Dog Adoption Process & Fees
Adoption Process
Complete an online application
Start by filling out the application here - this is the first step and does not obligate you in any way
Reference and Vet Check
Applications are regularly reviewed, but matching may take days or sometimes weeks. As part of the matching process, we will:
call veterinarian to verify that your current/previous pets are spayed/neutered, vaccinated, and well cared for
if you rent, we’ll contact your landlord to confirm pet policies and any breed or size restrictions
Contact from an Adoption Counselor
If your application appears to be a match, an adoption counselor will reach out to discuss the dog(s) you’re interested in
Note: Due to high interest in some dogs, only selected applicants may be contacted.
Schedule a Meet & Greet
When you're ready to proceed with a specific pup, an adoption counselor will work with you to schedule a Meet & Greet usually at the home where the dog is fostered. All household members must attend to meet the dog you're interested in.
Start the Sleepover Period
After a successful Meet & Greet, you’ll begin a minimum 7-day sleepover to ensure a good fit between you and the dog.
Finalize the Adoption or Return to Rochester Rascals
If at any point it’s not the right match, you will return the dog to the foster home.
If everyone in your family agrees to move forward with adoption, you'll:
Receive a digital adoption contract via email.
Complete the paperwork and submit payment.
Receive a confirmation email and access the dog’s medical records.
Welcome to the Family!
Congratulations - you’re a Rascal for life! We’d love for you to follow the Rascals Facebook & Instagram pages to keep in contact with us and to cheer on our future Rascal rescues!
Adoption Fees
All fees are owed at the time of adoption and are nonrefundable
Under 6 months old: $400+
6 months - 5 years old: $350-$450+
5 years - 8 years old: $250-350
8+ years old: $200.00
Adoption fees only cover a fraction of our care to rescue, rehabilitate and rehome.
We believe every animal deserves a chance, regardless of their circumstances and medical needs. Adoption fees help offset the cost of care, but it never covers everything. Many of our animals require expensive veterinary treatment, behavioral training, and long-term foster support.
Your adoption fee helps cover
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Spay or Neuter
All pets are spayed or neutered before adoption to help eliminate the unwanted pet population and significantly decrease euthanasia numbers.
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Microchip
Each pet is microchipped and registration is transferred to your contact information upon adoption to ensure a quick reunion should your pet get lost.
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Vaccinations
includes Bordetella (kennel cough), Distemper, Hepatitis, Leptospirosis, Parainfluenza, Parvovirus, and Rabies vaccinations.
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Heartworm Test
Mosquitoes are abundant even now in the winter, which means heartworms are too. We test every dog and cover treatment for those who need it.
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Medical Care
Our animals are sometimes in need of life-saving medical care. Fees & donations make it possible to give all the care they deserve!
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Behavioral Care
Behavioral training is routine in our foster homes to help prepare our dogs for a happy and successful life!
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Foster Care
crates, beds, food, prevention are all provided by the rescue so that the only thing fosters need to provide is love.
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Prevention
Monthly flea & tick and broad spectrum worm prevention are critical to keep our pets healthy
dog Adoption FAQs
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Our application process is not a judgement on YOU, rather we are trying to find a home that matches this dog's unique personality and needs.
We follow up on just the most promising lead first.
The adoption process has 4 steps
veterinarian reference
phone calls with our adoption counselor
a meet and greet (often in the foster's home)
a home visit in the adopter's home
If at any point in the process that lead fails to match, only then will we move on to the next lead.
This process is lengthy and can seem slow from your end as we only follow up on one lead at a time. You may hear from us in a few days, or it may take a few weeks.
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This process is lengthy and can seem slow from your end as we only follow up on the most promising lead first. If that lead fails to match, only then will we move on to the next lead.
Sometimes we have scheduling conflicts with applicants that delay the process. And we don’t like to rush into anything - want to give enough time to find the right fit.
You may hear from us in a few days, or it may take a few weeks.
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Our application process is not a judgement on YOU, rather we are trying to find a home that matches this dog's unique personality and needs.
Applications with thorough answers that address this specific dog’s personality catch our attention!
If you think of more information you'd like to add to your application, you're encouraged to do so by replying to the email you received after applying.
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Adoption fees only cover a fraction of our actual cost to rescue and care for each animal.
Our animals receive all their vaccinations, are spayed or neutered, and receive any additional necessary care. It is common for our animals to cost more than $1,200 to care for.
Our current adoption fee schedule can be found here.
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No. Not having a fence is not a deal-breaker for us. We know many wonderful dog owners who don’t have a fenced in yard.
However, some dogs will require a fence depending on their unique personality. Check each dog’s bio to see what they require.
It helps to be specific in your application. Some dogs require a 6 ft fence and others just a 4 ft fence.
Please note that an “invisible fence” is not the same as a physical fence, so please specify this as well.
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We don’t have a hard rule on this, but it would be difficult beyond a 90 minute drive from Rochester.
In cases where a dog is receiving many applications, it is unlikely we will consider an out-of-town application. But for hard to place dogs, we may need to go the extra mile.
All of our dogs are fully vaccinated and spayed/neutered before their official adoption. For foster-to-adopt families, all vetting would need to be completed in our Rochester-based network.
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No. Meeting your dog is just one step of our adoption process.
The adoption process has 4 steps
veterinarian reference
phone calls with our adoption counselor
a meet and greet (often in the foster's home)
a home visit in the adopter's home
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Our adoption events are an opportunity to skip the line and meet our adoptable dogs in person!
Sometimes the in-person chemistry between you and our dog causes your previously un-noticed application to go to the top of the pile!
It’s not uncommon for our dogs to meet their furever family at an adoption event so we encourage you to attend.
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Short answer - no. If you see another dog that you’re interest in, you can simply respond to the email you received and we can inform their adoption team.
HOWEVER - we are trying to find a home that matches this dog's unique personality and needs, so when you write a new application with this dog in mind it is more likely to be noticed!
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Our application process is not a judgement on YOU, rather we are trying to find a home that matches each dog's unique personality and needs.
For example - Some dogs require a six foot fence, while others would love apartment life. Some dogs prefer a life of lounging and others would love to be your running partner.
Each dog is unique and we encourage you to write your application with a specific dog in mind.
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We follow up on the most promising lead first. If that lead fails to match, only then will we move on to the next lead.
So not everyone will get a phonecall. A call will only happen if you’re the next most promising lead.
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Check your spam folder. We reply to the email address you provided in your application.
Every applicant gets an email with “next step instructions” immediately upon applying for a dog.
This is the email address you should reply to in order to communicate directly with our dog team.
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We do not have a physical location, like a shelter. Instead all of our animals are in individual foster homes “on couches instead of in cages!”
It’s not possible to schedule a myriad of meetings in people’s private homes, so filling out an application is the first step to meeting a pet.
However, we regularly have adoption events in the community. You can check our calendar for scheduled events, but often more impromptu events are announced on our Facebook page.
*Upon adoption, all dogs are microchipped with lifetime registration, spayed or neutered, and fully vaccinated. This includes Bordetella (kennel cough), Distemper, Hepatitis, Leptospirosis, Parainfluenza, Parvovirus, and Rabies vaccinations.All dogs are heartworm tested, and receive monthly flea/tick/heartworm prevention and appropriate veterinary care throughout the duration of their time with Rochester Rascals.Adoption fees help offset medical care, food & supplies, prevention, and other expenses associated with rescuing our animals. The expenses for each rescued animal always exceed our adoption fees.Please note that adoption fees are not tax-deductible.