Requirements:

• You must be at least 25 years old to adopt.
• You must reside in New York (Westchester County, Putnam County, Rockland County, Orange County, the Bronx, Manhattan, Queens, Brooklyn), Long Island (Nassau County), New Jersey (Bergen County, Stone Harbor, Wildwood, Cape May County), or Connecticut (Fairfield County). A home visit must be completed on every applicant. TTR volunteers are only available to travel to these areas.
• Note: Applications will be considered from as far as 1 1/2 hours from lower Westchester County (NY), providing that you are willing to come to lower Westchester (or a mutually agreeable point) for a personal interview and to meet the dog. Providing that the interview and references are acceptable, the dog will be transported to your home, where a home visit will be conducted. Upon a satisfactory home visit, a pre-placement stay may be recommended before the adoption is finalized.
• The person who will be the primary caretaker of the dog must be the applicant. TTR will not adopt out a dog as a gift.
• You must be able to provide a photo identification and proof of residence.
• If applicable, you must be able to provide proof that your landlord or managing agent permits pets in your residence.
• All pets in your home must be spayed or neutered, and current in their vaccinations and heartworm prevention.
• You must be willing to complete the adoption application in full, participate in an interview, allow your references including your veterinarian to be called, submit to a home visit, sign an adoption contract, and make an adoption donation of $100 to $500 (depending on the age and health of the dog) when the adoption is finalized. It is important to understand that the adoption donation rarely covers the expenses incurred in preparing a dog for adoption.

Things to think about before applying to adopt:

• Toy dogs are too fragile for families with young children. Please consider your choice to adopt a small dog carefully.
• Puppies and young dogs will only be adopted out to homes where they can be let out to relieve themselves every 2 to 3 hours. Young dogs should not be crated for more than several hours at time (except for overnight housing).
• Senior dogs are very special. Many are carelessly discarded into shelters just to be euthanized, even though they have plenty of “good life” left in them. They deserve to spend their remaining time comfortably in loving, peaceful homes. Older dogs are generally calm, settle into a routine quickly, and are housebroken. Consider welcoming a senior dog into your home.
• Are you prepared to assume the financial responsibilities of caring for a dog, including a good quality food, professional grooming if necessary, yearly vaccinations and heartworm testing, monthly heartworm prevention, regular teeth cleaning, flea and tick treatment, and veterinary care for unexpected illness or injury?
• Are you willing to provide exercise for your dog everyday, that is appropriate for his/her health and physical condition? Putting a dog in the backyard is not exercise. Take your dog for a walk. The activity of walking will help meet the dog's needs for mental and physical stimulation, and help him/her to be well-balanced and happy.
• Are you willing to provide training for your dog to help him/her make a successful adjustment to your home? If the dog exhibits behavioral problems that are beyond your ability to reasonably manage, are you willing to seek professional advice and/or participate in training classes? Undesirable behaviors can include, but are not limited to housebreaking accidents and urine marking, chewing, barking, digging, aggression, and biting. Do you understand that there may be issues that may never be fully corrected? Do you have reasonable expectations for your dog's behavior?
• Can you make the commitment to care for a dog for his/her full lifetime? Small dogs can live for 15 + years.
• What will happen to your dog if you need to move, or if you lose your job?
• Who will care for your dog if you become ill, disabled, enter a nursing home, or pass away?

What to expect when you adopt:

Before the arrival of your new pet you should have the following:

• Collar, leash, and harness (A harness is more secure than a collar as there is less chance that a dog can break free. It is also better for the delicate necks of small dogs.)
• Identification tag (Have an extra tag with a vacation address and cell phone number if you take your dog with you when you travel.)
• Bowls for food and water


• A good quality dog food and treats. (A good quality food, not brands sold in supermarkets, will help to keep your dog healthy. It is also important to maintain your dog at his/her proper weight.)
• Bed (Add a soft blanket/towel. Small dogs frequently like to snuggle under a blanket to keep warm.)
• Toys
• Crate
• Potty pads if necessary
• Pooper scooper bags (Plastic newspaper bags work great! Stick them in every pocket so you will always have one, or get a bag holder that attaches right to the leash.)
• A warm coat or sweater for the winter.
• Dog shampoo
• Car seat (Many are now available that are raised and cushioned, and allow a small dog to see out the window. A harness and attachment keep the dog safely restrained.)

Be prepared with the following:

• Find a place for the food and water bowls.


• Find an easily accessible place for the potty pad if necessary.
• Find a quiet place for the dog’s bed.
• Find a place to keep the crate, or other means to confine the dog when you are not home, such as gaiting off the kitchen or bathroom. (A sturdy gait works better than closing the door, which can make the dog feel too confined.)
• Find an acceptable place where the dog can go to the bathroom outside (preferably not on your neighbor's lawn).

