ADOPTION PROCESS:  Thank you for considering adopting a rescue for your next four-legged family member. All potential adopters must fill out an application in order for United Doberman Rescue to screen adopters, ensuring all dogs go to acceptable and loving homes. If you do not read our adoption policy or do not fill out all questions asked we may deny your application.

After we receive your completed application, we will identify a volunteer who lives in your area and they will schedule a home visit with you. The home visit is not to critique your home, but to see the environment where the dog will live and give us a chance to answer your questions about adopting a rescue dog. PLEASE NOTE: All individuals that will live with the dog must be present for the home visit this includes roommates, kids, spouses, parents. Once the home visit and vet reference check are completed and the applicant is approved, you will get to meet our adoptable dogs. 

Homes with Children-Please note that in most cases we will not place rescue dogs in homes with young children under 6, unless the rescue dog is a young puppy. Small children do not have the stress management skills, impulse control or the ability to think abstractly that adults possess. A small child can unintentionally hurt a dog and the consequences can result in injury to the child. If a rescue dog injuries a child it will most likely end the life of the dog. In addition, most rescue dogs have unknown histories so reaction to certain situations is un-determinable. Exception-we will adopt a puppy to a home with young children under 6 years of age that has a fenced yard.

We are a home based foster rescue. While living in our homes, side by side with our families, we try to learn as much as we can about our adoptable dogs, so as to share with the adopters when they get adopted. We try to expose foster dogs to different living situations, which are selective to those that occur in each fosters home, and observe the dogs reactions. We watch for any potential health or behavior issues and address them should they arise while in our care. Once adopted a dog may do or act in a way that we did not observe, have knowledge of, or may behave completely different due to its new leadership, or new home environment. While we try our best to learn all we can, knowing everything about a rescue dog is not possible. After adoption you may learn good and/or bad things we did not know or observe.  Our goal of fostering is to help Dobermans restore their faith in humans, give them food, love and offer leadership to make them mentally and physically healthy while in foster care and find them for ever homes where they will be much loved family members. It is up to adopters to continue to care for them with love, trust, kindness and leadership once adopted. This may take work from the new adopter.

Cat, dog, kids testing-We do not always have resources for "testing" our dogs with kids, cats and other animals. It will be dependent on the dogs past history if known, and what is available to the foster home for testing resources. 

Aggression and bites-For liability reasons, we do not take in dogs with known bite histories or human aggression. There are to many dogs needing help that will not bite. If you need help with a dog that is biting, please seek a behaviorist.  

Meeting our dogs- If you are approved, you will get to meet our adoptable Dobermans in their foster homes. The exception to meeting dogs would be come to a Meet and Greet. While we encourage our fosters to bring their foster dogs to events, we do not always know which dogs may attend! In most cases we do not let the dog go home with the potential adopter on the first meeting. We prefer adopters to go the foster home to decide if the dog they met is right for their home.

After meeting the dog-Once you commit and tell us "Yes I want to adopt" you need to get your home ready for your new friend! Purchase a crate, dog food, dog bed, treats, toys, leash, collar, and get obedience classes set up now to be ready to go for the day you adopt your new Doberman! 

Training classes-If you adopt they are a must for you and your new dog. Training at home is not acceptable, you must sign up for formal classes with a certified trainer as soon as possible. This build trust with you and your new dog, leadership, the trainer can help you with issues that may arise, and it give your dog the chance to be social in a formal controlled setting. 

Stay in contact with us!! Know the adoption process involves time and effort, but be patient - we want to ensure that we match you with the right dog. Because we are unpaid volunteers and also have busy lives with family, work and caring for these homeless dogs, please stay in close contact with us during this process via email and phone contact, or let us know you are no longer interested in adopting to save our valuable volunteer time. We want all our adopters excited about the prospect of adopting one of our dogs. 

Adoption fees based on age of dog: (when age unknow adoption fee will default to lowest estimated age)

Puppies 6 months and under- $500 plus MN State Tax of $34.38= $534.38 total

7 months to 2- years of age  $400 plus MN State Tax of $27.50=$427.50 total

3 to 7 years old- $350 plus MN State Tax of $24.06=$374.06   

8 years old and over- $250 plus MN State Tax of $17.19=$267.19 total 

The State of Minnesota is currently taxing all adoption fees on rescues so this extra tax paid with the adoption fee will be sent directly to the State of Minnesota. 

