A cautionary tale
Warning: Grab a coffee and a danish…it’s a saga.
I have to pay taxes and therefore have interacted with the US government.
I have two adopted children and therefore have dealt with the Russian government.
I have lived in Ireland for a number of years and therefore have worked with the Irish government.
None of this prepared me for the local SPCA.
Part of our Adjusting-To-America-Plan included finally granting our eleven-year-old daughter’s deepest desire to have a family dog. I must say…
Diversion Ahead:
Apologies, if you have worked, are working, or will ever work for the SPCA.
…this has been one of the more challenging agencies to negotiate with—excepting perhaps the Irish Bureau of Immigration of course. After completing the rather lengthy application, the call came and went something like this…
SPCA: ‘We reviewed your application and the committee has decided to deny your request.’
Me: ‘Ehm. Uhm. Wha’?’
SPCA: We are not allowing you to adopt the dog.’
Me: ‘Er, why not?’
SPCA: ‘Because it will not be primarily an indoor dog.’
Me: ‘And the problem with that is…?’
SPCA: ‘We only adopt to people who will keep the dog indoors.’
Me: ‘But we have a lovely garden with loads of space to run free and abundant shade.’
SPCA: ‘We only adopt to people who will keep the dog indoors.’
Me: ‘But we have a lovely workshop, with ceiling fan, a veritable palace in doggy terms.’
SPCA: ‘We only adopt to people who will keep the dog indoors.’
Clearly I was getting nowhere. Time to change tactics. Less pleading. More relational. Do it like the Irish would.
Me: ‘Ah sure, I’m a stay at home mum and will be around quite a bit—the dog and I’ll be great pals.’
SPCA: ‘We only adopt to people who will keep the dog indoors.’
Me: ‘I am an avid gardener and will be outdoors more than indoors.’
SPCA: ‘We only adopt to people who will keep the dog indoors.’
Me: ‘Our wee kids, who’ve been anticipating this moment for years, will be devastated.’
SPCA: ‘We only adopt to people who will keep the dog indoors.’
What I forgot was that this isn’t Ireland anymore, Dorothy, and the relational approach doesn’t necessarily work when policies and rules and regulations are in force. Time to get back to my communications degree mindset and dredge up some good argumentation and debating techniques.
Me: ‘Right, so if I were a double-income-no-kids-at-work-for-8-or-more-hours-a-day-while-the-dog-remains-in-a-crate-type family, there’d be no problem?’
SPCA: Silence…then, ‘We only adopt to people who will keep the dog indoors.’
Me: ‘So pointing out technically that the dog will be indoors in this lovely workshop-yet-to-be-studio-cum-guestroom is not sufficient?’
SPCA: ‘We only adopt to people who will keep the dog indoors.’
Me: My ADOPTED children do not have a television, which goes against societal norms. Does that prevent them from having a nurturing environment?’
SPCA: ‘We only adopt to people who will keep the dog indoors.’
Me: ‘What about this is not providing a safe and secure environment for the dog?’
SPCA: ‘We only adopt to people who will keep the dog indoors.’
Me: ‘Can I appeal the decision?’
Phase Two, The Appeal, then found me answering what seemed like an endless barrage of questions, including…
SPCA: ‘It’s warm now, but what plans for heating in winter do you have?’
Me: ‘Weeeellll, it’s a Husky mix, wouldn’t it like the cool weather? What are winters like in Virginia? I doubt you’d be wanting me to put in a kerosene-sure-to-catch-the-place-on-fire-heater.’
SPCA: ‘We’d like for you to email us photos of the place where the dog will reside and your garden…as many photos as you can.’
Me: Sigh.
I’m sure the words ‘gob-smacked,’ ‘blimey,’ ‘crikey’ and ‘bugger’ escaped my lips at various points during the conversation(s). But at the end of the day… meet Rocket, soon to be the newest member of our family.
