Adoption::Frequently Asked Questions
1) I'm interested in adopting an animal, what do I do? Contact us! If you know which animal you are interested in specifically, you can copy & paste the adoption application into the body of an email an send it to us directly for review. As long as your application looks good, we'll schedule a time for you to meet the animal of your interest to see if it's a good match!
2) What if the animal I want to adopt isn't available yet? We may suggest a special situation that we call Foster-To-Adopt. This way, the animal will be placed 'on hold' and will be able to go home with you where he/she will wait to be officially adopted. Please see our foster-to-adopt page under the 'Get Involved' / 'Foster Care Program' tabs for more information.
3) What does foster to adopt mean? Fostering with the intent to eventually adopt an animal is a special situation that we use to help animals who are not ready for official adoption go home with their future family. This allows the adopter to begin bonding with the animal and to establish a routine with him/her. Once the animal has been spayed/neutered or otherwise been made available for adoption, the adopter can make it official!
4) How much medical history should I expect to receive after I've adopted my animal? Most of the animals that come to us are either directly from a shelter where little is known about their previous life, or from the public where they may not have ever received veterinary care before. No matter where the animal came from, we usually aren't able to obtain complete medical records for an animal from before he/she came to us or the shelter. Every animal is examined by our own veterinarian and treated accordingly. You will receive the most recent medical information applicable but we are generally unlikely to be able to provide the animal's full medical histories from the duration of it's life.
5) When should I expect to receive my adoption packet and what does it include? If you did not receive your adoption packet in person, we will try to send your adoption packet to you as soon as possible following the adoption of your animal. However, we do ask for some patientce in this area as certain animals require more time for us to collect all of the necessary paperwork. Your adoption packet will include your animal's recent medical information and proof of adoption.
6) Can I contact the vet that There's No Place Like Home uses for medical information about my animal? No. The veterinary clinics that we use are not connected with our organization other than providing care for our animals. We cannot ask them to handle questions from our adopters and they are legally unable to give out any medical information on an animal involved in our organization. If you have a question in regards to your animal's medical history, you will need to contact us directly. Even if you decide to use one of our veterinary hospitals as your own, you will need to supply the hospital with the medical information provided to you by this organization as they cannot be responsible for providing it for you.
7) Can I contact the vet that There's No Place Like Home uses for information about the organization itself? No. The veterinary clinics that we use are separate entities and businesses entirely. They will not be able to assist you with anything in relation to this organization. You should only contact them if you have decided to use that facility as your own veterinary clinic.
8) How do I know when my pet will need to see the vet again? Your adoption packet may specify when your animal is next due for vaccinations and other routine treatments, however, we do suggest that every newly adopted animal is examined by your own veterinarian within a few days of adoption so that your own doctor can become acquainted with your new family member.
9) What is the purpose of the adoption fee? We are a not for profit organization and depend on donation and adoption fees to continue to succesfully operate this organization. Each animal costs us in veterinary care, food, housing, and general animal care supplies. Most animals must be surgically sterilized before adoption as well. Every animal requires a different level of rehabilitation and our adoption fee is in place in order to assist us in covering the costs of that rehabilitation.
10) How is the adoption fee amount determined? The adoption fee is dtermined by an overall average of what animals cost us to rehabilitate as well as the costs incurred in order for this organization to operate succesfully. Most animals cost us much more than their individual adoption fee covers, however each adoption fee helps us to cover a portion of the costs of each animal's care.
11) What is the adoption fee used for? The adoption fee is necessary in order to allow us to continue rescuing and rehabilitating animals and is used towards the costs of running a succesfull organization. No adoption fee is used to benefit our members in any personal way.
12) What if I decide I can't keep my animal? If you decide that for whatever reason, you cannot continue to be responsible for the animal you have adopted from us, we ask that you please notify us immediately. Majority of the time, we will resume physical custody of the animal no matter how long it has been since your adoption.
13) Can I be refunded the adoption fee if I return the animal to the organization? If the animal is returned within 5 days of adoption, we will return your adoption fee however the adoption fee is nonrefundable for any animal who is returned to our care past 5 days after adoption. Your official date of adoption is visible on the first medical history page of your adoption packet.
14) Where are the animals kept? And where do I go to meet an adoptable animal? Our rescued animals live in the homes of our two directors or occassionally, in other foster homes. Having the animals live with us while they look for a new home allows us to get to know their personalities. For those animals in separate foster homes, we stay in close contact with foster families. This kind of individual attention that each animal gets helps us to place them in the best possible home for their needs. Because we do not have a facility and operate out of our homes, all meetings with an animal must be arranged on an individual basis. If you are interested in meeting an animal, please contact us so that we can coordinate it!
