Conditions of Rehoming
General:
Please note that we cannot be certain of the history of any of our animals. If you are successful in your application to visit the particular animal you are applying for we will tell you everything we know or have found out during their time with us. The details on our website are a brief summary and will be updated as we learn more. If it does not say something it does not mean it is or is not true. For example if there is no mention of cats that does not mean they can live with cats or visa versa. If a particular aspect of the animal's behaviour is essential to your application please either ring to check beforehand or state in your application form.
After reading the animals needs if you feel you are able to offer the type of home the animal is looking for please complete an application form. When appropriate to do so we will contact you to arrange an appointment at the kennels. Depending on how many applications we receive we may not be able to get back to everyone. Please remember it takes time to work through applications, and organise appointments, and while we try to get things moving within two weeks it is not always possible. If you have not heard from us within a couple of weeks we really don't mind a polite phone call. We do not allow general look around the kennels unless on one of our Official Open Days which are held throughout the year and we no longer allow any access to our dog kennels. These will be advertised on our website and on our Facebook page. Please do not turn up at the kennels unless you have a confirmed appointment as your journey will be wasted, you will not be able to come in and you will have taken time away from the animals.
Please note as a minimum we will need proof of ID and address before anyone can take a dog out for a walk. All owners must be over 21 years of age.
Our rehoming area
Our normal rehoming area for dogs and the majority of cats includes: Berwick and up to 15 miles from Berwick. We may be able to rehome pets to Alnwick, Bamburgh, Belford, Duns, Eyemouth, Galashiels, Kelso, Wooler. It is difficult for us to cover areas further afield when it comes to dogs. Please consider carefully whether it is appropriate to apply for a dog if you come from outside these areas. For example if we were to have young animals in or a dog with no issues or much sought-after breeds, you can imagine how many applications we will get in, it is unlikely an application from outside our area will do anything other than hold up the rehoming process for the animal. A phone call or dropping us an email before you fill in our application will allow us to give you an idea if it is appropriate to apply. Our priority is being able to offer support to new owners and our animals in new homes and when it comes to dogs we have found keeping the majority of them closer to the kennels is generally more beneficial. Kittens need to be fairly close and within easy travelling distance of a Galedin Vets but if cats have had all treatment necessary and wont need ongoing support we might consider rehoming further afield, please give us a quick ring. Please also note that occasionally there are certain areas we are unable to rehome a particular animal to within our normal catchment area. This is generally due to where the animal came from. For some animals we have an extended rehoming area for a variety of reason, this will be detailed on their specific webpage.
For our smaller animals (rabbits, guineas, rats, gerbils, degus etch) subject to the animal having received any health checks/treatments, we can consider rehoming further afield. Photos/videos and anything that will support your application in these cases can be attached to our application form. If in doubt always give us a quick ring before applying.
We do not reserve animals until seen. Far too many people don't turn up for appointments and this puts the animals at risk of not finding good homes. We like appointments to be in the next couple of days after we contact you. At which point we will temporary hold the animal for you, but this is not guarantee that we will rehome to your or that you will be the right home for the animal. We may also invite more than one person in to see an animal. We would ask that you consider the needs of the animals we have in our care. Thank you
Things to consider
Why do you want a pet? Pets may be with you for many years. If the pet is for a child, how long will that child remain interested and when that interest has worn off are you prepared to give the pet the attention it will continue to need?
Do you want an animal that is house trained? All animals will take time to settled, All our animals are treasures in waiting.
Do you want a small or young dog? So does everyone else. Please consider that 99 times out of a 100 the dogs are in rescue for a reason related to their behaviour.
Are you about to have a life changing event? Moving home, new baby – this is not the time to get a new pet. Please consider very carefully rehoming any animal if you have a child under 6 months. Sadly we receive a lot of animals from homes with babies of this age. Often youngsters do get rashes, breathing issues etc, one of the first things health professionals ask is if there are any animals in the home. Their recommendation is often to rehome the animals.
Are you going on holiday in the next four months? If so and you are interested in getting a dog, please contact us when you come back off holiday.
Are you going on holiday next week? Please don't apply until you get back.
Can you afford a pet? Have you considered insurance and if not how would you pay for an unexpected emergency. Are you prepared to maintain a parasite control program, and one that works? Vaccinations must be carried out yearly and in some cases 6 monthly. Our animals are not eligible for cover under the PDSA scheme. Have you taken into account our minimum adoption fee, which is far less than the cost of routine veterinary treatment.
How many hours are you planning on leaving the animal alone? Is this an appropriate length of time?