Patience, Fair and Consistent Rules, Training and Rewards

You must be patient with your new dog while he/she learns the rules of your home. Remember, this dog may have never been properly trained, may have been treated harshly, may have been left alone for lengthy periods of time, may have already been in several homes, and may even have spent time in a shelter. The dog may be confused and unsure of what is expected, and may be frightened by his/her new environment. Behavior that may have been allowed or even rewarded by a previous owner or caretaker may not be approved of in your home. The foster home makes every effort to provide the rescued dog with structure and stability, and consistent rules which are reinforced through positive behavior modification. This will assist your new dog in making a smooth transition into your home. However, continued training while in your care will definitely be necessary. It will take time for your new companion to settle in, and for the two of you to feel comfortable with one another. Housebreaking accidents and some urine marking should be expected during this adjustment period. Patience, reasonable periods of confinement, supervised freedom, and training, will help your dog’s behavior to become trustworthy. However, you should be aware that there may be issues that may never be fully corrected.

Help your dog become a welcome member of your neighborhood and community:

• Always clean up after your dog.
• Don't let your dog urinate on your neighbor's well manicured lawn.
• Don't let your dog be a nuisance barker. Barking is a natural behavior, but should not be excessive or constant.

Things to be cautious about:

• Small dogs can easily injure delicate knees, and should not be allowed to jump off of anything high, such as a bed or sofa. Provide easy and safe access by using a ramp or stairs designed for dogs. Use non-slip rugs to cover tile or wood surfaces where a dog would be getting down.
• During the winter beware of salt on the street or sidewalk, which can irritate paws.
• Never leave your dog unattended in a car. During the summer a car can heat up to deadly temperatures in minutes. A small dog can also easily be stolen. It is never worth the risk of having your dog sold to an experimental laboratory or used as bait to train dogs for fighting. A good rule is to never leave a dog in a car if he/she is out of your eye-sight.

Food Facts

Recommended Ingredients:

• A good quality protein source that is specifically named and should be one of the first two ingredients.
• Whole, unprocessed grains and vegetables.

Ingredients to Avoid:

• The use of multiple fragments of a single food, such as brewer's rice and wheat bran, which are the by-products of another food manufacturing process. Brewer's rice is a waste product of the alcohol industry. Wheat bran is the fibrous hull removed from the nutritious wheat kernel.
• By-products
• Generic fats and proteins
• Artificial preservatives (such as BHA, BHT, Ethoxyquin)
• Artificial colors
• Propylene glycol (used to keep chewy foods moist)
• Sweetners (such as corn syrup, sucrose, ammoniated glycyrrhizin)

It may be beneficial to switch your dog's food every few months. This should be done gradually over a few days to help prevent stomach upset, gas, or diarrhea. Only feeding one food may result in excessive levels of one nutrient and deficient levels of another. Changing foods may help to prevent the development of food allergies.

AAFCO Definitions of Dog Food Ingredients (AAFCO is the Association of American Feed Control Officials)

• Meat: "Meat is the clean flesh derived from slaughtered mammals and is limited to that part of the striate muscle which is skeletal or that which is found in the tongue, in the diaphragm, in the heart, or in the esophagus; with or without that accompanying and overlying fat and the portions of the skin, sinew, nerve, and blood vessels..."
• Poultry: "Poultry is the clean combination of flesh and skin with or without accompanying bone derived from the parts or whole carcasses of poultry or a combination thereof, exclusive of feathers, heads, feet, and entrails..."
• Meat Meal: "Meat Meal is the rendered product from mammal tissues, exclusive of any added blood, hair, hoof, horn, hide trimmings, manure, stomach and rumen contents except is such amounts as may occur unavoidably in good processing practices..."
• Poultry Meal: "Poultry Meal is the dry rendered products derived from a comnination of clean flesh and skin with our without accompanying bone derived from the parts or whole carcasses of poultry or a combination thereof, exclusive of feathers, heads, feet and entrails..."
• Meat and Bone Meal: "Meat and Bone Meal is the rendered product from mammal tissues, including bone, exclusive of any added blood, hair, hoof, horn, hide trimmings, manure, stomach and rumen contents, except in such amounts as may occur unavoidably in good processing practices..."
• Meat By-Products: "Meat By-Products is the non-rendered, clean parts, other than meat, derived from slaughtered mammals. It includes, but is not limited to, lungs, spleen, kidneys, brain, livers, blood, bone, partially defatted low temperature fatty tissue, and stomachs and intestines..."
• Poultry By-Products: "Poultry By-Products must consist of non-rendered clean parts of carcasses of slaughtered poultry such as heads, feet, viscera..."
• Poultry By-Product Meal: "Poultry By-Product Meal consists of the ground, rendered, clean parts of the carcass of slaughtered poultry, such as necks, feet, undeveloped eggs, and intestines, exclusive of feathers, except in such amounts as may occur unavoidably in good processing practices..."
• Animal By-Product Meal: "Animal By-Product Meal is the rendered product from mammal tissues, exclusive of any added hair, hoof, horn, hide trimmings, manure, stomach and rumen contents... This ingredient definition is intended to cover those individual rendered animal tissue products that cannot meet the criteria as set forth elsewhere in this section..."
• Animal Digest: "A material which results from chemical and/or enzymatic hydrolysis of clean and undecomposed animal tissue. The animal tissues used shall be exclusive of hair, horns, teeth, hooves, and feathers, except in such trace amounts as might occur unavoidably in good factory practice and shall be suitable for animal feed."
• Animal By-Product Meal: "The rendered product from animal tissues, exclusive of any added hair, hoof, hide trimmings, manure, stomach and rumen contents, except in such amounts as may occur unavoidably in good processing practices."

