ADOPTION POLICIES AND PROCEDURES

If you find a Greyhound on our site that you are interested in adopting, please email us or fill out and mail or fax an application. But before you do, please be aware that we are very particular about how and where we place our "angels". We screen adoption applicants carefully unless we know them very well personally. You might feel almost as if you are adopting a child, and as far as we are concerned, you are. A Greyhound deserves to be a member of the family. But don't let that scare you. We don't ask for credit references or call your boss. <G> We just do all we can to ensure that you will give your dog the best possible life for as long as he lives.   

We prefer that our placements be within 300 miles of Cross Lanes (near Charleston WV), but we occasionally make exceptions when transportation is feasible. In the case of some special needs dogs, or families with small children or small pets, adopters must live within 100 miles of Cross Lanes so that a home visit will be feasible. If you live outside of our area, you might want to see our list of other adoption groups that we feel confident in recommending. There might be one near you.

Some of our requirements:

• Strong commitment to the dog for his/her entire lifetime.
• Understanding of the unique (not complicated, just unique) care needs and habits of Greyhounds. Please visit our Greyhound Care section for more information.
• Written agreement to certain conditions, an adoption contract.

You should be aware that we don't send dogs off to new homes and forget about them. We periodically check to see how they're doing because we care about the dogs and because we hope to become friends with the adopters if we weren't friends already. BUT... if we find that a dog that we placed is not being cared for properly and in agreement with the adoption contract, we have a legal right to take the dog back and we will do it if we need to in order to protect one of our dogs. It has never happened yet because all of our adopters have been wonderful people who love and take great care of their dogs.

By the same token, we are always available to answer questions and help with any problems that may arise with an adopted Greyhound. We don't always know all the answers, but we have a wonderful network of trainers, breeders, veterinarians and experienced Greyhound owners who can provide the answer to just about anything that comes up.

Please understand that when you adopt one of our Greyhounds, you are making a serious commitment to give that dog your best for the rest of his life, which could be another 10-12 years or more if you adopt a young dog. While we will accept a returned hound if problems arise that just can't be worked out, we do expect the adopter to make every effort to work things out first with all the help we can give them. Greyhounds are sensitive and loving animals who quickly develop deep bonds with their people. Being returned is very painful for them, and usually painful for the people who adopted them. But occasionally it is unavoidable. We understand this, and if a problem simply cannot be resolved, we will gladly take the dog back and find a more suitable home for it. And, depending on the circumstances, we may try to find a dog for you that better suits your personality and lifestyle. Usually dogs that didn't work out in their first homes live long and happy lives in their second homes.

Our adoption and fostering "service" is strictly volunteer work, a labor of love for all of us. We are registered with the State of West Virginia as a non-profit corporation and we are in the process of obtaining our 501(C)3 non-profit tax status. We receive no compensation for our work other than the joy of seeing good people united with good dogs. We do NOT "sell" Greyhounds! The modest adoption fees we charge are to cover some of our expenses in preparing a dog for adoption. This includes spay or neuter surgery, heartworm test, titering for tick-borne diseases, all shots, general physical, and any necessary dental work, for which the adopter is given a detailed receipt. Dogs found to be heartworm positive (which is very rare here) will not be released for adoption until treatment is complete. By the way, our veterinarians are among the most Greyhound-savvy in the United States. Part of the adoption fee also covers a martingale (safety) collar, leash, and an Almost Heaven ID tag. You are free to change to any collar of your choice, though we STRONGLY recommend the martingale type for your dog's safety. The Almost Heaven ID tag must be kept on the dog permanently and at ALL times. For an additional $5.00 (our cost) we will be glad to have a second ID tag made with your own information, or you must get one yourself. Both ID tags must stay on your dog at ALL times, both indoors and out.

If you would like to contact other people who have adopted hounds from us, please email and we will gladly provide you with names and email addresses.

Ready to see some hounds? Click here! They're waiting to meet you!

Or if you've already "shopped" and would like a printable application, click here. You can fill it out and mail or fax it to us.

Our application form is a bit long and involved, but there are no frivolous or useless questions. Most are self-explanatory. But with others you may wonder why we asked them. Please feel free to email and ask about them, but rest assured that they are asked so that we can make the best possible match between family and Greyhound. Returns are emotionally wrenching for both dog and adopter, so we try hard to avoid them.

So you've filled out your application and sent it in. What happens next? First, your application will be reviewed carefully and your references checked. Then we will talk with you a bit, and if possible (depending on where you live) a member of our group will visit you at home, probably bringing along a Greyhound to see how your family interacts with him/her. It might be one of our available dogs or it might be one of our "family tester" dogs. If at all possible, all members of your household should be present for the home visit. If you have small children, they MUST be present.

NOTE: If you have small children or small pets, we MUST make a home visit with the prospective adoptive dog before you can be approved.  We are unable to travel more than 100 miles for a home visit, so if you live more than 100 miles from Cross Lanes WV, please do not apply. 

The home visitor will also be looking for possible safety hazards that need to be corrected before your new hound arrives. This protects the dogs from injury and your pocketbook from avoidable vet bills.

During all of these steps we will be making mental notes about which of our available dogs might fit well with your family. And we might ask that you do some specific reading before you receive your dog. Families with children under 7 are required to read Childproofing Your Dog, by Brian Kilcommons, for example.

If all goes well to this point (and it usually does), it's now time to make the match. You might have already picked a favorite, and if we think that dog is a good candidate for membership in your family (and not already promised to someone else), he's yours. If we have several dogs that might work well for you (and you for them!) we will gather them at our kennel for you to visit and see what kind of chemistry happens. You should know that the dog you saw and fell in love with on our website might not be a good match depending on several circumstances (kids, cats, other dogs, your schedule or lifestyle, etc.) If this is the case, we will NOT adopt that dog to you. This is in your family's best interest as well as the dog's. If you have cats, for example, we can't adopt a dog to you that we believe can never be cat-safe no matter how much you like the dog.

Once the right dog and the right family have found each other, the adoption fee is paid, the adoption contract is signed, you are given a packet of informational materials and congratulations! You're new parents!

The process may sound a bit involved, but it's only because we love our Greyhound angels and do everything we can to make sure that they go to the best possible homes. It's really easier than it sounds, and it's even fun! So don't be nervous.