How much time do you have for the animal, sun, wind, rain and snow?
Have you read the needs of the animal?
We strongly advised all dogs are enrolled in at least a 6 week training class for their and your benefit.
What will you do with your pet while on holiday? If using a boarding facility do you know a local facility and do you know the costs?
Don’t expect to take an animal home the first time you come to us, it doesn't often happen. Once we have all agreed the right animal for you, including any necessary home checks which may be done in person, via vet reference, videos, photos and google maps. We would ask that your new pet joins you within the next 4 days.
We do not allow any of our animals to go as a surprise.
You must be over 21 to adopt an animal from BARK.
We do not rehome to homes with children under 12 months, or homes that anticipate a pregnancy, adoption or fostering of a child in the next year.
We know this can be frustrating, but sadly our experience is a high number of surrenders are due to having children in a home under a year or occur when life returns to normality after that first year, going back to work etc.
We ask for an adoption fee for all our animals. This is non-refundable and does not cover even the basic costs of the animals in our care. We may request a £20 deposit on agreed reservation and is non-refundable in the event you no longer decide to rehome the animal. Generally this adoption fee does not cover even the basic costs of BARK for the adopted animal. Please consider an extra donation. Thank you!
On collection of your new pet the adoption fee is payable and you will be required to sign our adoption rehoming conditions. This includes in the event a rehoming fails, for any reason, you must contact us to arrange an appointment to return the animal into our care. The animal must not be given to a third party without our prior consent.
All our dogs and cats and rabbits must be neutered, breeding is not allowed from any of our animals for any reason, and vaccinated. If these procedures are not carried out before the animal leaves us they must be carried out at the earliest opportunity and proof provided. If the procedures are carried out at Galedin, who have branches at Berwick-upon-Tweed, Coldstream, Kelso, Galashiels, Eyemouth and Duns, we will provide a voucher that will cover the entire cost. These costs will not be covered at any other vets.
All dogs and cats require regular worming, additional treatments (including for rabbits) flea treatments, a yearly health check-up and booster vaccinations. Please check with your vet for the approximate costs of these. Vets do offer health care plans (which cover the basics described in this paragraph no emergencies) and are worth looking into.
All animals must be registered with a vet on going home.
All dogs and cats will come with four weeks free insurance with Pet Plan. On a policy issued at kennels all animals are covered for ill health and accident from day one (excluding any pre-existing conditions). It is highly recommended that this cover is continued.
All animals are vet checked. However there may be undetected health problems that occur and you agree to cover the cost of these. If there are any problems in the first two weeks please contact us immediately.
We will advise of all known health and behavioural issues. However, due to the nature of rescue, there may be problems that are undetected. You agree to contact us immediately in the event you have any concerns within the first 14 days. All our dogs and cats come with a 28 day free insurance policy which will cover for ill health (excluding pre-existing conditions) and injury from day one. Continuation of this cover, subject to policy conditions, will ensure help with vet bills in the future for any unknown conditions at time of adoption. We offer life time back up to all our animals. We often know very little about the animals. Unless we have history of adult dogs living with cats we are very unlikely to rehome with cats. If dogs are suitable to go with cats this will usually be listed on their description but always ask as we learn more about them as time goes on. Similarly when rehoming with children we need to be confident that it is correct for both animal and family.
In the event of any animal needing to come back to us you agree you will make arrangements to bring the animal back at an appointed time. We cannot collect.
All animals come with a voucher for 10% off your first purchase at Direct Pets instore
Reasons why you may not hear from us
Did you read our rehoming conditions and does your application reflect those?
Have you surrendered an animal to us within the last 2 years or made several surrenders over the past 10 years. While BARK will always offer rescue back up we have to consider the longevity of the placement for the benefit of the animals.
Have you unrealistic expectations of our animals - house training being the main one?
Are you in our rehoming area? Although we can sometimes rehome animals outside our area this is at the discretion of the manager and any applications that have not confirmed this before applying are unlikely to be progressed further.
Have you read the needs of the animals, for example can't go with children of a certain age and your application does not reflect the correct home for the animal?
Please also consider some animals are hugely popular on occasions so many applications are received it is time consuming to contact everyone. We thank you for your understanding.
Dogs
We carry home suitability checks for all our dogs either in the form of visits, videos, google earth, vet reference or other methods for all our dogs. For this reason our normal rehoming area for dogs is within a 15 mile area of the kennels. Occasionally, subject to the dog having had all vaccinations and veterinary treatment, this area can be extended and if we have a home checker that covers that area although sometimes it may not be possible to place particular animals in those areas due to support we believe necessary. Please note all home checks are carried out by volunteers. We are currently limiting our area for operational reasons but if you are just outside our areas, or those listed below please contact us before applying (40 miles is likely to be too far).
