To all applicants/potential applicants: Id like to clarify an important policy at Barlees. When you apply to adopt, we do not activate your application until you answer a short email with some questions about the process, including that you will not pursue adopting a dog elsewhere during the time youre pursuing adoption with us. We understand that people are excited and its hard to wait. We also understand that many of you have dealt with other rescues who dont screen well and are first come, first served, and have lost out on dogs - so you get tired of it and submit multiple applications, hoping to get one. The problem is, its like if you were applying to adopt a child - except that we have no paid staff, just a handful of super burdened volunteers. Each adoption application, from beginning to end, takes about 8-16 manhours to complete, between phone interviews, reference checks, the home visit, and the pet meet. We simply do not have the resources to put into applicants that are submitting multiple applications. You would not apply for a child from one agency and while youre waiting, apply for another child from another agency, knowing you could only adopt one. We need your commitment to not be shopping around. Its not a commitment to adopt from Barlees, just not to look for or take a dog elsewhere while were doing our work. Were not asking for anything more than what were offering - we only process one application at a time for each individual dog, and let people know this. Its extremely discouraging to put our scarce resources into applications and get the email about the dog that fell into the applicants lap. We are backlogged and dont have time to devote to people who agree to hold off on their search until were done, and it contributes to the backlog. It also is not fair to the other rescues, particularly ones like us who have screening and matching processes, by having multiple groups doing the same work, in anticipation of placing a dog - when the applicant is only going to be adopting from one, and is not up front that theyre looking at other dogs, or if one falls into their lap, they arent going to keep their word and tell others that theyre in the application process with a rescue and agreed not to look at other dogs til we have an outcome. Were up front that our process takes time, although were making progress lately catching up - if you cant wait, we understand. Please, just shoot us an email and let us know if you choose to withdraw your application, instead of just stopping answering our calls. Whats disappointing is to spend time on applications and lose the adopter due to them adopting another dog. This happens enough that we enacted a policy several years ago of not processing an application unless the person is for sure going to be available to adopt once weve done our work. All we ask is what were prepared to give you in return - open communication, and to choose one rescue/route, and see it through. If youve lost out on other first come first served rescues, thats not us, and were always up front about availability and matching. Thanks in advance for your cooperation with our policy and respecting the value of our resources, so we can devote them to applicants that are not going to adopt elsewhere while were processing their application.
Posted on: Mon, 12 Jan 2015 20:55:05 +0000
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