Romainian rescues.

[angrybird1]

I know some one who's just taken on a pup from a Romanian rescue. I'm a little bit on the fence about this. My thoughts are we have lots of dogs in this country needing homes, however the dogs from abroad are coming from awful situations and need homes too.
The reason for taking this pup on was because they have young kids and work part time and no rescue in this country would rehome to them.
They are a good responsible home and will certainly love and care for the pup but were unable to get a rescue in this country.

 

[Skib]

My daughter took an adult female from Romanian rescue. Because she works and her house is chaotic, the normal places turned her down. We believe that the dog she adopted had been kept caged to breed puppies? The dog was scared to go out the front door for walks. There are 3 teenage children in the household and the dog no longer wears a warning.

 

[millikins]

I took on a Cyprus rescue dog last July for similar reasons to your friend. I work and don't have a garden so no UK rescue would give me a look in. I do however have a patio, a communal dog friendly garden, I live 1/4 mile from acres of commons and own a paddock, employ doggy day care if I'm out and have an adult daughter to fill in any gaps. I've always had happy, healthy dogs who have died of old age. There also seems to be a shortage of "happy accidents" to adopt, rescues seem full of staffies and greyhounds, neither breed appeals.
My dog is a joy, in fact I don't think she's a stray, might be a dumped dog or a lost dog but she has good manners and adores people.
I found the vetting procedure thorough, the dog is as described, we have a FB follow up page and continued advice if adopters have problems. A colleague at work has a Romanian rescue, he isn't the dog she agreed to, he is semi feral and is still destoying her house after a year and her support has been non existant.

 

[AmyMay]

I’m on the fence too about this, for the very reason that we have enough problems with dogs needing homes in this country. But how can you not have any compassion for these dogs (most of which come from the most appalling situations)?

However, my biggest concern is the lack of UK support and backup available for when issues arise and a dog needs rehoming.

 

[Clodagh]

I certainly hope nothing is coming over at the moment. In fact I hope Brexit will at least put a stop to the bulk importation of dogs from abroad, puppies or adults. If the people bringing them over had to pay for proper, safe transportation and full health testing and a guaranteed back up for life it wouldn’t be so profitable and numbers would massively drop.

 

[angrybird1]

I'm fairly sure there isn't any coming over at the moment. I was just wondering what people's thoughts on it in general are. At some point in the future I may be considering a new dog and just thinking ahead.. No way will this be in the near future.

 

[cauda equina]

A friend of a friend had a Romanian rescue
Within a week it had bitten a family member badly and was pts

 

[AmyMay]

A friend of a friend had a Romanian rescue
Within a week it had bitten a family member badly and was pts

I think an awful lot of people have no idea of the challenges they are taking on, sadly.

 

[Cinnamontoast]

The mass importing of foreign dogs drives me nuts. I see a lot from Irish rescues too. Is it cheap to get one? Because surely people could save and get a responsibly bred puppy from the U.K.?

I’m not sure some of the organisations bringing the dogs over are particularly ethical or truthful. I know some have escaped due to the handover being at a random service station. I’ve also heard of the ones pts after attacking the new owners. Romanian street dogs have been used to being feral. For some owners, this a challenge too far. I hope it becomes a thing of the past.

 

[QuornstarMartini]

My girl is from Spain, we've had her for 1 month now. Apart from the expected little toilet accidents, we've been very lucky and it has gone fantastically and I can't imagine life without her now. She is such a loving little girl and all she needed was a chance.

Foreign rescue I think relies totally on who you chose to adopt with. My rescue have been amazing - aftercare has been amazing, they get back to me by email or phone call often within the hour whenever I have contacted them with any worries. The fact they are in Spain has been no barrier, I imagine it would be very similar had I adopted from the UK. You need to do thorough research on your chosen dog charity, and get a feel for how they operate. It's quite easy to identify who is just looking for a fast buck (although my impression is these are few and far between).