We may be able to cover additional including Alnwick, Seahouses, Rothbury, Morpeth, Hawick. Please note that when a home check takes place we base this on the suitability of your home and lifestyle (not the décor!). Please ensure the home is as it will be when you take the dog (eg if you plan to put up a fence it must be in place at time of home check). Please note this is subject to a variety of restraints we may be under at the time. Please be patient, we are trying our best.
All pet dogs by law must wear a collar and tag at all times with a minimum of your name and address. This must be in place on collection of one of our dogs. All our dogs are microchipped and details will be updated to the new owner together with BARK’s contact details, you should receive and email confirmation, if not please give us a ring. It then becomes the owner’s responsibility to keep these details up-to-date at all times (and within 21 days of any change). Failure to do so at best will result in a fine, at worst will result in the permanent loss of your dog.
All dogs, unless previously agreed, in writing, must be kept as a house dog.
If you have another dog arrangements must be made for them to visit the centre and meet any possible new dog under supervision, there will need to be at least one handler, 21 or over, for each dog. This cannot be done on the first visit.
On collection your dog you will need an identification tag, collar, lead and food (we will advise on his/her current diet).
Cats
All our cats are vaccinated, neutered, deflead and wormed as appropriate. We have always microchipped our cats as this offers extra protection for your cat should it be found as a stray. This is now the law and heft fines are in place in the event the details are not kept up to date. We will transfer the microchip details to the new owner and it then becomes the owners responsibility to keep these details up-to-date at all times
If you have a genuine interest in one of our cats we will arrange for you to view them.
We rarely allow our cats to go to new homes the same day they are seen. While we do not carry out home checks for our cats, we may ask for a vet reference, photos or videos as we feel appropriate. We do need proof of address and details of which vet you will be registered with.
On collecting your new cat you will need a cat box (plastic not card), litter and tray, bed and food (we will advise on his/her current diet)
All cats, unless previously agreed in writing, must be allowed, after a suitable time, access to both inside and outside areas. We do not allow our cats to be kept as house cats only.
To adopt a cat from us we will need to be sure he/she will be safe when he/she is finally let out (most cats should be kept in from a minimum of 3 weeks). We do not rehome our cats as house only cats.. All cats must (subject to minimum above and neutering must have taken place) have easy access to outside. We expect our cats to have access to home comforts in their home at all times. The exceptions being known feral or semi feral cats where alternative house is required. We will also need proof of address and details of your vet.
Small 'Furries' and Birds
To adopt any small animals (rabbit, guinea pigs etc) or birds from us we will need to see as a minimum photographs of his/her living accommodation and the garden, along with sizes. We do not accept photos of the cage your are going to buy, although we can advise on suitability, confirmation of suitable accommodation being available within a reasonable period of time we will reserved the animals while you take delivery and are able to provide photographs, proof of address and details of your vet.
We would strongly recommend consulting the Rabbit Welfare Association, especially their page on correct housing Rabbit Welfare Association & Fund (RWAF). We do not allow our rabbits to go to hutch only accommodation.
Please consider the size of the accommodation for your rabbit. Double hutches although they appear "large" by the time you take out the area missing to get to the other floor and the ramp taking up the floor space there isn't much room left and we do not rehome rabbits to this type of accommodation. Two average sized rabbits need access to a minimum of 2 m x 3m at all times. This is the equivalent of MORE than 4 single beds. There are no exceptions to these standards
All our rabbits are microchipped, neutered, vaccinated and wormed as appropriate.
If you are getting one rabbit to bond with another, both must be neutered. There must be a minimum of 8 weeks between neutering and introductions. All our rabbits must go in minimums of pairs or to go to become part of a minimum of a pair.
Under no circumstances do we allow rabbits and guinea pigs to be housed together.
Guinea pigs must also be minimum same sex pairs, unless extenuating circumstances. Although they do not necessarily need the same area as rabbits, commercially available hutches are not a good choice. A shed or similar is a good starting point.
Reptiles and birds. Please contact us to discuss their housing requirements before putting in an application form.
We will use your personal data only when legally permitted to enable us to perform the contract between us, where we need to comply with a legal or regulatory obligation or where it is necessary for our legitimate interest and where your interest and fundamental rights do not override these interests.