Type "poodle rescue" into an internet search engine,
and you'll come up with literally thousands of hits for all kinds
of poodle rescue organizations. If the poodle is such a smart,
sweet dog, why are so many of them homeless? There are many reasons.
Abuse and Neglect
The poodle might have been removed from the house by police or
animal protection officers after the owner abused or neglected.
The abuse or neglect may have created behavior problems in the
poodle, such as food aggression, making it doubly hard to adopt.
Runaways
Why anyone would spend several hundred dollars on a dog and not
take the precaution of having a cyber chip implanted to identify
it is a mystery, but many rescue poodles are found wandering in
the streets with no contact information about their owners available.
It's impossible to know whether the poodle was deliberately abandoned
or whether it got away from its owner and got lost.
Behavior Problems
Some owners give up their poodles due to behavior problems. Perhaps
the poodle isn't housebroken or perhaps it bites or barks constantly.
Owners are not always honest about why they are giving up their
dogs, so the person who adopts the poodle may have a nasty surprise
when they get it home and discover the problem for themselves.
Health Problems
Poodles are subject to some fairly serious genetic illnesses.
A dog with Addison's disease, for instance, requires costly hormone
injections every month. The owner might give up the dog because
he or she can no longer afford the vet bills.
Failed Breeding Plans
Sometimes owners buy a female poodle planning to breed it and
make money. When they realize that an amateur breeding makes little
if any money, they may become discouraged and give the poodle
up.
Other times a female poodle will get pregnant through design
or mistake and the owner gives the puppies up for adoption because
he or she can't find good homes for them.
Failed Show Plans
Some owners buy a purebred poodle hoping to show it. They don't
realize that the fact that a poodle is purebred does not automatically
make it a show dog. In fact, the vast majority of purebred poodles
have minor defects that keep them from becoming AKC champions.
These dogs still make excellent pets, but if the owner is more
interested in a champion than a pet, he or she may surrender the
dog after learning it will never be a prize winner.
Owner Problems
Sometimes the poodle becomes homeless through no fault of its
own. Perhaps its owners divorce, or move away, or have a baby
and feel they can no longer manage a pet, or simply get bored
with the full time responsibility of having a poodle.
Often, people buy poodles because poodle puppies are so adorable.
They may get the puppy without adequately researching the breed.
The time and attention raising a poodle takes catches them off
guard.
If you are considering poodle rescue or poodle adoption, it's
important to find out as much as you can about why the poodle
was surrendered to a rescue organization. In fact, not asking
the right questions is one of the top
ten poodle rescue mistakes.
Attention: To discover how
YOU can have the Happiest, Healthiest and Best Behaved Poodle,
get a copy of this Poodle Guide
NOW!
