mongrel puppy

pukkamum

Hmmm lots to think about tbh I had completely dismissed having an older rescue dog because of the kids, though this would be a preferred route as it breaks my heart thinking of them being bypassed for pups.
I must say not having to deal with the puppy stage is a positive factor but not sure if dogs trust would accept us as our youngest child is only 3.

dawn27

the vets always has adverts for rehoming and puppies etc

krlyr

Don't forget that that are numerous rescues all over the country. Battersea, Dogs Trust, RSPCA etc. are the larger ones that you will have heard more about - but being a larger organisation, sometimes they fall "victim" (it's not necessarily a bad thing but can be unfortunate for some potential owner) to policies that cannot be flexed, such as an age restriction.
There are hundreds/thousands of smaller rescues all over the UK that will have various rules. Some may still not budge from their set rules, but others will judge on a case-by-case basis. Join dog forums and get personal recommendations to nearby rescues - or even further afield if you're able to travel (many will home nationwide but may ask that you and the family visit the rescue/dog at least once).
Do bear in mind that the world of animal rescue is not a strictly regulated one though - you or I could start a rescue tomorrow, decide on our own rehoming policy and away we go. There is no governing body that ensures the rules are fair or that the rescue is well run. You do get cases of poor rescues - e.g. those acting as dog dealers under the guise of rescue (taking on free dogs and making money from the rehoming fees), rescuers on the brink of animal hoarding who have got in over their head and taking in more animals than they can reasonably care for, and various other issues you may face.

Ask a rescue many of the same questions you would ask a breeder to determine whether they are genuine and whether you want to support them with your money. A good rescue will be careful with the dog they place with your situation, they'll be honest about its personality, will offer lifetime backup, and may well go on to rehome you your next dog - it's worth doing the research to find a good one.

codemonkey

I second the adult rescue dog. We got our own Scamp, a spaniel cross, aged 5 from Dog's Trust and he's the easiest going dog ever. He's a bit protective of me and will put his body between me and any potential threat (including DH on occasion) but has never been aggressive, is a cuddle monster who loves everything and everyone and everyone loves him and although I feel disloyal to my old dogs, he really is one of the best dogs I've ever owned and we were so lucky to get him.

I don't know if Dog's Trust have an age restriction - they might have age restrictions for some of the dogs for example they usually have bouncy dogs as suitable for older children because they might knock a little one over. Although we don't have children, we do have small children on either side of us so were very firm that we needed a dog who was child friendly. We also needed one that was ok to be left for a few hours as we work. The staff sat down with us and talked to us about the dogs we were interested in and their history. It took us about 10 visits to find our Scamp and then we had a wait for him to actually come in (in the meantime we had some discussions with other rescues which were not so positive and there was a lot of frustration, mostly due to one particular rescue who were quite poorly organised - its all been worth it though).

Bear in mind that not all adult rescue dogs are strays. We noticed that a lot of dogs are falling victim to the bedroom tax - where people in larger houses are moving to smaller private rentals and can't take the dogs with them, so they have a longer history. Also any good rescue will test them in different circumstances to see how they do with other dogs. It might be worth looking for a rescue who place their dogs in foster homes so you'll get a better idea of how they do in homes with other dogs and children.

Good luck in your search and I hope you find a dog as great as our Captain Dumbass.

meritaten

a good place to look is newsagents or post office windows 'Free to good home' usually means a mongrel! and you are 'rescuing' a dog which could have ended up being a stray or even worse 'dispatched' in some way.