LOL, Minnie! Loved your reference to furballs. :o) Thanks for your post. The dog just started taking medicine for Doggy Alzheimers, plus I take a couple meds myself, so between the three of us (dog, cat, and me), we're starting to sound like a bunch of old fogeys with all our medicines. The cat is getting the wire removed from her jaw soon, possibly next week. That should slow her down from all the JUMPING she's been trying to do against doctor's orders! The trouble is, she tries to jump and misses and has taken three spills in the last couple of days--not good for a broken leg. I'm keeping my fingers crossed that she hasn't reinjured the leg, which *finally* has skin again. Sometimes I think interpretting what the furballs are saying is half the joy of pet ownership. You know, putting words in their mouth when they have funny expressions on their faces? :oD

We drive back and forth (1000 miles each way) to our vacation home with our two large dogs - a one year old boy and a 14+ arthritic old girl - 3 or 4 times a year. They are great travelers and we make up the back seat of our Tahoe as a big bed and take two days each way, usually staying somewhere in Kansas on the way. The old girl (70 lbs) can't get in and out of the car on her own anymore because of her arthritis, but she helps/cooperates and it's usually not a problem. Last September my husband had knee surgery while there and stayed longer than I could be away from work, so I had drive home alone with the dogs. After our first stop, I helped old girl back in the car and junior just stood there as if to say, "now help me." I explained to him that he is more agile and a lot younger, even in dog years, than me and told him to hop on in. He did as he was told and after a few more stops (including Arbys), we arrived at our hotel in Russell, Ks. The only problem this time was that the old girl wouldn't budge from the middle of the back seat. Coaxing and bribing didn't help and, with her arthritis, I couldn't pull or manhandle her for fear of hurting her. I also couldn't just leave her in the car alone, so junior and I just had to sit on the grass beside the car and wait her out. After about an hour, she felt nature calling and finally got up and asked for help. After she took care of business, she was happy to go in the motel and was fine the rest of the trip. I don't know what got into her, but I've never seen her so obstinate.

Salti, I think it's great that you had an experience with an agency that you felt did not get their responsibilities confused. I can also see why it might be more reasonable for the process to take as long as it did with the breed and situation you chose to adopt under, but not everyone is having a similar experience. Granted fosters have lives and scheduling can be an issue, but part of the responsibility of fostering is making the animals you're fostering available. This was actually said to me a few years back when I thanked a foster for her quick response while we were looking to adopt. As with the OP, if a potential family goes through the process of filling out paperwork, a home inspection and a LONG wait period because they want to bring a dog into their home, I'm more inclined to believe that they are probably a positive placement for a dog and the problem is the agency. Granted, placement is not black and white; finding the right forever home does have a lot of grey areas to consider like the animals history, breed compatibility, family dynamics and yes, environmental situations too but it should be a joint effort to figure that out, not the fosters alone. The OP says they only got to see one dog and never got a chance to see if other dogs would be a better fit for them. If you do the research and read some of the articles on this subject, you'll see there is a negative trend in the adoption world. Too many dogs go unadopted and left in less desirable situations because the "agency" trying to adopt them out is over zealous in their placement requirements. Look at how many people posting here have said they were rejected for one reason or another and subsequently had to find a dog elsewhere. All the dogs that they eventually paired up with are absolutely loved and have thrived in good homes. If a family really wants a dog they will get one in spite of the challenges poised by an agency. The family ends up with a dog but what about the dogs that are left behind? Also whether a rejection is for a good reason or not, it just seems like there are a lot of agencies who don't seem to have much regard or concern for the adopting family. If a family, especially one with kids shows an interest in an animal but doesn't qualify for whatever reason, the agency should at least reach out and communicate their concerns. What if the concern is a minor misunderstanding or there is a simple fix that can make things right? The dog could still have a chance at a good home. Follow up regardless of the decision is just common decency and the families deserve that. Lastly, I wouldn't just assume that a pet adoption agency was right just because placing dogs is what they do. As far as I know there are no requirements when it comes to credentials or certifications for the fosters. Obviously, some are pretty confused about what really matters and what doesn't matter at all.

I love animals so much. I don't think I've ever been without a pet. I've lost so many over the years and trust me I know how painful it is. In 2012 I lost my ferret and a chain reaction seemed to happen after that. I ended up losing 6 pets in about 3 years. 2 of them being cats who passed within a few months of each other that were 15 that my husband and I got within the first year of dating. We think one had cancer and the other passed from kidney disease. Unfortunately they didn't show any symptoms until it was too late to do anything. Our other 2 ferrets passed after that. Ferrets are pretty delicate and can have lots of medical problems. After that we lost our cat that was only a few years old. About 2 weeks after losing the 2nd 15 year old cat we were at Petsmart. It was winter and a really bad cold front was coming in. We were about to leave and saw this gray and white cat rubbing up on the building. He saw me coming a mile away. My husband didn't want to take him because he was still to crushed from losing Neptune and Klondike and didn't want to feel like we were replacing them. I cried until we took him home lol That was 3 years ago and we still have Rupert. He's such a sweetheart and we don't regret taking him home. After losing our pets I thought about not getting anymore because it hurt so much. But who am I kidding I can't be without them. Not having pets would be just as painful as losing them. I now have 6 cats and a wienie dog who is in hog heaven having all these kitties to play with. Take your time and do what feels right for you. Animals are such a blessing and you maybe saving and giving them a better life than what they had. I'm so sorry for your loss. Your Buddy was such a cute little guy and I'm sure all my babies met him in heaven with open paws. I will keep you in my thoughts and prayers.