ADOPTION FEES:
| Animal |
Adoption Fee |
2nd Animal |
+Refundable Spay/Neuter Deposit |
| Baby Puppy |
$200 |
|
$100 |
| Older Puppy/Adult Dog (spayed/neutered) |
$250 |
|
|
| Special Needs Dog** |
$175 |
|
|
| Domestic Baby Kitten |
$75 |
$25 |
$100 |
| Exotic* Baby Kitten |
$125 |
|
$100 |
| Older Kitten/Young Adult Domestic Cat (spayed/neutered) |
$50 |
$25 |
|
| Domestic Adult Cat (2+ years old) |
$25 |
$15 |
|
| Exotic* Older Kitten/Adult Cat (Spayed/Neuter) |
$100 |
|
|
| Goat |
$50 |
|
|
| Other Small Animals |
varies |
|
|
+Spay/Neuter Deposit: This fee is refunded once the rescue receives documentation that the adopted animals has been spayed or neutered.
*Exotic Cat/Kitten: Has the markings or physical features of an exotic breed such as Siamese, Himalyan, or Persian.
**Special Needs Dog: Has physical or behavioral issues which may need special or continuing care in the present or near future.
General Applicant Criteria
Additional requirements may be determined using the judgment and experience of TreeTops representatives. Although our volunteers work with applicants to find a pet suitable to their situation, our primary responsibility is to find the best home possible for the FOSTER ANIMAL. These rules are there FOR THEM to get the homes they need. (See Additional Puppy Requirements below)
1. Applicants must provide proof of home ownership or written consent from the landlord to own a pet. Renters may be required to provide the name of someone who would care for the pet if they were unable to take the pet with them when they move.
2. Applicants must be at least 18 years old. Any applicant under 25 or above 65 is required to have a co-applicant between 30-65 willing to commit to care for the animal until its death if they are unable to.
3. Each application will be judged individually, but depending on the needs of the animal, applications may be denied based on the age or number of children in the home.
4. Applicants must have vet records showing ALL current and previous cats and dogs were given regular and appropriate vet care, including up-to-date vaccinations and spay/neuter. Indoor cats are required by law to be up to date on rabies vaccinations. Exceptions to spay/neuter for dogs or cats will only be accepted for AKC/CFA registered show animals.
5. Because we require home visit for dogs, our adoption area for them is restricted to a reasonable driving distance from Landenberg, PA 19350 (approximately 1 hour driving time - check mapquest) i.e. to nearby areas of PA and some closeby areas of our neighboring states MD, DE, and NJ. For other animals we can be more flexible.
6. For adoption of an adult dog, arrangements must be made for a potty break at least every 6 hours.
7. For adoption of a dog, a fenced yard is always preferred. Depending on the needs of the dog, a physical fence of a certain height, an invisible fence, or repairs or replacement of an existing fence may be required. A fence is ALWAYS required for adoption of any dog to a family with children. If you have children and do not currently have a fence, you must give us an installation date and a description of the kind of fence being installed.
ADDITIONAL PUPPY ADOPTION REQUIREMENTS
1. Applicants must own their own home. We will not adopt puppies to renters due to possible problems with landlords due to barking, damage, or growing to an unexpected size.
2. A fenced yard is required, and a physical fence is preferred. In some cases, an invisible fence will be accepted if the applicant has previously trained their current dog on an existing system or the puppy is old enough to be trained (6 months). If you have children and do not currently have a fence, you must give us an installation date and a description of the kind of fence being installed.
3. We follow the Humane Association Guidelines, which recommends that all children in the home should be 8 or older for adoption of a puppy. In some cases, we will accept an application from a family in which one child is younger than 8 if he/she already has experience living with a puppy or young dog.
4. For puppies below 6 months old, there must be an adult home during the day. For puppies 6-12 months old, an adult at home part time during the day may be acceptable.
ADOPTION PROCESS
This lengthy process ensures that our animals are placed in an appropriate forever home - a suitable match for each family and an environment in which the animal can thrive and grow. Each application is reviewed on an individual basis, but we reserve the right to use our judgment in declining any application that does not match our criteria and experience.