Epilogue-So-I-Don’t-Get-Sued-Cuz-I’m-Living-In-America Disclaimer:
Right, so the SPCA had a few more words to say than what’s represented here, but for the purpose of story-telling, the gist of the story remains. I must say that I am an advocate of what animal shelters represent and do not endorse cruelty to animals in any sense. The point of this cautionary tale is that our situation didn’t fit into a tick-the-box category and our application was therefore in danger of being jettisoned because we had other ideas of what a safe, secure and nurturing environment could be for a dog. Only due to the tenacity of one SPCA worker gave our story its happy ending.
What a handsome fellow! I’m so glad your persistence paid off.
And what a good point you made about the “double-income-no-kids-at-work-for-8-or-more-hours-a-day-while-the-dog-remains-in-a-crate-type family”!
Enjoy your new companion!
18 Jul 2008 at 8:25 pm
Sheesh. I can’t believe you people won’t keep that dog indoors.
18 Jul 2008 at 9:04 pm
He’s really cute. Welcome Rocket!
I think I probably would have put on the application that he would be an indoor dog. I think that having the guesthouse/studio/shed as a house is living indoors. My dogs are almost totally inside the house but they don’t do well in the heat. I would think your dog would like it better outside. I wonder if they are just worried that outside dogs might not get as much attention because they aren’t underfoot all the time? I’m glad they changed their minds though!
18 Jul 2008 at 10:15 pm
What a cutie! We also enjoy the companionship of a wonderful rescue dog. He is indoors while we are at work but we take him to the dog park every day after work then on long walks along the pier (the dog park is at the beach). Every family should enjoy the benefits of a canine buddy! Congratulations!
18 Jul 2008 at 11:35 pm
LOL at BT’s comment!
Bravo for your tenacity! Rocket looks like a very happy fellow. I bet he knows he’s hit the jackpot.
19 Jul 2008 at 8:32 am
Oh my God, and I thought our bureauocracy was bad. SPCA should be grateful to get good homes for their animals. What do they do if homes can’t be found!! Enjoy your lovely dog, he really looks gorgeous and loveable.
19 Jul 2008 at 9:20 am
Your so right though. We dealt with that in Hawaii with the humane society. You know on the island they also make you sign a disclaimer that you promise not to “eat” the animal in question?? He looks great! Ooh, huskies love to run!! Have fun. (i used to have 6 huskies in new england on my sled dog team)
19 Jul 2008 at 9:30 am
Just for future reference, in case Rocket needs a brother or sister :), there are other D.C. area organizations you could try. The Washington Animal Rescue League or PAWS offer animals for adoption and many of these have been rescued from shelters where their “time” was almost up. I’m not sure but they might be more flexible.
19 Jul 2008 at 10:20 am
So the moral of the story is: LIE. That is apparently what they want you to do. I mean, are they NUTS?
19 Jul 2008 at 11:47 am
I’m glad you ended up with a happy ending to your story. Not always the case. I’m all for animals being safe and cared for and not mistreated, but some of these places are a bit nuts, if you ask me. We had a bad experience with the Humane Society and I would never encourage anyone to go through them to get a pet as a result, which is a shame because there ARE so many animals who need good homes. But if your definition of a good home and their’s doesn’t jive, then tough luck.
Anyway, enjoy your new fuzzy baby!
19 Jul 2008 at 2:32 pm
can we see pix of Rocket’s ceiling-fanned garden cottage please?
pretty please?!
don’t get me started on the other bit. . . . [you know. . . . the SPCA and their "procedures"]
19 Jul 2008 at 2:49 pm
Congratulations on your new member of the family!
The unconditional love that a canine member brings into the family is a precious gift. They are good listeners, and they are always glad to see you.
(good point about spending long hours every day indoors, in a crate, alone)
19 Jul 2008 at 4:18 pm
At any point in the conversation, did you think to yourself, “We’re packing up and going back to Ireland”? If adopting a family pet requires all of this red tape, they should be at your door, inspecting the home and garden, not pictures via email.
No wonder the rest of the world thinks the US is nuts.
