provide support where we can. If the family is not in a position to keep the dog, we discuss the way forward.
- A surrender form will be sent out via email. This form is used to compile a profile of the dog so that we can match him/her with a suitable home. It also grants GSP Rescue SA permission to rehome the dog.
- The surrendering family is required to complete the form and supply us with as many photos of the dog as possible.
- GSP Rescue SA compiles a profile on the dog and list the dog in the Facebook group and the website.
If the dog has to leave their current home immediately, we have two options:
- To place the dog in a foster home (if a suitable foster home is available), or
- The dog is placed in a boarding kennel, which is based in Gauteng. During their stay in the kennel, we provide food and medical care. The dogs are assessed, socialised, taught to walk properly on leash and taken out for runs or walks twice a day.
If you consider surrendering your dog, understand that we have a very strict adoption process and will not let any dogs go to a family that we feel is unsuitable for them. We do a property inspection prior to adoption to make sure the property is safe and at the same time we interview the family. It is important to us that the entire family consents to the adoption because we believe that dogs are family and should be treated as such. We also give preference to families with breed experience because to the novice a GSP can be a handful. We are confident that we will find them homes and you can rest assured that only the best will do for our dogs.
We stay in touch with our adopters and offer support and advice where needed. If there are issues with the adopted dog that cannot be resolved, we take them back into rescue.
We advise strongly against rehoming the dogs yourself. Dogs offered free to good homes often end up as being used as breeding dogs or worse, as bait dogs in dog fighting. People have certain expectations of the Pointing breeds and when the dog does not display the desire or drive to be a hunting companion, they often get shot, dumped, abused or neglected.
We really try to help each Pointer in SA in need of a new home by matching them with people offering good homes. We feel very strong on helping people to re-home pointers in a responsible manner and where required we will get help from established re-homing agencies and volunteers. We insist on home checks and a formal adoption process.
What is your adoption procedure and steps?
- Adoptive family fills out the adoption form.
- GSP Rescue SA arranges for a home check.
- Meet and greets / play dates (highly recommended, where logistically possible) are arranged.
- Once the adoption is approved and the meet and greet took place, we make arrangements for the collection / delivery of the dog.
- The adoption fee of R1200,00 per dog covers sterilisation, micro chipping, vaccinations (including kennel cough), deworming and tick and flea prevention treatment. This is paid via EFT into our bank account.
- Where possible and necessary, we will assist with the introduction of your adopted dog to their new environment and four-legged friends.
What post-adoption support can I expect from GSP Rescue?
We stay in contact with most of our adopters. We are always just a phone call or email away for any advice or tips in getting your newly adopted dog settled in.
Where there are behavioural or training issues that we cannot address, we will refer the adopter to a qualified person closest to them for help.
How are the rescue operations funded?
Rescue is a costly operation and a lot of the expenses eg fuel, cellphone / data accounts, food, kennel costs, are covered by the personal funds of the volunteers.
Some of the expenses for sterilisation, microchips, vaccinations and parasite control are covered by the adoption fee.
We raise additional funds through:
- A few regular donations from our supporters.
- Selling raffle tickets and GSP get-togethers.
- Calling for sponsors eg when we bought beds for the kennel dogs.
We are in a fortunate position where we do not have any outstanding vet accounts. These are settled immediately. Because we do not have staff or our own premises, there are no cost for wages or other overhead expenses relating to premises.
What medical care do we give the dogs in rescue?
While a dog is in the care of GSP Rescue SA, we provide them with medical care when needed. This can range from parasite control at the required intervals, vaccinations and any other medical condition they may have.
We have had dogs come in with bite wounds, eye infections, suffering from Erlichia, injuries from being used to hunt Bushpigs, skin conditions, injuries that require specialist surgery and rehab. In all these cases, the dogs are taken to a vet and given the medication or treatment they needed.