What do you expect from a rescue?

Question

I have experience of all the animals i will rescue(ferrets, cavies, hamsters, rats, mice, chins, degus) apart from rabbits, which i am trying to gather info on, policies outlining a no-kill stance, expectations of adopters and adoption policy, including home visits, and surrender and adoption forms ready. I am still saving and fundraising the money to start. I will be doing a formal animal care qualification before i start as well. Have i missed anything?

cavies (guinea pigs)

Answer 1

We are in the Land Hermit Crab Rescue Business.

We expect from a rescue to be clean, very knowledgble about everything from health to care... must be legal and certified. If going to one it MUST smell good no matter what and the cages and animals must be clean and free from anything like wounds, drippy eyes or noses and free from any kind of mite, flea tick etc.
There should be written history and mission statement as well as a code of ethics. There needs to be contracts, applications and other paper work that is easy to understand yet very complete, leaving nothing uncertian. The people running the place must be not only lovers of the animals but advocates and do more than just rescue animals, but educate the public and get involved with the community. I have to get a sence of family and genuine care before I even think of leaving or taking an animal. If I ask financial records must be made available as well as history and references.

Heres how we did it....

You realy will need to find your limits... number and types of animal.. try to keep it down to a managable number and one to 3 breeds or types... say Hammies, Cavies and Degus... and then keep in mind the different types of hammies alone can keep you very busy.. and they do reproduce so you need to keep sexes seperate etc to not become out of control. And with Ferrets you will need to give rabies vaccines... then there may be other vaccines needed and possible nurtering/spaying.

After you have found your limits... get the proper tools and equiptment ready.. then either become knowlegable of vet skills for that type(s) of animal OR partner with a local vet... try to meet with him or her and explain what you are doing and try to get some type of professional relationship going.

Another good thing to consider is non-profit status which will help with getting donations and with EVERYTHING... intially it will take paperwork, a little bit of money and a couple people to serve as president, VP and accounting...draw up the by-laws, mission statement etc. Then there are tax time papers to be filled out. Becoming incorporated is another good way.... and helps with the non-profit as well. These things make you seem more serious and honest because otherwise you may find people not being as supportive as you would like.

You will need to sit down and draw up all adoption and surrender paper work as well as educational materials and rescue info sheets. Then try to network with local pet stores and shelters and get the word out about what you are doing. Then you can hit a national base.. which will take some time but is beneficial.

Also anything with the company /rescue name and anyhting that you have created is good to have copyrighted... for your protection. Then there are other legal issues that can come up while placing animals even with a document IF it is not drawn up properly with no loopholes.. therefor legal counsel would also be good.

You will need to decided about sick or injured animals and how that will be handled and if there is an emergency that may come up.... Isolation areas and sterile environments for ill animals.

If you have a bunch of animals in your home there may be local ordinances that you wil have to be aware of, limiting numbers or types of animals as well as health conserns.. do not be suprised if the health inspector or animal control comes knockiing to check things out... making sure everything is clean and healthy... if not you can be shut down, animals surrendered, put to sleep and you fined.

Before one begins this operation much work needs to be done FIRST... for both the "business" and the rescued animals. You need to cover all bases, dot all the "i's" and cross all those "t's" before you begin as an active rescue.

Many states require a liscence in order to run a rescue.

Below you will find some links.. many talk about dogs or birds but it is all the same thing and helped me a great deal.

Answer 2

You need to set yourself a limit on how many animals you can take in, otherwise you'll just end up overstocked, there are always more animals looking for homes than there are homes available. If you have more animals than you have resources to care for them (including time, space and money) you will end up causing cruelty through neglect.
If you have a no-kill policy, you will eventually fill up with animals that you cannot rehome because they are feral, have behavioural problems or are otherwise unhomeable., and you will have to turn animals away because of that. No-kill shelters do not allow people to dump animals on their doorstep, they have a booking procedure. You can only take an animal there when they have a vacancy.
This means you will not be able to run an emergency shelter. The RSPCA/SPCA can run emergency care because they don't have a no kill policy. They can always make room for another case coming in.
Nobody likes it but there it is.
At the same time all of the animals that leave your care must be wormed, de-flead, vaccinated and neutered. The new owners must pay for it and a lot of them won't want to.
Rabbits need to be vaccinated against Myxomatosis and Viral Haemorrhagic Disease (VHD). Both are lethal but preventable.
You also need to think of waste disposal, you are going to be generating a lot of waste each week.
And please make sure you have adequate funds before you start, not just savings but regular income.
The RSPCA would like to see all animal shelters, rescue and welfare organisations licensed to make sure they meet minimum welfare standards.

Answer 3

I'd recommend specializing in a specific type of animal, and even a specific breed. For example, I adopted both of my dogs from a "pit-bull" rescue organization. These specialized groups have lower costs, and can really focus on all the needs of that particular animal. Also, those who run these organizations really know their animals, making adoption placements easier and more permanant.

Answer 4

I expect the animal not dead, not injured, and I want to have a adoption form if I can't find him/her ready.

Answer 5

whats a cavie?