Step 1 Complete the Application
Please read our Adoption Policies BEFORE completing your application (Forms/Applications on the menu). If you do not meet our minimum criterion, your application will not be processed. ALL applicants must complete an application, and ALL questions on the application must be completely answered before we will begin processing your application. The information contained on the application is kept strictly confidential and used solely by TreeTops Representatives to determine adoption eligibility.
Step 2 Application Review
The application is pre-screened by TreeTops volunteers to check whether it meets the general adoption policy criteria and any additional conditions required for the particular animal applied for. Applicants may be contacted to provide additional information or explanations missing from the application. If it is determined that the application meets the criteria, veterinary and personal references WILL be checked. Applicants should have notified all references and given them permission to answer questions asked by TreeTops representatives. If the representative determines, in his/her sole discretion, that the application does not fit our criteria for any of our animals, the application will be declined. If the representative determines that your home is not a good fit for the animal you have applied for, you may be contacted regarding other animals that more closely match your interests, life style, and family environment, or referred to a different adoption agency.
NOTE: WE CANNOT HOLD/BOARD ANIMALS
If you, the applicant, are not able to adopt until after some future date due to planned trips, family or work obligations, etc, then the process will halt at this point and resume after you are ready and able to bring a new animal home. We cannot "hold" an animal for you when there are usually other applicants interested and ready to adopt now and other animals waiting in shelters to be saved as soon as we have room.
Step 3 The Interview
If the application has been approved, the applicant will be contacted, usually by the foster parents, to arrange a phone interview. If it appears to be a good fit, a visit will be arranged for the applicant and family to interact with the animal. All (human) members of the family must be present at this meeting. If either the applicant or a TreeTops representative determines that this is not a suitable match, you may be contacted regarding other animals that more closely match your interests, life style, and family environment or referred to a different adoption agency.
Step 4 The Home Visit
If the interview has gone well and been approved by all parties, arrangements will be made for a representative to inspect the applicant’s home. Supervised meetings of the rescue animal with any other existing pets will take place at this time. Once again, if either the applicant or a TreeTops representative determines that this is not a suitable match, you may be contacted regarding other animals that more closely match your interests, life style, and family environment or referred to a different adoption agency.
Step 5 Adoption
If all previous steps have been completed successfully, the applicant and the TreeTops representative will sign a contract listing the conditions of adoption (for example, the animal will be kept up to date on all shots and medical care, etc). The contract also states that if the applicant is unable or unwilling to fulfill the terms of the contract, and cannot keep or properly care for the animal, it MUST be surrendered back to TreeTops Animal Rescue.
Payment of the adoption fee in full must be made at this time. This fee is needed to help recover some of the costs that TreeTops Animal Rescue incurs while rescuing the animal from the shelter, fostering them in our homes, and providing them with excellent medical care, and to allow us to continue to rescue other animals. On average, the actual cost of caring for an animal is well above this fee.
Refund Policy: The adoption fee is only refundable if within two week after adoption the animal is diagnosed with a serious health problem that was not disclosed and could have been foreseen by TreeTops while the animal was in our care.
PRE-ADOPTION GOALS CHECKLIST
All animals are temperament tested before placing them in foster homes. All animals receive necessary age appropriate veterinary treatment, including:
- Testing, treatment, and preventatives for tick and flea born illnesses, intestinal worms, heartworm (dogs) and FeLV/FIV (cats)
- Vaccinations for Rabies, DHLPP & Bordatella (dogs), FVRCP (cats)
- Spaying and Neutering
- Microchipped
- All animals are bathed & groomed as needed, and fed a well-balanced diet to improve their health and appearance.
- All animals are re-socialized in our foster homes to become good family members. This includes work on:
For Dogs:
Crate Training
HouseTraining
Leash Training
House Manners (e.g. no counter surfing, no jumping on visitors, no mouthing
Basic commands (sit, stay, come, paw)
Meeting new people (including children)
Meeting new animals, including both dogs and cats
For Cats:
Using the litter box
Being picked up and petted
Being groomed
Meeting new people (including children)
Tolerating other animals
NOTE: These are our GOALS for our foster animals, however applicants must understand that each foster animal comes into rescue with a different background and needs, and our foster families are unpaid volunteers with jobs and families of their own. All animals are fully vetted but we cannot guarantee that all animals will have accomplished all of these behavioral and training goals within the limited time they spend in foster care.