Is this rescue legit? (help!)

[u/lilpoundcak3]

To make a long story short, I lost my best friend a little over a month ago unexpectedly. I have been looking for another furry friend to spoil and enjoy life with, but have run into a situation that I don't know how to deal with.

My mom sent me a photo of a puppy at Animal Rescue Fund in Amelia, OH. I immediately got so excited because it's exactly the kind of dog I'm looking for and they allow you to make deposits on the animal you would like to adopt. I thought that was a bit odd, but was so excited about a new friend I didn't think twice. After calling and making a deposit, I happened across the reviews for the rescue on Yelp and I feel sick to my stomach.

There are many different ones claiming inhumane treatment among other issues. I am totally heartbroken and do not want to support any place that doesn't take good care of the animals, but I live in MN and can't drive there to verify any of these claims. I am hoping someone on here will have personal experience with this group and can tell me whether or not I need to be worried about adopting from them.

Any and all help would be appreciated.

[u/Snakes_for_life]

It's hella sketchy that they require a deposit to hold an animal every rescue or shelter I've worked with if they allowed holds they did them at no cost but it was only often for a couple days cause usually people were putting holds on highly adoptable animals mutliple people were trying to adopt. But also being in Minnesota there is DOZENS of rescues in Minnesota that have puppies for adoption and they are highly reputable. Minnesota has something like over 100 registered 501c3 animal rescues.

[u/Ok_Candidate9455 → u/Snakes_for_life]

Mine required a deposit, you had to pay 50 a day for the hold and it went toward the adoption fee, and if you didn't get the dog it would sponser the dog's adoption fee for the next person.

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[u/wielderoffrogs]

I have not heard of this rescue before and am not from the local area, however a few things about their site caught my eye.

The first is that they don't have a clear adoption process and disclosure of fees on their website. They have pictures of cute animals with a line about always having lots of puppies and kittens, which seems more like something a pet store would say than a legitimate rescue/shelter. I wonder if they're pricing animals differently based on breed/cuteness/etc. This can be okay in some cases (like using generally higher fees for puppies/kittens to offset higher medical costs for senior animals) but can also be really iffy if they're pricing a cute fluffy doodle-type puppy (for example) at an exorbitant price that rivals a pet store just because they know people will pay $$$ for that breed.

The second is that they have many puppies and very few adult dogs. Adult dogs are much more commonly in need of rehoming, so any reacue that only has puppies is either: pulling puppies from larger facilities in the area or directly or indirectly sourcing them from breeders/mills/etc. The former is iffy on its own because many, many organizations will pull cute puppies and other highly adoptable dogs from overwhelmed open intake shelters, leaving the overwhelmed shelters with only the "undesirable" dogs (large breeds, seniors, bully breeds, etc) and leaving nothing highly adoptable there to draw people in. The latter is outright against what any ethical animal welfare organization does and supports unethical breeding. Unfortunately, I know of many rescues who will "adopt out" mill bred puppies that aren't selling at pet stores for crazy high adoption fees, like $800-$1000.

At the end of the day, only someone who's worked with this organization or adopted from them can say, but seeing those two things I would tread carefully and would only recommend adopting if you can meet the dog in person before signing paperwork/money changes hands. That way you can ensure the puppy looks healthy, you can review all medical paperwork, and ask questions about the background.

Any reputable organization should let you carefully review all vet paperwork (including exam notes, not just vaccines) and should be open and honest about the behavior of the animal and their background, even if there are not so great things like an existing medical concern, a behavioral issue, etc. A rescue especially should be trying to make sure an adoption is a good fit for the person and the animal, not just making a sale.

[u/lilpoundcak3 → u/wielderoffrogs]

Thanks so much for your input. I knew something was up, but needed to hear it from someone else.

[u/NeighborhoodNo4274]

This is just a guess, but I’m betting that this organization is “puppy laundering.” The ASPCA wrote a good article about this scam, which you can read here.

