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Adopting a rescue dog – Genie’s story
Adopting our rescue dog Genie from Romania has been a big part of our lives. We get lots of questions about it, so I decided to write it up here in case it’s useful to other people.
Searching for a rescue dog
When we were considering getting a dog, we were fairly open minded as to the particulars.
After much research, we knew we probably didn’t want a pure breed puppy as it’s an expensive proposition and we weren’t convinced we wanted all the months of sleepless nights, having had our fair share with our kids already!
We approached a couple of rescue charities in the UK who had lots of dogs we fancied but most of them said ‘not for families with children under 12’.
I eventually came across Romanian Rescue Appeal, a UK charity rescuing hundreds of dogs off the streets and fields of Romania and seeking fosterers/adopters in the UK. They rescue dogs that would otherwise be rounded up and shot without a second thought. And that’s the lucky ones.
I thought it was worth a try. We had already contacted a different Romanian rescue charity who – guess what – said they don’t re-home dogs to families with kids under the age of 12.
Romanian Rescue Appeal
We messaged via the website and got a lovely message back from the charity’s owner saying who to contact via their Facebook page.
We got a prompt reply about our query and a phone call soon followed. We were told we could look at dogs on the charity’s Facebook page and let them know what sort of dog we were looking for. They also said they’d be happy to help if they knew of any suitable dogs for us after they had taken our details.
After a week or two, we received a home check, but due to the UK’s full COVID-19 lock down it had to be virtual rather than in person. The ladies we spoke to were both very professional and helpful.
The charity representative didn’t ask hundreds of questions but did seek to understand our situation and that we knew what we were getting into. They wanted to make sure we understood our responsibilities and how they could offer support.
The rep made lots of helpful suggestions, including the suggestion to feed the dog on chicken and rice when they first came to help settle an upset tummy, and there would be no dog handover unless we had a sliplead (‘Rommies’ are notorious escape artists).
Once we had decided on a couple of dogs and one main contender, we told the charity our thoughts and they agreed the main contender would be suitable for us.
Getting ready for adopting a rescue dog
We chose the dog because she was young enough that we hoped she wouldn’t have any additional issues. She was rescued from the fields probably around 3 or 4 months old. We were sent some videos of the dog as well as plenty of photographs (see next two photos).
A week or so later we reserved Jane (now Genie) and were beginning to get excited. We started buying doggy stuff and settled down to wait until we heard transport was starting again (EU was in total lockdown for a month).
We had to read and sign an adoption contract and we were sent lots of written information as to what we might expect when our dog arrived.
We were told we didn’t have to pay until we knew exactly when Genie was coming. The charity asked for £320 to cover the pet passport, vaccinations, transport and food. The cost to us seemed very reasonable to me, knowing that that amount only just would cover costs to the charity and no more.
A week or so later I asked if there was a time they thought the dogs might be able to be transported again, to which they replied it had just started up, and Genie indeed had a place booked on the ‘happy bus’!
It all happened so quickly, it rather took us by surprise.
Unfortunately there was a delay due to lack of drivers one week, and delay the next due to the charity’s not realising that we lived in Scotland rather than England. Third time lucky, Genie set off on Thursday 4th June, the youngest at 8 months old amongst a group of about 26 other dogs from around Romania.
We had regular communication with the drivers via a Facebook chat, and we were able to see photos of the dogs on the journey and ask questions about how they were.
The drivers (and dogs!) were stuck for a full day in Calais waiting to be allowed on the Eurotunnel. It was a long weekend of waiting.
Genie eventually arrived at 3am on Monday morning, 8th June.
It had been an anxious night of wondering what time our ‘delivery’ would be. Just like having a baby, in fact! We didn’t know until the previous drop off had happened what our ETA would be.
The drivers were very good with giving us rough ETA along the route, as best they could, so I knew I was able to get some sleep earlier in the night and set an alarm for about 1.30am.
Settling in
When Genie arrived, she was brought to our door by the drivers (one wearing a face mask due to COVID-19). We had been told she’d probably be hungry and then just sleep/rest for a good while after that. We’d also been told to ‘let the dog come to you’ i.e. don’t smother them with love before she was ready.
What actually happened was that Genie did, indeed, wolf down food and lots of water. She then became super excited and played around with the toys (and anything else she could find) in the sitting room for the next couple of hours, eventually crashing out about 6am. It was a long night, but worth it!
We did follow the advice to let her come to us – but she was all over us for cuddles within about 7 minutes of arriving!!
Romanian Rescue Appeal volunteers (of which we were allocated 2 as our ‘main’ people) have been brilliant in communicating with us since Genie came into our lives. They have been there to answer all questions and respond with lots of adoration at photos we posted on our chat.
The chat will remain open for the lifetime of Genie, so we will always have instant access to a wealth of doggy experience and knowledge. I don’t know what other charities can boast such follow up support.
Genie has settled in brilliantly, with no issues apart from the usual puppy issues of chewing everything, digging, jumping in excitement and of course toilet training (though that actually only took 2 weeks).
Every dog is different, but we love our Genie! She sleeps through the night and doesn’t bark at the milkman or postman coming at random times. Couldn’t ask for more than that. 4 weeks in, she already had mastered sit, down, come (in the house or garden), and was walking great on the lead round the streets.
Adopt. Don’t shop. That’s Romanian Rescue Appeal’s motto, and from our experience I’d definitely agree.
If you want any further info, don’t hesitate to contact us, we’d be happy to answer any questions!
