To begin your adoption process of a rescued Great Pyrenees, we ask that you answer the questions below.
We place almost all of the dogs as inside pets with outside privileges and require an above ground securely fenced yard directly accessible from your home. We do make exceptions for certain dogs based on their history if no fence is available and you have an adult only household. You must be willing to walk your dog for potty time and exercise. No trollies or tie outs allowed.
If you are interested in a working dog, send us an e-mail at [email protected] and we will send you the livestock guardian application. You must have a dog secure fenced area accessible from a barn or other shelter building. We do not adopt our working dogs to farms with lean-tos, mobile shelters, dog houses or igloos. You must have a barn structure for their shelter. We only adopt successful livestock guardians to a working dog home. Many of the dogs surrendered, do not have a positive history with livestock, especially with poultry. Training a livestock guardian dog, can take up to 18 months of diligent training techniques before a dog can be entrusted to guarding sheep or goats. Again, they are not successful the majority of the time with poultry, unless is it contained.
You must be 25 years or older to apply for a dog to adopt and own your own home. We do not adopt to condominiums, mobile homes, town houses or apartments due to the close proximity of the units, a breed bred to bark can be a problem in close quarters.
We do not adopt to families with children under 6 years of age. This rule is for the safety of the child and the well being of the pet. Toddlers are curious and dogs never exceed the mentality of a 2 year old, so they do not consider consequences for their actions, they only react to situations. Young children can get scratched, bitten, snapped at or nipped. It is usually not a vicious act, only a reaction to the situation. Usually either the dog or the toddler are innocently harmed and the dog usually pays the price of losing their home again. If you currently do not have children, but are planning on them in the future, you need to take into consideration the adoption of a dog seriously and commit to keeping the dog after your children arrive and monitor them closely with the dog. Never leave young children alone with a dog.
If you are 70 years old, or older, you must have a co-adopter who is younger, and will be willing to assume care and control of an adopted dog if you are to no longer be able to care for them. These are large breed dogs, and not easy to place, especially when older, and a disruption to the dog’s life can have a significant impact on them. Moving to a household with someone familiar to them, will make this transition easier.
Your references provided will be verified prior to application approval. YOU MUST PROVIDE COMPLETE VETERINARY CLINIC CONTACT INFORMATION ON THE APPLICATION. FAILURE TO DO SO WILL RESULT IN YOUR APPLICATION NOT BEING CONSIDERED FOR A PLACEMENT WITH YOU. We do not have time to track down your veterinary history. Make sure you provide complete information about the vet you have previously used. Do not list a veterinary clinic you will be using in the future, who has no history on your pets.
Please contact your vet’s office to let them know we will be calling them and give them approval for you to release your records on your animals. In checking your vet references, if your pets have not been kept up to date on vaccines, have not had annual heart worm tests or been given heartworm preventative on a year round basis, or if you have unsterilized existing pets and are not willing to spay or neuter them with the exception of medical reasons, this will be cause for you being denied adoption approval. You will need two years of purchase of heartworm prevention for your dog. Taking your previous pets to low cost vaccine clinics is not a full service vet. You must have a proven relationship with a full service veterinarian to be considered for adoption.
We do not adopt dogs less than two years old with resident dogs of the same sex. We do take personalities and ages of the dogs of the same sex into consideration.
DO NOT CONTACT US BY PHONE TO ASK QUESTIONS ABOUT A DOG YOU ARE INTERESTED IN. If you consider yourself Sherlock Holmes and happen to find a phone number for one of the volunteers, please do not call it. We intentionally do not provide a phone number. We are a small group of volunteers who have full time jobs, and as much as we like to talk about Great Pyrenees, we are unable to accept phone calls. Please contact us at [email protected] if you have questions about a dog.
Thank you for your interest in a rescued Great Pyrenees.
STOP!
Before completing the application make sure you meet the qualifications to be considered for adoption.
Do you own a freestanding home (Not a condo, apartment, townhome or mobile home)?
Will the dog be a house pet?
Do you have an above ground, secure, visibly fenced yard directly accessible from your home? (No invisible or wireless fencing)
Is the person completing the application the adopter? If not, the applicant must complete it. We do not adopt out dogs as gifts.
If you are the potential adopter, are you 25 years or older?
If you have or had dogs, are they /were they kept up to date on their vaccines and on year round heartworm preventative with proof of purchase?
Are your resident pets spayed and neutered?
If you have children in your household, are they age 6 or older?
Do you have a relationship with a full service vet where your dog or previous dogs have been seen? A Low Cost Vaccine Clinic is not considered a full service vet. We do require you to have a full service veterinarian where your animals have been seen for other services other than vaccines.
If the answer to any of these questions is NO, we will not consider your application. You will not receive correspondence from us regarding your application.
As a volunteer based organization, we try to maximize our resources. Reviewing applications for interested adopters that do not meet the qualifications is time consuming. We appreciate your interest in the breed, but if you do not meet the qualifications you will not be considered for adoption.
We are all volunteers, so understand we use our free time to check your references and set up home visits and fence checks. If you are applying for dogs with other rescues, please let us know. By applying with different organizations, you are duplicating the work of the volunteers in each organization. It is in your best interest that you apply with one organization that has the dog or the most dogs you are interested in adopting. Let us know if you find a dog before your application is processed so that we can devote the time to working with another applicant.
If your answers are yes, please complete the application. Please provide all information as requested including complete veterinary clinic information and residents in your household, the professions of the adult members, and those that are two and four legged, along with the ages of humans and pets.
Adoption fees are $400 for sterilized dogs under 2 years old, $350 for dogs between 2 and 6 years old. Dogs over 6 years old are $300 and puppies are $500 with a spay neuter requirement, that you will receive a $100 back from the adoption fee, once the proof of the procedure is provided. We do not transport our dogs. You must be willing to travel to the location where the dog is being fostered to adopt the dog. Most dogs are located in Central Indiana. If the adoption does not work out, you are responsible for paying for or arranging transport of the dog back to IGPR. You are not allowed to rehome the dog on your own, or surrender it to another rescue or shelter.
All dogs are up to date on vaccines, heartworm and tick borne disease tested, and on monthly heartworm, flea and heartworm preventative. Puppies may require additional vaccinations after adoption due to their young age and schedule of recommended vaccines.
We cannot guarantee your dog will be groomed prior to you taking them home. We do offer a two-week trial period, in which either party, has the right to cancel the adoption. A $100 non refundable deposit is required prior to you taking the dog. Any veterinary expenses you incur during the trial period is your responsibility, if you do not notify us prior to a vet visit that the dog needs veterinary care. You may request the dog you are adopting be groomed at your expense, prior to picking them up. This can delay the trial period with the dog based on the availability of getting the dog an appointment with a groomer. Health and vaccine records are released to the adopter, once the adoption is finalized.
This questionnaire is prepared for the benefit of you, the prospective owner, and the Great Pyrenees that you plan to have become a part of your family. Please answer all questions thoroughly. We prefer you to fill out the on-line form, but you may download a print version here. This form may not submit correctly if filled out on a phone. If your application has been sent, you will receive a copy of it in your email. If you do not receive a copy, neither did we. You will need to submit from a computer.