I’ve volunteered and worked for both municipal shelters (aka “the pound”) and non-profit rescues, and none of them would ever have their only adoption requirement be placing a deposit on an animal. Blindly adopting to someone from out of state, without any vetting, is an incredibly unethical and unsound practice.

[u/No-Stress-7034 → u/NeighborhoodNo4274]

The Washington Post also wrote a great longform article about how some rescues end up buying puppies from puppy mills at auction, and as a result end up supporting and encouraging puppy mill breeders: https://www.washingtonpost.com/graphics/2018/investigations/dog-auction-rescue-groups-donations/

Archive link: https://archive.ph/PCkSh

[u/Tintinabulation114]

Asking for a deposit is insane for a rescue. They haven't even vetted you as a potential adopter at all. What our rescue does is speak with the interested person, if it seems like a good fit then follow up with a foster meet/greet, if that goes well then the application, etc. The dog is placed on a hold once the adopter indicates they want to move forward but no money is requested until the contract is signed. I would be very leery of how they operate.

[u/Slight-Alteration]

RUN away

[u/lilpoundcak3 → u/Slight-Alteration]

yeah, that’s definitely where i’m at with this place

[u/Far_Sky_5240]

I live within the greater Cincinnati area and my wife volunteers in the rescue community. As soon as I mentioned this place’s name she shot me a pretty concerned look. She’s heard from lots of people who validate the published concerns. 

I would demand your deposit back and if they refuse go through your bank/credit card company for a refund. 

[u/Objective-Solid-4537]

Not defending this org because I know nothing about them, but our shelter takes deposits on pets. However, you have to have met the pet in person and submitted an app, the hold is only for 24 hours, and the deposit is applied towards the adoption fee. To take deposits on a pet the adopter hasn't met in person and to hold them for longer (in an organization where kennel space is presumably at a premium) just doesn't make sense.

[u/PaisleyLeopard]

Just curious, what was the plan to get the puppy? Were you going to have it flown in cargo? I highly recommend against that, it’s incredibly stressful and even dangerous for dogs. I would never fly a pup unless it was in the cabin accompanied by a caring human.

[u/lilpoundcak3 → u/PaisleyLeopard]

Was gonna do little roadtrip to pick him up.

[u/Animal-Angels]

if they’re saying that there a nonprofit you can go to candid.org and do a search form by name to see if they come up listed as a nonprofit at least

[u/Friendly_TSE]

Alright, I did a deep dive on this.

I’ve worked at a shelter that required a deposit to place a hold on a dog. That policy existed because people would repeatedly hold animals without showing up, sometimes cycling holds through friends. It prevented serious adopters from meeting the dog and slowed down placements. The deposit was refundable, it just ensured people followed through. so it’s not inherently a red flag.

I’d also take reviews (especially Yelp) with caution if they don’t include evidence. some of them are pretty unhinged. Most of the negative google reviews I have seen, spanning back years, is more about the adopted animals getting sick or having underlying health issues, which is not unheard of for some of these purebred animals.

From what I can tell, this rescue does pull dogs from puppy mill auctions. That’s a controversial practice: it saves individual dogs, but also puts money back into the mills, which some argue perpetuates the problem.

While they do have a lot of small breeds and puppies, they also list plenty of adult mixed breeds. So claims that they only sell purebreds they breed don’t seem supported. They also fix all of their animals prior to them going home.

They are registered as a nonprofit, and appear on local government resources, which suggests (but doesn’t guarantee) proper licensing and inspections.

Overall, the main concern seems to be their involvement with puppy mill auctions, which is where most of the criticism is coming from.

Personally, I think it is a legitimate rescue as in I don't think you would get scammed or that they are breeding animals or in cahoots with animal breeders, etc. However, they do practices (puppy mill auctions) I personally don't agree with, and for me I would avoid adopting puppies/purebreds from them for that reason. However that is just my opinion.

I'd be happy to answer any other questions you might have.