31) FOR * ALL * RESCUE DOGS: Should You Ever Need To Surrender Your Dog Or Pet... 🚩 Lessons To Be Learnt From The Allegations Surrounding "Save A Paw UK" 🚩 ...
- alexpatchworkpaws
- 9 hours ago
- 9 min read
As reported by the media last week, you've probably heard about the alleged, very distressing situation unfolding in Essex, U.K., re: the training, rehabilitation & rehoming / rescue centre called "Save A Paw UK".
Whilst we're not going to discuss the details about this ongoing case here (we'll leave that to the media); this case does highlight some very important issues that we feel warrant further discussion.
During our previous blogs, we have already spoken at length about how to choose a good & reputable rescue to adopt from & how to carefully choose a new dog. We've also spoken a lot about the need to do your own independent research & exercise due diligence, all in order to make your best informed decisions, all round. Similarly, this kind of mindset needs to be applied when seeking out a place to surrender your dog.
We've also previously focussed on where you see you & your family in the future - one, five, ten, fifteen, & twenty years down the line. You've given consideration to any planned or possible predicted changes - house moves, job changes, & growing your family.
Sometimes, though, things do happen that are beyond our control or could not have been predicted...
What happens if you really must surrender your dog?
We already know that the U.K. rescues are in crisis owing to Covid "lock down pets" being surrendered to rescue, after life going back to "normal", made worse by the continuing cost of living crisis. U.K. rescues are literally full & bursting. This means that rescue space is very hard to come by.
In previous blogs, we have talked about the necessity to adopt a dog from a rescue who offers full R.B.U. (rescue back up). This means the rescue will help & support you after adoption, & for the life of the dog. This also means that they will take the dog back, if necessary, to rehome, in the event that you can no longer care for them. This is obviously the ideal scenario & the route that we would encourage you all to take. Always adopt from a reputable rescue who offers full R.B.U., just in case the worst happens! 🙏
But, what happens if the rescue you originally adopted from is no longer operating? Or, you adopted from a rescue who doesn't offer R.B.U.? Or, you purchased your dog from a breeder, who won't consider taking the dog back? Essentially, it's now your responsibility to carefully find your dog a new home or rescue placement. 🙏
The first important consideration is, is your dog spayed or neutered? This might seem like an odd thing to consider but nobody wants to see their beloved pooch used in an endless cycle of breeding. If your dog ended up with a breeder, that could be their life, if they're not spayed or neutered. Not all breeders are very ethical, sadly. So, please get your dog spayed or neutered before you actively rehome them.
Also, please don't give your dog, or any other pet, away for free or too cheaply. If you do, your very beloved dog or pet could end up being used for nefarious purposes, such as dog fighting, or end up being used as live feed for a pet snake. A very upsetting outcome for the pet you love.
With all of this in mind, you should also consider not advertising your dog online or privately. Some unscrupulous people will keep an eye on rehoming posts for nefarious purposes. They will also be very convincing & try to fool you into handing over your beloved pet. They might send you photos & videos which aren't a true reflection of how your dog will live. They might concoct heartwarming stories to tug on your heart strings. But, in reality, your dog might become involved in dog fighting or endless breeding, or similar, if they're not spayed or neutered.
The only safest way to rehome your dog is via a reputable rescue. But, as the "Save A Paw UK" alleged case, potentially, highlights, this isn't without its difficulties.
How do you know who to trust? Should you listen to word of mouth recommendations?
First things first. In England & Wales (Scotland has a similar system, too) there is a difference between a Registered Charity (with a checkable charity number, who will also be registered at Companies House) a Non-Profit with registration at Companies House, & a Non-Profit or Unincorporated Association without any sort of registration. For you, the latter two types mean that there is absolutely no transparency in operations, from a financial point of view. Anyone can set something up as a Non-Profit or Unincorporated Association & it's largely unregulated.
However, it must be noted here that, having any sort of registration, doesn't necessarily mean that a rescue can automatically be trusted, either. Regardless of what your registration search brings up, it is still important to do your own independent research carefully & fully - effectively researching your way to peace of mind.
So, what next... What "Save A Paw UK" has, potentially, shown us is that you cannot take anyone at face value nor can you fully trust recommendations. Just because someone has, seemingly, had a good experience, doesn't necessarily mean that you or your dog will. Obviously, feedback, reviews & references have their value but we must always remember that they are subjective.
We would strongly encourage you to view the website of any rescue you are considering, together with any social media channels they might have. Read all available information to evaluate how their organisation is run, what their mission statement states, & what goals & objectives they have set themselves. Look at how professional they appear & how they interact with people online.
