well said!

I agree 100%. As a person who helps with rescue and has 2 rescue myself, some of these statements are frustrating.

Great post Jessica!

I'm going to add one more for those in California
http://www.shibarescue.net/

I have a rescued Kai right now that was accidentally mistaken for a Shiba, well not so much mistaked as there are no Kai rescues, and I got her from Red at the No. California Shiba Inu Rescue. He has I believe 6 foster Shibas right now looking for homes and dogs always coming in.

Other Shiba rescues:

Northern Nevada Shiba Rescue, run by Jack Owens, email: my3shibas@gmail.com, web: http://www.myshibainu.com/

Southern California, contact Michelle Balestrieri, mbalestrieri4@sbcglobal.net

Can we post this thread as a sticky please? I think that it would be useful and informative. Not only does it state in a clear, precise, and in my opinion, non-inflammatory way why so many object to non-ethical breeders, puppy mills, etc. but it's also a great resource for a number of good rescues across the country.

Great post Jess!

This is all good information but I still have a hard time with it... just my opinion

If someone is interested in doing the research by all means feel free. When I created this thread it was not created as a rescue resource but more an opportunity to clarify that BUYING a dog is not rescuing or adopting and calling it that is in poor taste.

I personally don't gauge my monetary donations by their tax deductibility but by the work the organization does for the cause. If I can write it off I see that as a nice bonus.

Heh... At this point in my life, I hardly earn nor am able to donate enough where a tax deduction would benefit me very much. But having worked on the development side of a 501(c)e before, and seeing the flood of sizable donations that come in right before the end of the calendar year from folks asking them to be cashed immediately for proper tax credit, I know that it does matter to some people.

I don't mean to hijack the thread or anything. It seemed that discussion was starting to move towards a listings of good rescue groups, and as this is the only sticky related to rescue, this seemed like a good place to add the information. I got to thinking about this when I was trying to figure out all the regional shiba-specific rescues and how they may (or may not) be related. For example, there's the "National Shiba Inu Rescue" resource online, of course, and they seem very comprehensive and great and well-networked with MSIR, but I was stumbling across all these other smaller groups in Central Florida, Colorado, the ones listed above, etc. that seemed to fall through their cracks. It just got confusing to me.

Anyway, I would be interested in pulling together such a list/spreadsheet. Give me a few days, and I'll post my findings for feedback. I got something rough, but haven't posted it because it's not complete and keep getting sidetracked with other project... Please keep adding to the list here!

For those is Canada there is rescue in Toronto
http://www.shibarescuegta.com/
Toronto was too far for me to go so I headed south and found my Shiba through Dogs Deserve Better and a Humane Society in Southern MN.

Just want to post saying new shiba inu owners or or soon to be shiba owners please read this sticky! It's important.

Many shelters/SPCAs maintain lists of people looking for a particular breed and will notify folks if the desired breed comes into the shelter. So if you're looking for a Shiba, contact your local shelters and leave your name with them!

The adoption coordinators at NYCSR have been ridiculously busy lately. I am sure they would love to get with you, but sometimes things get lost in the shuffle. Give them a call when you get a chance and leave a voice message if no one answers with a call back number that you can be reached (such as a cell number, so you are not playing phone tag). Their number is (917) 591-3408.

The girls at NYCSR are incredibly awesome. Several forum members have worked with them for various things (I have fostered and done transports for them).

zoezoe - I'm not sure if you've heard anything yet... but when your application is received, they review all of it (could take a small amount of time - we're all volunteers!) and then they call your references. Depending on how long the references take to respond, they also call your vet reference.

Then they put a call out to see if they have a volunteer to do a home visit. This also might take some time to find someone.

Sometimes these things take time but hopefully they at least can communicate the process with you if you had questions in the meantime!

Hi all! I was supposed to get a puppy but the breeder turned out to be shady so it fell through and I was heartbroken. See "sad news no puppy". Then I read through this thread and I'm proud to say that I was just placed with Lucas. A beautiful dog that's being fostered by Mitch at Nj shiba rescue. See "adopted a shiba (spam)". Thanks for opening my eyes to rescues and I'm the most thankful!!

Hi,

If anyone knows of a rescue program in Western Australia please PM me. I am willing to spend some time helping out with placements and potentially fostering.