I would recommend my charity in Spain to anyone who is like me and so wanted a dog, has a garden and lots of love to give, but works full time and would not be accepted by UK charities (I won't speak negatively of them as they do a great job, but I think the blanket approaches are potentially missing out on great homes). My dog is very shy and wouldn't enjoy daycare but she has a lovely dog walker every day at lunchtime who she has bonded with, the pictures of their walk make me jealous that I'm at my desk!

 

[Clodagh]

My girl is from Spain, we've had her for 1 month now. Apart from the expected little toilet accidents, we've been very lucky and it has gone fantastically and I can't imagine life without her now. She is such a loving little girl and all she needed was a chance.

Foreign rescue I think relies totally on who you chose to adopt with. My rescue have been amazing - aftercare has been amazing, they get back to me by email or phone call often within the hour whenever I have contacted them with any worries. The fact they are in Spain has been no barrier, I imagine it would be very similar had I adopted from the UK. You need to do thorough research on your chosen dog charity, and get a feel for how they operate. It's quite easy to identify who is just looking for a fast buck (although my impression is these are few and far between).

I would recommend my charity in Spain to anyone who is like me and so wanted a dog, has a garden and lots of love to give, but works full time and would not be accepted by UK charities (I won't speak negatively of them as they do a great job, but I think the blanket approaches are potentially missing out on great homes). My dog is very shy and wouldn't enjoy daycare but she has a lovely dog walker every day at lunchtime who she has bonded with, the pictures of their walk make me jealous that I'm at my desk!

Now I may no supporter of the radical anti adoption policies used over here but I have always felt that working full time means you shouldn’t have a dog if that means it sits at home alone for 8 hours a day, even with a walk at lunchtime. Presumably it then sleeps alone all night as well so is in fact alone for maybe 16 hours out if 24. I also agree that lifestyle is still far better than being stuck in kennels so I am undecided!
I am glad it has worked for you.

 

[QuornstarMartini]

Now I may no supporter of the radical anti adoption policies used over here but I have always felt that working full time means you shouldn’t have a dog if that means it sits at home alone for 8 hours a day, even with a walk at lunchtime. Presumably it then sleeps alone all night as well so is in fact alone for maybe 16 hours out if 24. I also agree that lifestyle is still far better than being stuck in kennels so I am undecided!
I am glad it has worked for you.

You are totally entitled to that opinion, but the unfortunate reality is there are many, many dogs in existence and the vast majority of people in this day and age are not fortunate enough to be in a position to be able to stay at home all day. So the answer is either to allow responsible full time workers own a dog as long as they put in provisions in place to ensure the dog has some company during the day, or to let them all roam free.

In an ideal world I would be able to be home with dog all day and take her anywhere I go, but that's not the world we live in. As you say, it's preferable to being in kennels. I would not consider a puppy, as my situation is unsuitable.

 

[ester]

My main issues with it are disease risk and the number that seem to get loose/runaway soon after import.

 

[blackcob]

What ester said.

Tongue worm. TONGUE WORM. You don't forget seeing one of those in a hurry.

 

[honetpot]

I hate the whole 'business' of importing dogs, the terrible FB pictures they post. What ever they say you have no idea of the history, its doubtful that they have been imported properly, and like ester says they tend to run off. We have had one lose for nearly two years near us.

My neighbour put her x breed bitch in pup to a working cross spaniel pointer they owned,and she had nine heavy set lab type puppies, my first thoughts were oh no. They sold eight no problem, not cheap, but not the mad money you see, one came back after a week which they kept, and they are two of the nicest dogs I have ever met and wish I had had one off her.

Its just easier to buy than rehome, and I would like to rehome.

