Adopting a rescue dog offers a loving home to a deserving animal while bringing immense fulfillment to the adopter. It's also a big decision that shouldn't be taken lightly. Your life will change. These dogs often have unique stories of resilience, embodying loyalty and companionship.
Choosing to adopt supports animal welfare and reduces pet overpopulation. Plus, rescue dogs enrich their owner's life in countless ways, from unwavering loyalty to teaching empathy and compassion. It's not just an act of kindness but a profound bond that brings joy and purpose to both pet and human.
To be considered for adoption, you must:
Be 21 years of age or older
Have the knowledge/consent of all adults living in the house
If you rent, provide your landlord's name and phone number or a copy of your lease
Understand if you have children under 8, you will be eligible to adopt dogs 6 months old or older
Understand if you live outside of Wisconsin, all members of your household, including any other dogs, must travel to the foster home to meet the dog
Understand that JRs does not, under any circumstances, ship dogs
Understand if all adopters are 72 or older, you will be eligible to adopt dogs 18 months or older
Adoption starts with simply filling out one of our applications:
Cat & Small Animal Application
For dog applications, a $5 non-refundable application processing fee is due at the time of submission.
After you submit your application, be sure to reach out to your vet if you have/have had animals and give them permission to talk with our volunteers. Doing so ensures that we won't be delayed doing your vet check.
JR's application process is not for a specific dog. Due to our rigorous approval process the dog you are interested in may or may not be available by the time you are approved. If the dog that originally drew you to JRs has been adopted prior to your approval we would like to continue to work with you to complete the process. Your approval, once given, is good for a year provided you don’t add any new family members (including animals) or move.
Please watch your email, especially your spam folder, for your confirmation email.
Within two business days after you submit your application, our volunteers get to work to complete the following:
Input your information into our system
Complete a background check on all household members age 18 and older
If you rent, they contact your landlord to make sure that you are allowed a pet, and if there are any restrictions in place by your landlord
If you already have pets, or had pets in the past 10 years, we'll call the vet you provided to ensure that they were/are up-to-date
Dogs and Cats (including barn cats) MUST be:
Spayed/neutered
Current on the DAPPV vaccine for dogs/Feline RCP vaccine for cats
Current on rabies
Current on heartworm testing & monthly preventative for dogs/FeLiv test in the last 2 years for cats
Current on yearly wellness exam
*Annual titer testing is acceptable in lieu of annual vaccines
• If there are any issues with any of the checks someone will be in contact with you
• Once these checks are completed and passed you will be added to the list for one of our home visit volunteers to contact you
It may take our home visit volunteers 2-3 weeks to contact you. Please watch your spam and answer unknown phone calls as many times our volunteers find their emails and calls are unanswered.
A home visit volunteer from the rescue will contact you via email or phone to set up a time to meet with you.
The purpose of the home visit is to meet all family members talk through things like the responsibilities of owning a dog, what kind of dog you're looking for in terms of age, personality, activity level, etc. We're going to take a walk around to ensure that the environment is safe for the addition of a new dog (or puppy) Don't fret! While they will look around the house, this isn't to make sure the beds are made and the dishes are done. It's just to make sure that there isn't anything that may be unsafe for a dog.
Please be sure when you schedule with the volunteer that you allow for approximately an hour and that all members of the household, including any dogs and cats, are able to be present and engaged in the discussions.
Once your home visit is completed, JRs will review your application, all checks and the home visit report. Within 2 business days you should get an email from us with your approval and any conditions.
Families with children under 8 will be restricted to dogs 6 months or older.
Families where all adopters are over 72 will be restricted to dogs 18 months or older.
Congratulations, you made it through our adoption application process! We're excited for you to start meeting our available animals.
Now that you're approved, you'll want to check out our available animals on our website. Once you've found one that peaks your interest, you'll want to reply to your approval email asking to get in touch with that animal's foster. Once you do that, the foster will reach out to you to talk about the animal and potentially set up a meet for you to come meet the animal.
Don't see one that peaks your interest right away? No problem! Your approval is good for a year provided you don't add any new family members (including animals) or move.
*Please note that all household members, including dogs, will have to travel to the foster's home to meet the animal.