Harmful Foods

• Avocados
• Chocolate
• Coffee
• Onions and onion powder (can cause anemia in some animals)
• Garlic
• Grapes and Raisins (can induce kidney failure in some animals)
• Macadamia nuts
• Alcoholic beverages
• Xylitol (sweetener that is toxic for dogs)

Hazardous Household Plants

Aloe, Amaryllis, Andromeda Japonica, Asian Lily, Asparagus fern, Australian Nut, Autumn Crocus, Azalea, Belladonna, Bird of Paradise, Bittersweet (American and European), Black Locust, Branching ivy, Buckeye, Buddhist Pine, Caladium, Calla lily, Castor Bean, Ceriman, Clematis, Cordatum, Corn plant, Cycads, Cyclamen, Daffodil, Daylily, Devil's Ivy, Dieffenbachia, Dumbcane, Easter lily, Elephant ears, Emerald fern, English Ivy, Eucalyptus, Ferns, Fiddle-leaf philodendron, Gold dust dracaena, Florida Beauty, Foxglove, Glacier Ivy, Gladiolas, Golden Pothos, Heavenly bamboo, Honeysuckle, Hurricane Plant, Hyacinth, Hydrangea, Iris, Jerusalem Cherry, Jimson Weed, Kalanchoe, Lantana, Lilies (all Lilium species), Lily of the Valley, Lupine, Marble Queen, Morning Glory, Mother-in-Law, Mountain Laurel, Narcissus, Needlepoint Ivy, Nephthysis, Nightshade, Oleander, Panda, Peace Lily, Philodendron, Poison Hemlock, Precatory Bean (rosary pea), Privet, Red Emerald, Rhododendron, Ribbon plant, Sago Palm, Satin Pothos, Schefflera, Striped Dracaena, Sweetheart Ivy, Tulip, Water Hemlock, Wisteria, Yew, Yucca.

Vaccinations

• Be cautious about over-vaccinating. After your dog has had all of his/her initial vaccinations, discuss with your vet about having vaccine titers done during your dog's yearly health exam. If immunity levels are sufficient, there is no need to have further vaccinations.
• Rabies vaccinations must always be up to date. Make sure you are aware if your dog has received a one, two, or three year shot.

Training Tips:

• Exercise: Take your dog out for a good walk everyday. Placing a dog in a backyard does not meet his/her needs for physical and mental stimulation. Your dog will thank you. A tired dog is less likely to misbehave.
• Crate Training: The crate should be large enough to allow the dog to sit, stand, turn around, and lie down comfortably. Make the crate a positive experience for your dog. Place a few treats inside and/or feed him/her meals in the crate. Leave your dog in the crate only for short periods of time so he/she will learn that he/she is not being left there indefinitely. Your dog will eventually learn that crate time is quiet time for snoozing, and will retreat there on his/her own. Dogs like the security that a crate provides. When a dog is resting in his/her crate, he/she should not be disturbed. Upon returning home, take your dog outside immediately. When he/she goes to the bathroom give him/her a lot of praise for a job well done!
• Housebreaking: Don't allow your new dog to have full freedom to roam the whole house. Supervised freedom will enable you to catch "accidents" immediately. When you catch your dog "in the act" scold quickly and take him/her outside. Give a lot of praise when your dog relieves him/herself in the appropriate place. Never hit your dog for a housebreaking accident. It is useless to scold your dog after the fact. A good rule is to take your new dog out frequently, especially after meals and naps, and to try to be consistent with your schedule. This will help you to catch your dog going in an appropriate place, and give you a frequent opportunity to praise your dog.
• Manners: Discourage begging. Never feed your dog from the table. If you want to give your dog a special treat, or some of your leftovers, just add a bit to his/her regular meal.
• The "Come" Command: Never call your dog to come to you, and then yell at him/her for a bad behavior. You always want it to be a positive experience when your dog comes to you, or he/she will learn very quickly not to come when called.
• Barking: Barking is a natural behavior, but excessive and constant barking should be discouraged. Take an empty soda can, put a few coins inside, and tape the top. Shake when the dog barks. Clanging pot tops together like cymbals also works.

