By Katie O’Keefe
The coronavirus pandemic has sparked a new interest in dog adoption all over the U.S. For many, a new companion helps with the loneliness. For others, it feels like the right time to rescue a dog, considering all of the time spent at home. However, for one adopter, it was simply what he had done his whole life.
Meet Gracie
“I’m a big proponent of adopting dogs from shelters, or from wherever you can find them,” Chris Roush, a Hamden resident, said. “They’re just great dogs and they’re so loyal. They’re so friendly. They’re just great companions.”
Like many others, Roush adopted a dog over quarantine, but it was not his first time. In his lifetime, Roush and his family have rescued five dogs. Gracie, the newest addition, is his sixth rescue dog.
Before adopting Gracie this summer, Roush and his wife lost their dog Sadie, a 17-year-old rescue. It was a six-month period between Sadie’s death and adopting Gracie, which was actually a long time for Roush and his wife to wait before getting another dog.
“I’ve always been a big believer in that, when you lose a dog that you’ve saved in the past, the way to honor that dog is to save another dog,” Roush said.
Gracie is a happy and healthy dog now, running around with her best friend, Gus, Roush’s other dog. But picking her up from the shelter was a very different story.
“It was difficult, I’m not going to lie to you,” Roush said. “I had to pick her up and put her in the back seat of the car. I don’t think she had ever been in a car before and I think that was very traumatic for her.”
Roush’s wife, Shannon, heard of Gracie’s story through a friend on Facebook. She got in contact with the woman who was thinking of rescuing the four-year-old golden retriever from an Amish puppy mill in Ohio, but she decided against it. Gracie had just given birth to a litter and was going to be put down soon. After hearing of this, Shannon knew they needed to take her home.
Despite having a long experience with adoption, Roush says they were not prepared to see the conditions of the puppy mill. He describes Gracie’s living situation as heartbreaking.
“They’re living in a 4×4 pen that’s got a concrete floor and there are no toys in there. It’s just not the life you and I think of. Frankly that was pretty traumatic for both of us,” Roush said.
Though adoption can be stressful at times, Roush says it is always worth it.
“I think most people just think that getting a pure breed dog is their personal preference,” Roush said. “They don’t think that dogs that have been in shelters are going to be good pets, but to me those dogs are just so appreciative of everything that they have. Once you adopt them and take them home, you know, to me they look at you differently. I think they realize what you’ve done for them.”
Dog Adoptions
Gracie is a part of the 1.6 million dogs adopted every year. However, unfortunately, 670,000 dogs are euthanized in that same time period, according to The American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals.
Still, since the pandemic started, some shelters across the country have seen record numbers in adoption. On April 7, one shelter in Chicago posted on Facebook it emptied every cage. Another kennel in Florida also posted a video to Facebook in April to celebrate their empty cages.
While the pandemic and frequent adopters like Roush are helping adoption numbers rise, shelters with “no-kill” orders are also saving many dogs.
Communities with no-kill orders have a shelter that has reached a save rate of 90% or higher. These kinds of shelters will save and shelter healthy and treatable animals, even if the shelter reaches full capacity.
In fact, the second largest animal shelter in Connecticut, The Friends of the New Haven Animal Shelter, is a no-kill shelter. On average, it houses 40 dogs at one time and a peak of 60 dogs during the summertime.
However, the increase in dog adoption seen around the country does not hold true with every shelter. The FNHAS honestly says that it has not seen a drastic change in business.
“Business has been pretty steady actually,” Mitch Gibbs, an assistant animal control officer at FNHAS, said. “I know they were kind of theorizing at first that there would be a big bloom in adoption because people were home, but we really haven’t seen that here.”
On the bright side, the FNHAS has not seen many dogs returned after being adopted. However, if and when an animal is returned, Gibbs says it is important to simply learn from the mistake.
“We learn what didn’t work from the first time and we look at what didn’t fit,” Gibbs said. “This way in the future we don’t make that mistake again.”
Here is a quick guide to dog adoption and what the process typically looks like.
Meet Millie
First-time adopter Danielle Reinhart, a Southington resident, brought home Millie in October, but it was a long trip for the pup. Millie was born in a barn in Tennessee, but vet transport service Pet Express of Tupelo Mississippi made adopting her very easy. Reinhart and her family met the truck at a rest stop in Milford, Connecticut which was also the first-time meeting Millie.
Reinhart describes meeting Millie as “the ultimate blind date,” however, here are a few Connecticut shelters where you would be able to meet the dog before signing the papers. You can interact with the map here.
Dogs can get dozens of applications, like Millie, and be sold once they become available. A rescue dog must have an appropriate holding period, which is a time when a dog must be at a shelter before being sold, adopted or euthanized. Holding times vary between five to seven days in over 30 states and, during popular adoption times like these, time is critical.
“You have to move quick since everyone is adopting now,” Reinhart said. “When we heard Millie was available, we fell in love and just said yes.”
Matching a dog to a household is crucial too, especially to reduce the chance of a dog being returned. In the case of Reinhart and Millie, the match was perfect.
“It’s very evident that they care very much that these pets get the best possible life and that it’s a forever home,” Reinhart said. “It’s like she’s always been here in a way. Every day is new with her too, and she is just an absolute joy and fits perfect with us.”
Meet Edison
While Reinhart dealt with a very competitive adoption process, Chris Misciagna, a Ridgefield resident, had an easier time. He and his family were not looking for the traditional puppy to train and teach as their own.
“We wanted to give an opportunity to a dog that wasn’t sought after,” Misciagna said.
The Misciagna’s rescued Edison, a seven-year-old pit bull lab mix, last month. When looking to add to the family, they knew an older dog would match the personality of Houston, their 10-year-old lab. Yet, even aside from that fact, Misciagna understands what it means to give the older dogs a chance.
“Consider rescuing a dog that has been a little down in their luck,” Misciagna said. “Edison might have been sitting in a kennel and overlooked by a smaller puppy. So, give the dogs that wouldn’t normally be given a chance, a chance. They all deserve to have nice homes, be taken care of and spoiled with table scraps.”
One of the benefits to adopting an older dog is that they are most likely to be house trained and have some level of manners. Misciagna says he loves how Edison is out of the “energetic puppy phase.”
“Nothing can bother him in the world,” Misciagna said. “He is so laid back, which is what we were looking for.”
Meet Finley
The rambunctious two-year-old redbone coonhound.
“I’ve always thought kids should have a dog,” Carrie Comerford, an Essex resident, said.
Comerford’s three boys, eight-year-old Ethan, six-year-old Colin and four-year-old Luke, had been begging their mom for a dog. Finally, she said yes to testing it out and took in a dog to foster. But it only took one week for everyone to agree Finley should stay.
“Part of me is like, ‘Why did I get a dog during quarantine?’” Comerford said. “I’m home with three young boys, working remotely, they’re remote (learning), and now I have a dog too. But you know, I felt bad for the kids. They’ve missed out on so much.”
Comerford continued to explain how Finley’s energy matched the kids’ energy which was “a big factor” in keeping him. Ethan, who was the lead in convincing his parents to keep Finley, loves to play and the young pup is his perfect companion.
“I’m so happy we kept Finley,” Comerford said. “He was supposed to be just a foster dog, just a try out, but you can see that was a foster fail because we fell in love with him.”
It makes you wonder, “Who rescued who?”