I’m so glad it all worked out and he is a very handsome fellow! So, what duties do the kids get or do they have to share “yard patrol”? It will be a great memory for the kids.
Enjoy!
19 Jul 2008 at 5:32 pm
Glad to hear it all worked out in the end. I thought the British were bureaucratic but…. Rocket looks like a lovely dog.
19 Jul 2008 at 6:15 pm
what a cute dog! congrats to you for persevering! hope everyone has fun together!
19 Jul 2008 at 9:51 pm
yay! i am so happy for you. working for a vet, i see this kind of thing happen a lot. good families get denied for the strangest reason…. even tho’ they would be great for the pet. good for you for adopting a shelter pet! i love it! so many good shelter dogs need good home and don’t get them. you made my day!
20 Jul 2008 at 9:16 am
You have got to be kidding me!! Glad that common sense won out over “the rules state” mentality! Rocket, me thinks you hit the jackpot laddie! Enjoy your new home!
20 Jul 2008 at 9:21 am
rocket looks like one - I hope you’ll have fun with him! your story sounds like adopting a child in germany - you can’t do it unless you are of a certain age, but not over it (the space in between isn’t exactly wide!), you can’t do it if you have a house, but didn’t pay off the mortgage yet - and most importantly - you can’t do it if the child isn’t going to have a room to himself!! I thought it was more important that you love your child and look after it well - but no, his own room has to be more important! if the spca rules applied to dogs in rural ireland - there would be none whatsoever about!!
20 Jul 2008 at 9:59 am
Haha. I used to volunteer at the SF SPCA.
I don’t actually understand their problem: is it that you *never* intend to let the dog into the actual house, but that there is a workshop space that would be its inside space?
I also hate that they did this to you *after* you fell in love with the dog. They should tell you the rules beforehand, surely? So that you could go and look at other animal shelters, if you knew you were going to run afoul of the rules?
20 Jul 2008 at 2:18 pm
Yes, but does the office. guest quarters have running water a cook stove and fridge? Does it have a indoor bathroom? Such a fragile little pup can surely not be expected to live out of doors.
21 Jul 2008 at 9:49 am
Awww rocket looks gorgeous
I have 2 dogs, one abandoned at 8 weeks old so i adopted her, and they both prefer to be outside most of the time. Jack is outside at the moment. He will sit looking through the gate even in wind and rain bless him.
It makes you mad tho doesnt it? all you’re trying to do is give a poor little chap a good life, not sell him into slavery or something!
Good on you for persevering
sam x
22 Jul 2008 at 10:16 am
That’s why I stole my cat.
22 Jul 2008 at 12:03 pm
I guess I’m just a liar. One day long ago I was looking around my local pound. I had never adopted a dog before, but I came across a Border Collie- starving, full of worms and green gunk in his eyes. I decided I would save that dog. When I was asked where the dog would live I told them I had a half acre with a six foot fence. The lady started to give me the ‘dog-would-be-happier-inside-in-a- crate’ story. I was confused by this reasoning, but I quickly realized I had two choices. I could argue my point or I could go along. I decided on the latter and said ‘oh yes, I see your point, I never thought of that’. I never said I would keep the dog in a crate, but let them think what they would. I took that dog home, nursed it back to health and had it for sixteen years. It spent 90% of that time outside and as far as I know was always very happy.
22 Jul 2008 at 1:59 pm
Good grief.
Suddenly the reason someone I know kept her lab puppy crated all day makes sense. (not).
23 Jul 2008 at 9:45 am
Hmmmm, and I’m thinking such a lovely little teeeeeeeeny tiny pup would benefit SO much from being indoors all the time.
Go Rocket! Run! Be free! In your Indoor Backyard.
23 Jul 2008 at 10:15 pm
I am glad to hear that your story has a happy ending for you and your family. After reading your story, I will keep up with my communication skills.
29 Jul 2008 at 3:25 pm
I can’t believe it! But welcome to Rocket, and what fun you’ll all have!
04 Aug 2008 at 11:01 am