 

[millikins]

I think you need to choose your charity with care. I picked mine because my riding instructor has 2 from them, both nice dogs, a fellow RC member has another, also without issue. I paid £480 for vaccinations, neutering, flight and 5 weeks health insurance, they did a home check and application via email, so very similar to U.K. rescue.
But I also deliberately wanted a Mediterranean rescue, forgive huge stereotypes here, but any stray dog trying to get by in a touristy area has to be people friendly, whereas I think Eastern European strays have a far harder time and they seem to be the ones with most post adoption issues.

 

[CorvusCorax]

As an addition to the concerns already expressed, if some people didn't start every sentence 'I've got a Romanian rescue dog' as a badge of honour, rather than just saying 'I have a dog', I'd believe it was more about the dog's welfare than it is about the human need to be seen as an all-round wonderful person.

 

[blackcob]

^^ It was very definitely a fashion and/or virtue signalling thing in agility circles for a couple of years.

 

[millikins]

I hate the whole 'business' of importing dogs, the terrible FB pictures they post. What ever they say you have no idea of the history, its doubtful that they have been imported properly, and like ester says they tend to run off. We have had one lose for nearly two years near us.

My neighbour put her x breed bitch in pup to a working cross spaniel pointer they owned,and she had nine heavy set lab type puppies, my first thoughts were oh no. They sold eight no problem, not cheap, but not the mad money you see, one came back after a week which they kept, and they are two of the nicest dogs I have ever met and wish I had had one off her.

Its just easier to buy than rehome, and I would like to rehome.

I would have been quite happy to rehome in the U.K but because I work I didn't think it fair to get a puppy and mongrels other than designer ones are in very short supply. I've had 2 rescue Rottie crosses before, one from Battersea and one dumped at the kennels I worked at, years ago now, both super dogs. Nothing like that in U.K rescue, and as I said they wouldn't consider me anyway, tried Preloved, any Rottie types on there were either ridiculous money or had issues, biting, serious separation anxiety- and that's what they were owning up to.

 

[honetpot]

My rottieX I rehomed through FB, from someone I had heard of, but did not know, she is an absolute joy. People who post on FB now get so much abuse, 'your dog will be used for dog fighting, how can you get rid of your dog, your so cruel' etc, its become far more difficult to privately rehome, which is far better in my opinion for the dog, and from my perpective was alot better for me. There are the odd FB where they still advertise but you have to wade through some very negative abusive posts

 

[Honey08]

We’ve got a lovely Romanian rescue. Aside from being very timid and taking a while to housetrain we’ve had no issues whatsoever. We’ve also had a good few British rescue dogs too, and have had much more back up and support from the Romanian rescue by miles. I knew the lady that runs our rescue, She actually bought a kennel over there so the dogs come out of the hideous pounds and go there for a week or two to be health checked and assessed before coming to the uk. There were back up kennels in the uk (as some adopters just changed their mind while the dogs were on their way) and a Facebook page for rescuers for advice and camaraderie. They organised reunions and dog shows. I was on the fund raising auction committee for two years, so pretty involved with the rescue, and there were very few cases where the dogs had problems that couldn’t be solved (possibly four dogs out of around 100 successes in my time).

 

[skinnydipper]

^^ It was very definitely a fashion and/or virtue signalling thing in agility circles for a couple of years.

........

 

[skinnydipper]

I won't repeat the very valid points already raised on this thread but would like to add:

A large percentage suffer from behavioural issues which can manifest as separation anxiety or destructive behaviour, for example. Or, in the case of one Romanian dog who lives near me, an unwillingness to accept a lead or go for a walk 3 years after adoption.

There is a behaviourist in this country who dedicates her time to behaviour modification of foreign rescues both from Europe and China. Rehabilitation is lengthy, not easy and is not always successful.

Dogs are often picked up as strays, no history is known. The dog can then spend months in an overcrowded pound and can either be attacked by other dogs or learn to fight back - neither of which is good and will have some bearing on the dog's future behaviour.

