Dachshund

UPDATE: 12/4/07 Fritz has found a fantastic new home! A couple who had already adopted one dachshund from our program were ready to add a second dachshund companion to their home. Fritz (now named "Flash") with his gentle nature was the perfect new dachshund friend for them. He has continued to lose weight and will soon be a slim, trim fellow! This Christmas he will be counting his blessings that DFW Dachshund Rescue & Petfinder helped him find his way to a new home!

Fritz, a 6 year old red miniature longhair dachshund, was rescued from a home with 14 dachshunds. The owner, an elderly person, had recently died and the family was left to find homes for all the dogs. Our group was able to accept 5 of the dogs.

The first order of business was to bathe and groom Fritz, cutting mats from his coat, cleaning his ears, and trimming his nails. Fritz's nails were so overgrown they had impacted into the pads of his feet, causing them to bleed when he walked.

Fritz was then taken to our rescue vet. His teeth were cleaned, and several badly infected teeth were removed. Fritz was also immunized, neutered, and microchipped for permanent identification.

Fritz is a charming fellow with a beautiful long coat, always happy and wagging his tail. Fritz is rather overweight, however, so he is on a diet while at his foster home. He has a huge yard to explore and several dachshund foster siblings to keep up with, so we are confident that Fritz will be slim and trim and ready for a home some time in early December.

Can you give Friendly Fritz a loving, permanent home with lots of attention? If so, read the rest of the information below and then contact us for an adoption application. Please be aware that our adoption applications are sent out by postal mail only, and are not sent by e-mail nor are they available on-line.

Before you contact us for an application, you must go to our group's website at: www.dfwdachshund.com/rescue and read *all* the FAQ's there. You will find information to most questions that you may have. In particular, please pay close attention to the information about the rescue dachshunds and housetraining. Dachshunds take extra time and patience to housetrain and it is important to know this before you apply to adopt.

Be aware that we do not have a public kennel facility for our dogs; our rescue dogs are fostered with individual families throughout the DFW Metroplex area. We do not permit visits to any of the rescue dogs until an interested household has filled out an application, and had a reference, vet and home check. Only screened and approved applicants may visit dogs available for adoption through our program. We will not hold dogs for homes that have not yet been approved by our rescue committee.

We rarely, if ever, have puppies available in our rescue program. If you are interested in a puppy, please contact us for the puppy referral packet to reputable breeders in our area.

In order to be considered for adoption through DFW Dachshund Rescue Foundation, you must:

Be over 21 years of age and have verifiable identification to that effect.

Be able to verify that you may have a pet where you live.

Live within the Dallas/Fort Worth area or no farther than a 50 mile drive from Dallas/Fort Worth to apply to adopt from us. We appreciate your understanding and hope that, if you live outside our service area, you will consider adopting a pet in your local area from a rescue group that services your part of the United States.

Be prepared to make a donation to our rescue efforts of $250.

Be willing to fill out an adoption application, the entire contents of which will be verified upon receipt.

Be prepared to have a home visit from one of the rescue foundation members as part of the screening process to adopt this dog.
While we do not preclude adopters who live in apartments, be aware that most dachshunds bark a lot and generally do not make good apartment dogs.
We rarely have apartment suitable dachshunds available for adoption.
If you live in an apartment and wish to apply, be aware that you may wait a year or more for a suitable dachshund from our program.
In addition, for safety reasons, your apartment must have ground floor access.

During the home visit, our representative will do a brief temperament evaluation of all current dogs in the household. We are unable to adopt to homes where any current dogs exhibit "people-aggressive" or "dog-aggressive" behaviors during the home visit. In addition, while we do not preclude adopters who currently own large breed dogs, due to size differential and a dachshund's predisposition to spinal injuries, we are also not able to adopt to homes when the board determines there may be potential for injury to the dachshund. This is to ensure a safe match for our rescued dachshunds.

Understand that DFW Dachshund Rescue Foundation has the right to deny *any* application for any reason. Reasons for the denial of any adoption application will *not* be discussed with the applicant.

Our adoption application has been designed to evaluate potential adopters to ensure that each person who adopts a dachshund is not only aware of the responsibility that comes with adopting a dog, but also to address the suitability and permanence of each dachshund placed in a new home.

When considering a new home, our goal is to make the best possible match for each of our rescued Dachshunds. These special dogs deserve the stability of a permanent home where they will be loved, secure and safe for their rest of their lives.