We may at times adjust our adoption fee at our discretion to be determined on a case by case basis.  We are a charitable, non-profit, animal rescue and able to do what we do to help these dogs through monetary donations. Adopters who pay more then the adoption fee, will get a donation receipt for tax purposes.

We do NOT have paid employees like many big rescues. (Please do your research as some rescues pay a large amount of donations does NOT go to help animals but pay the volunteers salaries!) All our donations and fees go directly to our homeless animals. 

Doberman  Pinschers are a breed with some of the highest medical cost per year due to the many health issues of this breed. Please research these diseases and genetic issues before you get a Doberman. Medical insurance is highly encouraged should you decide to adopt a Doberman!  Before deciding to adopt, consider the cost of owning an animal. You will incur yearly vet expenses, food, toys, training cost and more.

If you decide to buy a Doberman puppy from a breeder, we would be happy to make a breeder referral as we know from many years experience, which breeders take their dogs back and which breeders dogs end up in rescue. Good breeders always take back their dogs! Click here on how to detect a good breeder  from a back yard breeder puppy mill.

What do you get with the adoption fee when you adopt? The adoption fee is not a donation.  All of our dogs are micro-chipped, current on rabies, distemper, on heart worm and flea/tick, spayed and neutered prior to adoption. With the exception of puppies in which we allow adopters to wait till they are 6 months old to spay and neuter. Post adoption all vet cares are required to be completed by new owners. NOTE: At times vaccines will expire near or around the adoption date and become the responsibility of the new owner post adoption. While we try to make sure all is current some circumstances beyond our control may occur such as the adoption is expedited, fosters are unable to get them into the vet prior to adoption, or date that vets can see animals may not be available for weeks or months prior to adoption. In these cases the expired vet cares will be the responsibility of the new owners. We do require you keep your new pet on heartworm preventative and have your vet meet your dog when they are well. This should be set up with your vet right after adopting! 

Adopters must agree that all our adopted dogs are kept current on vaccines, are kept on monthly heart worm preventative, flea and tick preventative and get yearly check ups after adoption.

Dobermans are very social animals and need to be treated as family members, living in the house with their family. No exceptions! We will not adopt to homes that want a guard dog, chain dogs outside, or leave them in the garage/outdoor kennels for extended times alone.

Crates are the preferred method of keeping your pet and your home safe when you are away from home. See more info on crates here: http://m.humanesociety.org/animals/dogs/tips/crate_training.html

Preference is given to homes with a fenced yards. Dobermans can run far fast and potentially get injured. We may consider homes with invisible fence, or no fence depending on the dog and adopters experience. We need to be proactive making sure our pets can not make a mistake by running free, or getting into something dangerous or deadly, or a situation that could hurt them. All puppies must have a fenced yard, no exceptions. 

Important things to note before applying-

*All owners must keep United Doberman Rescue current on phone and address information, or changes in the life of the animal they adopt.

*All adopted animals must be returned to United Doberman Rescue should the new owner be unable to keep them under any circumstance. No exceptions per our contract. If the reason for return is aggression or bites please consult with us as we may not be able to take the dog back due to insurance/liability issues. 

*All pets currently owned in the household MUST be spayed or neutered and up to date on vaccinations including rabies. You must be giving your dogs monthly heart worm preventative. We will verify this with your vet reference check. If these minimum, responsible pet owner items are not done for your own pets, we will not adopt to you. 

All adopters  are encouraged, but not required, to enroll in obedience classes with their new Doberman within 2 months of adoption. This builds bonding and trust, along with giving your new friend an opportunity to work on social skills which is very important for this breed.  Formal training gives adopters a resource with trained professionals to ask questions and learn how to correctly work best with their new friend.  We encourage you to continue training in a formal setting for the life of your new pet. Dobermans need a job, they love to learn and love to be with their pack. Adopters need to be willing to commit to their needs for their entire life.

United Doberman Rescue WILL NOT adopt to anyone charged or convicted of animal abuse, child abuse, any type of abuse or any type of felony and further reserves the right to deny any application based on information contained in public court records. We reserve the right to discontinue communication at any time and reject the application should applicant communicate in a disrespectful, dishonest, profane or non-productive manner.

Ready to find your forever friend?  Please click here to complete the Adoption Application

Why all the rules? Often our adoptable dogs have already been failed by humans in their past. We promise every dog that comes to us that they will never have to worry about humans failing them again. We stand by every dog we help and promise them a life of certainty with our rescue. They will always have a place to call home and never be homeless again, even after they are adopted.