15) Where do the animals come from? You can find each available animal's story and how they came to us on our 'available;' animals pages. In general, majority of our rescues come directly from east bay area animal shelters. We occassioanlly rescue animals from other California shelters as well but tend to focus locally. We try to help better our community also by accepting animals in need directly from the public before they end up in the shelter system.
2) What if the animal I want to adopt isn't available yet? We may suggest a special situation that we call Foster-To-Adopt. This way, the animal will be placed 'on hold' and will be able to go home with you where he/she will wait to be officially adopted. Please see our foster-to-adopt page under the 'Get Involved' / 'Foster Care Program' tabs for more information.
3) What does foster to adopt mean? Fostering with the intent to eventually adopt an animal is a special situation that we use to help animals who are not ready for official adoption go home with their future family. This allows the adopter to begin bonding with the animal and to establish a routine with him/her. Once the animal has been spayed/neutered or otherwise been made available for adoption, the adopter can make it official!
4) How much medical history should I expect to receive after I've adopted my animal? Most of the animals that come to us are either directly from a shelter where little is known about their previous life, or from the public where they may not have ever received veterinary care before. No matter where the animal came from, we usually aren't able to obtain complete medical records for an animal from before he/she came to us or the shelter. Every animal is examined by our own veterinarian and treated accordingly. You will receive the most recent medical information applicable but we are generally unlikely to be able to provide the animal's full medical histories from the duration of it's life.
5) When should I expect to receive my adoption packet and what does it include? If you did not receive your adoption packet in person, we will try to send your adoption packet to you as soon as possible following the adoption of your animal. However, we do ask for some patientce in this area as certain animals require more time for us to collect all of the necessary paperwork. Your adoption packet will include your animal's recent medical information and proof of adoption.
6) Can I contact the vet that There's No Place Like Home uses for medical information about my animal? No. The veterinary clinics that we use are not connected with our organization other than providing care for our animals. We cannot ask them to handle questions from our adopters and they are legally unable to give out any medical information on an animal involved in our organization. If you have a question in regards to your animal's medical history, you will need to contact us directly. Even if you decide to use one of our veterinary hospitals as your own, you will need to supply the hospital with the medical information provided to you by this organization as they cannot be responsible for providing it for you.
7) Can I contact the vet that There's No Place Like Home uses for information about the organization itself? No. The veterinary clinics that we use are separate entities and businesses entirely. They will not be able to assist you with anything in relation to this organization. You should only contact them if you have decided to use that facility as your own veterinary clinic.
8) How do I know when my pet will need to see the vet again? Your adoption packet may specify when your animal is next due for vaccinations and other routine treatments, however, we do suggest that every newly adopted animal is examined by your own veterinarian within a few days of adoption so that your own doctor can become acquainted with your new family member.
9) What is the purpose of the adoption fee? We are a not for profit organization and depend on donation and adoption fees to continue to succesfully operate this organization. Each animal costs us in veterinary care, food, housing, and general animal care supplies. Most animals must be surgically sterilized before adoption as well. Every animal requires a different level of rehabilitation and our adoption fee is in place in order to assist us in covering the costs of that rehabilitation.
10) How is the adoption fee amount determined? The adoption fee is dtermined by an overall average of what animals cost us to rehabilitate as well as the costs incurred in order for this organization to operate succesfully. Most animals cost us much more than their individual adoption fee covers, however each adoption fee helps us to cover a portion of the costs of each animal's care.
11) What is the adoption fee used for? The adoption fee is necessary in order to allow us to continue rescuing and rehabilitating animals and is used towards the costs of running a succesfull organization. No adoption fee is used to benefit our members in any personal way.
12) What if I decide I can't keep my animal? If you decide that for whatever reason, you cannot continue to be responsible for the animal you have adopted from us, we ask that you please notify us immediately. Majority of the time, we will resume physical custody of the animal no matter how long it has been since your adoption.
13) Can I be refunded the adoption fee if I return the animal to the organization? If the animal is returned within 5 days of adoption, we will return your adoption fee however the adoption fee is nonrefundable for any animal who is returned to our care past 5 days after adoption. Your official date of adoption is visible on the first medical history page of your adoption packet.
14) Where are the animals kept? And where do I go to meet an adoptable animal? Our rescued animals live in the homes of our two directors or occassionally, in other foster homes. Having the animals live with us while they look for a new home allows us to get to know their personalities. For those animals in separate foster homes, we stay in close contact with foster families. This kind of individual attention that each animal gets helps us to place them in the best possible home for their needs. Because we do not have a facility and operate out of our homes, all meetings with an animal must be arranged on an individual basis. If you are interested in meeting an animal, please contact us so that we can coordinate it!
15) Where do the animals come from? You can find each available animal's story and how they came to us on our 'available;' animals pages. In general, majority of our rescues come directly from east bay area animal shelters. We occassioanlly rescue animals from other California shelters as well but tend to focus locally. We try to help better our community also by accepting animals in need directly from the public before they end up in the shelter system.