We would also suggest that you look at their transparency, as far as finances & donations are concerned. Transparency is key to trust.
You might also like to establish what you will receive in the way of updates for your surrendered dog, progress reports, photos & videos, & how often, etc.
Moreover, we would strongly advise you to physically go & visit anywhere where your dog will be placed, before you agree to handing them over. "Save A Paw UK" was, allegedly, being operated from a bungalow in a residential area, neither the property nor the garden area was set up appropriately for the nature of this business. This is an obvious red flag & it's also an obvious check that we can make ourselves.
Similarly, refusal to facilitate a visit should be regarded as a red flag. You are quite in your rights to visit first. Nobody here would consider renting or buying a house without having a look first (maybe you'll even look twice). Food for thought.
With all of this in mind, please make sure that you are given the right address to visit. Any reputable rescue will provide official paperwork & contracts, in order to facilitate the surrender process. Such paperwork should highlight important details such as the organisation's name / the name of the person in charge, address details, & other contact details. This should all tally up with their online details, too. Again, please make sure that these details all match.
Physically visiting also means that you can ask many questions about the rescue, face-to-face, which the rescue should be more than willing to answer in an open & professional manner. Their answers should also be consistent with all of the information given online. You might, for example, like to discuss their day-to-day operations - "a day in the life of..." - to ascertain daily feeding & cleaning routines, exercise & enrichment, etc.; whilst having a look for yourself, assessing welfare standards, & evaluating how happy & healthy other dogs appear, onsite.
You might like to talk about their policies & procedures (which you should also be given access to, in writing). Specifically, you might like to establish how thorough their adoption application process is & also how thoroughly they check the applicant & their home, etc. Furthermore, you could ask them about their performance figures, in terms of successful adoptions 'v' failed adoptions, & what their performance criteria is for a successful adoption. In addition, do they offer full R.B.U. to their adopters?
Physically visiting also allows you the chance to meet the staff &/or volunteers onsite, too, & you can assess how knowledgeable & experienced they are. For example, do they have any training, certification or qualifications? Does animal welfare seem to be important to them?
If, after conducting all of these checks & visiting them, you still have any concerns or unanswered questions about how the rescue is running or conducting itself, no matter how desperate you are... walk away!
Some red flags include: a general lack of transparency or vagueness to do with any part of the running of their operations, no R.B.U. is being offered to their adopters (so there is no real commitment to the future of your dog), they have a high rate of failed adoptions, their processes & procedures don't appear to be thorough enough (particularly in regards to adoption applications, home checks, R.B.U. etc.) the rescue does not appear to be very professional in their conduct, the rescue premises appear uncared for &/or cleanliness doesn't appear to be a high priority, &/or the animals onsite were found to be in a poorer than expected general condition, neglected &/or in need of medical treatment. This list is by no means exhaustive but you get the general idea. It's up to you to ensure your dog or pet is going to the best place possible, with the highest chance of going to another decent & loving home, for the rest of their life.
Please walk away, if you have any alarm bells, at all!
As you've probably also read or seen, on the news, the former owners & rescues, who had dogs at "Save A Paw UK", are absolutely mortified about what has, potentially, happened to their dogs. They are, so far, left not knowing where their dogs are or if they are even alive, at all. 😔 This is the most upsetting outcome & breach of trust, & we are so sad for everyone involved. This should never have happened!
We don't want to see this happen to anyone here or anyone reading this particular blog article.
We hope that this guidance will help you to find somewhere decent to place your dog, should the worst happen (& we sincerely hope that you will never need to).
In the meantime, we can only hope for better regulation in rescue. 🙏 Sending love & prayers out to the universe & to anyone who needs it. 🙏
**** PLEASE NOTE: To our knowledge, all information provided here is current as of the publication date, which is the 19th May 2025, & is provided strictly as a GUIDELINE.
We have done our best to include as much relevant information as possible, but we cannot be held responsible for any errors or inaccuracies found here, or indeed any accidentally missed information.
We also recommend that you conduct your own additional research.
This blog is purely provided as a general guidance resource & we don't profess to be experts in this area. We apologise in advance for any errors or inaccuracies found here or any accidental missed information. ****
Please feel free to post in the comments section below, should you feel we have missed off any important information that others might find useful. We welcome your comments & feedback.
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Pictured is gorgeous boy, Ollie-Bob, just a few short days after he joined us, in 2021. 🥰