-R

@jenna Thumbs up!!!
That revamped site looks great too.

@shibamistress - Yes, the "other groups and independent rescuers" portion of the list does include some small groups and individuals and they are listed as such - like Jack Owens in NV.

Bumped for awesomeness!

I miss you @jessicarabbit.

Very well said, Jessica!

I bet this is a really stupid question, but do we have a lot of big puppy mills in the UK? I know we got our puppy from a responsible breeder (we did a lot of research, they're Kennel Club approved, we visited lots, they only bred the one litter to improve the breed, they held one back for showing etc. they had hundreds of awards for their Shiba, all the health tests showed to us of both parents and lineage etc.etc)
I've never seen anything larger than a rabbit in a pet shop, I would be really shocked to see puppies or even kittens there (seems so wrong!) I'm sure we must have puppy mills but I think we have more backyard breeders than anything. I've never stumbled across a UK website that looks like a puppy mill either, just obviously irresponsible people.
I'm just wondering if there are any known ones in the UK?

It is important to remember that education is everything. I know all of us were once ignorant to the trickery of dishonest bybs and the inhumane corporate scum that is a puppy mill. I think it is so great that more and more people are becoming aware of irresponsible breeding and staying away from it. And more people are rescuing. Its the beginning of the end for mills. I hope we continue to go down this road in the right direction.

I'm always subconsciously on the offense once someone tells me about the puppy or kitten they got from a Craigslist breeder, or a pet store because they didn't want to go through the trouble of finding a good "cheap" breeder, or because they were turned off by the idea of a "broken" rescue pet. But I make myself remember that not everyone's intentions are selfish or ill-willed. That some people are not educated or don't have the same resources I do. There was a period where I was repeatedly rejected by rescues when I was trying to get my cat. My age, income, work schedule and the fact that I rent were all not ideal to them. So instead I searched and found a good breeder whom I corresponded with for over a month prior to and almost a year after getting my girl.

While I personally cannot see why one would knowingly buy from a mill, store, or byb, I know not to pass judgement. Like the OP stated, I have no right to judge someone I don't know, no matter how wrong it seems. I do hope this thread helps to further educate people of the difference between rescuing and enabling. And also to discourage people from making that mistake in the future.

GREAT thread!

Nice bump!!

I posted this in another thread, but it belongs here. Specifically on communicating what it means to rescue a dog vs get a rescue dog:

I think part of the "fights" that break out stem from the meaning of the word rescue:

I interpret the word rescue to mean "to save from something bad"

Animal people interpret it to mean "to take in an animal from a rescue organization".

Using the former definition, I consider my dog to be rescued, but not a rescue (if that makes sense).

Put another way.... my guy came from a mini-mill. He was past his "cute" stage and would probably have been a breeder stud, spent his life in a crate, or been put down. I rescued him from a life he most certainly didn't deserve and brought him to a life where he is pampered and loved on his worst days (even if I did pay money for him).

He is not a rescue in that he didn't come from a rescue organization. Did I rescue my dog from a bad fate? Yes. Is he a rescue? No.

I think many people confuse the two words and the confusion is where the "hostility" arises.

There is rescue (the verb) and a rescue (the noun). I wouldn't buy another dog the way I did this one, but if I saw a dog at a mill that I could purchase for $200 because he wasn't cute enough anymore, you better believe I would consider my act a "rescue" from his awaiting fate. (lets assume my dog would be tolerant of him, etc.).

Does that make sense?

So to answer your question on how to phrase it.....

"While it is commendable that you knowingly took in a dog who may have problems with the promise he will be treated right and loved and cared for, you should understand that rescuing a dog from a bad situation is not the same as a rescue dog. Your act perpetuated the puppy mill's economic cycle and as such is worse for dogs as a whole, even if it helped your dog. While your heart was in the right place (assuming in fact you won't abandon your bundle of fur if something becomes tough to handle), you can rescue an animal from the shelter and actually help another animal (the one who takes his place in the shelter) instead of hurting another animal (the one who the mill breeder will breed in hopes of profiting). That being said, what's done is done. Let's figure out how we can make your existing dog's life great for you, but more importantly, great for him"

Or something else my girlfriend would say to remind me to be nice =)