How to Adopt

Interested in Adopting a Fluffy Dog?

What do I need to do to start the process?

1. Submit an application which can be found below. Your application will be processed immediately during our business hours. You must be 24 years of age to complete the application. We ask that you do not apply or work with other rescue organizations if you choose to submit an application with us. That is not a good use of anyone's time.

a. How do I know if my application was submitted? See comment in red at bottom of application.

b. How do I know if you are going forward with my application? The selected applicant will be contacted. Once we are in the home visit process we MAY put Home visit in process on the listing. Otherwise, the listing will be removed once the dog is adopted. We do require that adopters adopt within seven days of applying, so that would be the timeframe before adoption. Exceptions to this would be if the dog is noted as not adoptable at this time.

2. We will do an initial vet history check with both your current and/or past veterinarians. This is done with deceased pets as well as ones currently living. We will move forward only if the following records are complete:

-spay/neuter
-rabies and distemper combo vaccines
-heartworm tests
-monthly heartworm preventative

If those records are not complete, we will not be able to move forward.

3. If we select your application to move forward with you will be sent an email requesting a $100 deposit. This deposit will be applied to the adoption fee and is non-refundable. The reason we do this is to make sure that you are serious about adopting at this time. Past history tells us that many applicants are not respecting our time.

4. We will conduct a virtual or in person home visit. All members of the family need to be present during the meeting. The purpose of this home visit is to discuss your needs and expectations, and also the needs of a dog in general. We will discuss the proper care and training of your rescue dog and answer any questions you may have. The home visit volunteer will not know the particulars of the dog you are interested in. What we know is on the dog's listing. It's a good idea to read the articles on the resource page before your home visit.

5. If all of the above goes well, we will put you in touch with the dog's foster parent so you may set a time to meet a Fluffy Dog. We will do our best to match you with the dog you applied for, but our dogs are popular and there are many applications on them. Going through this process quickly and meeting the dog in a timely manner will work in your favor in matching you with the dog you have selected. You are welcome to bring your dog or dogs to this meeting. If you don't believe the dog is a good match for you, you are not required to adopt. Please know that a state Certificate of Veterinary Inspection is required for all dogs adopted. If the dog you are interested does not have a current one, we will have to get one prior to adoption.

What vetting will my adoptive dog have? Please click on the Vetting Information Link.

Please review the adoption contract below. Every adopter must agree to our contract.

In most cases we don't know our rescue dog's "stories" including background health history.
Their new lives start when we rescue them.

Please know that we are an adoption, and not a sales agency.
This means that we reserve the right to ask questions of our adopters, and approve them based on the information provided to make the best lifelong matches for our dogs.

Fluffy Dog Rescue makes a substantial effort to assure that adoptable animals are in good health. It is possible, however, that undetectable illnesses or conditions may be present or incubating at the time of adoption. Therefore, we do not make any guarantee as to age, behavior, breed, health, temperament or ultimate size of any animal.

Our Policies
* You must be 24 years of age or older to adopt.

* You must be a resident of WI, IL or MN (Twin Cities) to adopt.

* All family members must be six years of age, or older to adopt. This is an insurance regulation.

In order for us to adopt out a dog to be used for emotional support we need the name and number of the trainer you will be working with for this specific training. We do not adopt out dogs for service dog work.

Only apply at this time if:
You have discussed this adoption with all family members.

You are ready to take a dog home in 7 days from completing the application below.

You see a dog on our site that you want to adopt.

You have been living in your home for a month and don't plan to move within a month.

You don't have a vacation planned for the next month. Your new dog needs you home to help with their transition.

Please don't apply if you are applying at many rescues. That is not a good use of anyone's time.

We don't offer a foster to adopt program.

Over 50% of applications are discarded due to missing or vague information. Please take the time to read the question, answer it in it's entirety, and read over your answers before submitting the form. We will not contact applicants who submit an incomplete application. We need to know that our adopters are responsible people for the health and safety of our dogs. Correctly following the directions in our application process is the first step. We ask these questions for a reason, and they are all equally important for us to make our decisions.
If you have issues completing this form on your phone, just go to a desktop or laptop computer.

WI State License #270548