Thank you for caring enough to try to find a good home for your pet! 

There are many ways to find a loving, new home for your companion pet.

Before you give up your pet, we encourage you to take advantage of the many resources available for solving problems and keeping pets in their homes.

For pet behavior problems such as barking, digging, scratching, problem urination, etc., first talk to your veterinarian—some behaviors can be caused by health problems, and for others there may be medications available.

 

For dog behavior issues, consult with a trainer or dog behaviorist in your area. There are also great dog fact sheets available at www.spcaonline.com, under the heading "It's a Dog's Life." Keep in mind that if your dog is having a behavior problem, it will need to be addressed at some point, and generally in his home with the people he loves and trusts is the best place.

If you are concerned about your dog being home alone, consider enrolling him/her in a doggy daycare, hiring a dog walker, or getting another animal to keep him/her company.

 

For cat behavior issues, visit the Cats International website at www.catsinternational.org or call (262) 375-8852 after you have spoken with your veterinarian. Most cat behavior problems are solvable!

Also, great info here! http://happycat.rescuegroups.org/info/display?PageID=1717

If you are moving or having trouble with your landlord, the San Francisco SPCA Pets in Rental Program provides expert advice. They can be reached at www.sfspca.org or (415) 554-3097.

 

If you or a family member have allergies: There are products available at pet stores that you can spray on your pet to reduce allergens. Quality air filters can also make a big difference. And today's allergy medications can alleviate most symptoms. Your doctor can give you more information. For a good article on dealing with allergies, go to www.spcaonline.com, click on "The Cat's Meow," and read the article "Coping with Cat Allergies."

 

If you absolutely must find your pet another home, remember that your animal has only you to depend on to make sure that he/she lives in a safe and healthy environment. Your loyalty to your pet and willingness to put forth some effort will make it possible for your animal to live a happy and healthy life.

For an excellent brochure with tips on finding your pet a new home, go to www.spcaonline.com and click on "It's a Dog's Life." Scroll down to "How to Find Your Dog a New Home." (The brochure applies to dogs and cats.)

It is greatly preferable to find your pet a home yourself rather than taking him/her to a shelter. Even the best shelter is stressful for the animal, and you have only one animal to focus on while a shelter may have hundreds.

Publicly run animal shelters are already overcrowded and, in many cities, a majority of the pets are not adopted, but instead are euthanized. Even purebred and friendly pets are routinely destroyed at public shelters to make space for new pets coming in. The extent of the overpopulation problem varies from area to area.

There are privately-run shelters and rescue organizations that do not kill pets. But because they keep the pets for as long as it takes to find a new home, they are usually filled to capacity, so it can take weeks to get an appointment.

For a list of shelters and rescues in your area, click here.

If you do find a "no-kill" organization than might take your animal, offering as big a tax-deductible donation as possible will help. Remember, in the case of private shelters and rescue groups, they are just people who are doing their best because they care about pets, most are volunteers spending significant amounts of their own money to cover vet bills, and they all get far more legitimate hard luck cases than they can possibly handle each day.

More than likely, you will need to do the work yourself to find your pet a good home. If you cannot keep the pet in your home, ask friends and family to help, or look for a boarding facility or veterinary office where you can pay to house the pet. Don't house the pet too far away or it will be hard to show him/her to potential adopters.

Friends, family, coworkers and neighbors are valuable adoption resources. Not only are they potential adopters, but they can help spread the word to others as well.

Have you pet spayed or neutered-you'll have better luck adopting him or her out!

Take a photo of your pet and make a flyer to post at your work, veterinary offices, pet supply stores, grocery stores, libraries, cafes, or anywhere around town. Be sure to talk to people about your pet whenever you can.

Place ads in local newspapers and neighborhood newsletters—be sure to make it catchy and mention a particularly cute or interesting quality your pet has.

If you are considering giving your pet to someone you don't know, you will want to screen them to ensure the match is a good one. Let your pet's personality be a guide for what questions to ask. Is your pet good with cats, dogs, and kids? Does she have any characteristics that warrant a more experienced pet owner?

Other questions you should ask are: Will the pet be allowed inside the house? Have they had pets before? Did their pets die of natural causes or for reasons that make you suspect they were not properly cared for? Ask local shelters and rescue groups for copies of their screening forms and adoption agreements for more ideas.

After you've done some initial screening and have a good candidate, bring the pet and person together to meet. Visit the person's home, and trust your intuition—you want to be sure that the adopter has your pet's interests at heart. You may want to check identification and ask for references.

Let the new adopter know they can call you for questions or advice. After a week or so, give them a call to find out how things are going.

Remember, your pet has NO ONE but YOU—The loyalty you show and effort you put forth to find your pet a new loving home, even if it causes inconvenience for you now, will be well worth it when you know that your pet is living out a healthy and happy life!