• Grooming: Make grooming a positive experience for your dog. Get your dog used to being handled by frequently and gently touching his/her paws, looking at teeth, and checking ears. Praise your dog when he/she allows you to do these things without pulling away. Your dog will learn not to be frightened by this behavior. This will greatly assist your veterinarian in conducting an exam, as well as enable you to handle your dog should he/she become sick or injured. Groom your dog regularly, or take him/her to a professional groomer. Ears should be cleaned, nails clipped, teeth brushed, anal glands expressed, and the coat washed and combed. Matting is painful for your dog. A well-groomed dog looks and feels so much better.
  

Click here for training information.

Process

1. Adoption Application

The purpose of the adoption application is first to determine if a potential adopter is physically, emotionally, and financially able to accept the responsibility and lifetime commitment of adopting a dog. Second, to determine responsible ownership practices, and lastly, to determine if the potential adopter can meet the needs of a specific dog.

2. Telephone Interview

This enables TTR to further assess the potential adopter, as well as to answer any specific questions about the dog.

3. Personal Interview and Meet the Dog

Positive interaction between the potential adopter and the dog is crucial.

4. Reference Check

Three personal references and a veterinary reference will be called to help assess the potential adopter.

5. Home Visit

This allows TTR to see the environment where the dog will be residing. This includes a safety check of any fencing or terrace/deck railing, if applicable. The dog may be brought to the potential adopter’s home for a trial visit, as well as for a preliminary introduction to any other household pets.

6. Pre-placement Visit

A pre-placement stay is frequently recommended for a period of approximately one week. This allows TTR to see how the dog adjusts to his/her new environment, as well as to determine if the dog can appropriately and safely interact with any resident pets.

7. Sign Contract

The adoption contract is a legally binding agreement designed to protect the health and welfare of the dog for his/her lifetime.

8. Adoption Donation

The donation helps to defray the costs of procurement, general care (feeding, grooming, flea and tick treatment), supplies (collars, leashes, harnesses, bedding, sweaters, wee-wee pads), veterinary care (vaccinations, heartworm testing and monthly prevention, spaying and neutering, teeth cleaning, medication, special care for dogs with serious or chronic conditions), and the microchip. It is important to understand that the adoption donation rarely covers the expenses incurred in preparing a dog for adoption.

Does your employer have a matching gift program? If so, we may be eligible to receive a donation equal to your adoption donation.

9. Vaccination/Health Records

All available health information, including the rabies tag, will be provided to the new owner.

10. Microchip

The microchip will be registered by TTR in the new owner’s name when the adoption is finalized.

11. Follow-up and Aftercare Services

The new owner will be called periodically to check on the dog’s adjustment. This can include follow-up home visits if necessary. TTR also remains available to assist with any questions or problems that may arise.

Policies

• The behavior of each dog will be evaluated as well as is reasonably possible. The potential adopter will be advised of all known health and behavioral issues prior to adoption. However, the history of most rescued dogs is unknown. A description of behavior while in foster care is a good indicator of future behavior, but it is not a guarantee. TTR does not, and can not guarantee the future health or behavior of any dog.
• Efforts will be made to teach each dog basic manners, to be socialized with people and dogs, to be crate trained, and to be housebroken and/or paper-trained.
• Each dog will be provided with a collar, harness, leash, and sweater if needed.
• Each dog will be vaccinated by a licensed veterinarian. Each dog will be tested for heartworm and started on monthly prevention. Teeth cleaning and any additional veterinary care will be provided as needed.
• Each dog will be spayed or neutered, unless age or health prevents this by the time of adoption. A spay/neuter agreement must be signed if a dog is not altered by the time of adoption.
• Each dog will receive a microchip. The chip will be registered by TTR in the new owner’s name when the adoption is finalized.
• If the prior owner is known to TTR, his/her personal information will not be shared with the new owner, and the new owner’s personal information will not be shared with the prior owner.
• Each dog will be groomed prior to adoption. However, recent spay/neuter surgery may prevent bathing.

Return Policy

If despite best efforts a successful match/transition is not made, TTR is willing to take a dog back at any time during his/her lifetime. If the dog is returned within one month of the final adoption, the adoption donation will be returned in full if requested. If the dog is returned at anytime during his/her lifetime, one-half of the adoption donation will be returned if requested. If a refund is not requested, the adoption donation will be considered a voluntary contribution towards the continued care of the dog, and towards TTR’s charitable work of rescuing, rehabilitating, and rehoming dogs.

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