Prospective owners are told their dogs have been tested for Mediterranean diseases. This may be true but what they are not told is that the dog can test negative repeatedly (blood antibodies) for Leishmaniasis and develop the disease years later. It can remain dormant in bone marrow and flare up as much as 7 years later.

I believe, but may be wrong, that the antibody test is accurate when the disease is active.

Leishmaniasis can be detected by PCR done on bone marrow. Aspirating bone marrow is a painful and invasive procedure and I would expect it to be expensive too. Which rescue is going to pay for/put a dog through that before putting the dog up for adoption?

 

[millikins]

I won't repeat the very valid points already raised on this thread but would like to add:

A large percentage suffer from behavioural issues which can manifest as separation anxiety or destructive behaviour, for example. Or, in the case of one Romanian dog who lives near me, an unwillingness to accept a lead or go for a walk 3 years after adoption.

There is a behaviourist in this country who dedicates her time to behaviour modification of foreign rescues both from Europe and China. Rehabilitation is lengthy, not easy and is not always successful.

Dogs are often picked up as strays, no history is known. The dog can then spend months in an overcrowded pound and can either be attacked by other dogs or learn to fight back - neither of which is good and will have some bearing on the dog's future behaviour.

Prospective owners are told their dogs have been tested for Mediterranean diseases. This may be true but what they are not told is that the dog can test negative repeatedly (blood antibodies) for Leishmaniasis and develop the disease years later. It can remain dormant in bone marrow and flare up as much as 7 years later.

Leishmaniasis can be detected by PCR done on bone marrow. Aspirating bone marrow is a painful and invasive procedure and I would expect it to be expensive too. Which rescue is going to pay for/put a dog through that before putting the dog up for adoption?

So how does a responsible adult who works but has reliable and consistent support so the dog is rarely left, actually adopt a U.K rescue?

 

[skinnydipper]

So how does a responsible adult who works but has reliable and consistent support so the dog is rarely left, actually adopt a U.K rescue?

I was pointing out some problems with adopting a foreign rescue not addressing the criteria and difficulties associated with rehoming UK dogs.

 

[Moobli]

So how does a responsible adult who works but has reliable and consistent support so the dog is rarely left, actually adopt a U.K rescue?

Some of the smaller independent or breed rescues are more open to an individual’s circumstances.

 

[{97702}]

So how does a responsible adult who works but has reliable and consistent support so the dog is rarely left, actually adopt a U.K rescue?

In my case.... with no problem whatsoever, got my first rescue greyhound in 2002 and have had nothing but rescues ever since of various types and sizes.

I have encountered rescue organisations who refuse to re-home to anyone who works, I just don’t bother with them and move on to more realistic ones.

Of course the breed type I have helps, but I’ve also adopted from two generalised dog rescues with no problems whatsoever (Hereford and Worcester Animal Rescue and Adopt a Dog North East) as well as greyhound ones

 

[Clodagh]

In my case.... with no problem whatsoever, got my first rescue greyhound in 2002 and have had nothing but rescues ever since of various types and sizes.

I have encountered rescue organisations who refuse to re-home to anyone who works, I just don’t bother with them and move on to more realistic ones.

Of course the breed type I have helps, but I’ve also adopted from two generalised dog rescues with no problems whatsoever (Hereford and Worcester Animal Rescue and Adopt a Dog North East) as well as greyhound ones

I also wonder if a rescue would look more favourably on multi dog houses that work? Your dogs situation is quite different to a dog sitting in a house alone all day.

 

[{97702}]

I also wonder if a rescue would look more favourably on multi dog houses that work? Your dogs situation is quite different to a dog sitting in a house alone all day.

It probably does - although I have to say that personally, even if I wasn’t mental enough to have as many as I do, I wouldn’t ever leave one dog on it’s own when I went to work (even a greyhound). I’ve always had 2 dogs so that they have been company for each other, it’s only fairly recently that I’ve got excessive and had more than that

 

[blackcob]

I got one from a breed rescue when I worked full time and didn't have a garden.