Animal Friends Rescue Project is a non-profit organization dedicated to finding good permanent homes for abandoned, stray, and abused companion animals. In an effort to rescue animals in the most dire need, we concentrate on taking animals from local animal shelters that are at risk of being euthanized. We generally do not take animals from the public (please read about our Compassionate Surrender program for exceptions).

If you are looking for a new home for your own pet because of a behavior issue, please consider consulting with an animal trainer or behaviorist. Many behavior issues can be corrected in a realteively short amount of time with professional advice and guidance.

However, through our Stay At Home Rescue program, we help you a find new home for a pet whether he/she:

    ... is a stray you’ve found
    ... is an animal you’ve rescued from a terrible situation
    ... is your own family pet that you feel you must give up due to your circumstances

The pet stays in the comfort of their own home while a new home is found for them. The program prevents animals from needing to take up space at local shelters, and prevents the animal from having to experience the stressful environment of a crowded shelter. The program also eliminates the possibility of euthanasia as long as the guardian is willing to continue "fostering" their own pet. In addition, if the pet is already housebroken, keeping the pet in a home environment will promote positive behaviors and keep the pet more adoptable.  

If the dog or cat that you are trying to find a home for is purebred, then please consider contacting a purebred rescue group as well through the following listings:

• WonderPuppy.net - listing of Dog Breed Rescue Groups in CA
• Purebred Cat Breed Rescue - listing of Purebred Cat Rescues

If you are in the military and need temporary placement for your dog or cat while you are overseas, please visit the following websites for assistance:

• NetPets (cats and dogs)
• Operation Noble Foster (cats only)

AFRP will gladly provide the following services to help you find a home for your animal:

• Put a picture of your animal on our dog page or cat page advertising its need for a home (please mail us a picture of your animal with the animal’s description and contact information or e-mail a digital picture with bio and contact info to info@animalfriendsrescue.org). We will leave the posting on the web for one month unless you contact us to keep it there longer. We appreciate it if you let us know when/if you do place your animal.
  
  This is a FREE service, but in order to continue to make it available to all who need it, we encourage you to make a small donation to AFRP if you are able ($10-25). Donations can be mailed in with photo or you can make a donation on- line. If you can not make a donation at this time your animal will still be posted on the web site.
  
  
• Invite you and your animal to our Pet Adoption Days. These are usually held twice a month. These events are advertised and attract members of the public who want to adopt a dog or a cat.

And thank you for not turning your animal loose in a residential neighborhood or abandoning your animal in a non populated area. Many people do not understand that a domestic pet cannot fend for itself in a strange environment. Cats are not mousers by nature and many starve to death while hiding from strangers. Dogs abandoned in strange areas become impossible to catch in their faithful wait for their “true master.” Meanwhile, many starve. Again, thank you for caring. You wouldn’t be reading this if you didn’t have compassion toward animals.

Please read on for guidelines which can help you place your animal in a new home on your own.

Medical check-up

It will be easier to find a new home for your animal if the animal is healthy and spayed or neutered. Your veterinarian may give you a discount if they know the animal is a stray.

Ways of getting the word out that a dog or cat needs a good home

• Put an ad in your local paper (The Monterey Herald will run an Adopt-A-Pet ad for $5 for 3 lines for 5 days)
  
  • choose the local paper that is read by the most people
    
  • place the ad in the animal section of the classified ads
    
  • make your ad brief but descriptive and creative
    
  • never say free to good home (something given away for free is not always highly regarded as something paid for AND you don’t want to get the attention of people who say they’re a good home but really want free animals to sell to research labs for a profit)
    
  • be honest about age, behavior, health, disability, etc
    
  • include contact information
    
  
  Sample ads:
  
  Orange Tabby cat, adorable, 3 yr old neutered male. A total lap cat that just wants to rub all over you. Call 444-4444.
  
  Border Collie Mix, 2 yr old spayed female. Loves children but needs large area to run. Very loving. Call 333-3333.
  
  My guardians moved away and left me behind. Now I’m looking for a new home. I’m a 9 yr old spayed female black cat and I just want a soft lap to lie on. Call 777-7777.
  
  
• Make a flyer and post the flyer at veterinarian offices, pet stores, local events. The flyer should include a picture of the animal, a description and contact information. (Click here to make a flyer courtesy of Best Friends Animal Society). Here's an example
  
  
  
• Call other rescue organizations to see if there is space available elsewhere. If your animal is a purebred, contact specific breed rescue organizations (Dalmatian Rescue Labrador REscue, Etc.). You can find out these numbers from your local SPCA or Humane Society.
  
• Call friends and family
  
• Take the animal with you when you go out, and talk to people you meet
  
• Go to www.petfinder.org and click on their “Classified Ads” and then on “Pets Wanted.” There is an extensive list of people looking to adopt a specific type of animal.
  

Screening people who answer your ad

1. Is this pet for you or for someone else?
   If the dog or cat is for another person, then tell them that you need to speak directly to the prospective guardians. Gifts for other people of live animals can be a terrible mistake.
   
   
2. Do you live in a house? mobile home? apartment?
   
   
3. Does the house/mobile home/apartment have a yard?
   
   
4. (if adopting a dog) Is the yard completely fenced? How high is the fence?
   
   
5. Will the dog or cat be an indoor or outdoor pet?
   
   
6. Have you had any pets before? If so, what happened to them?
   If there is a pattern of neglect – “Oh my last 3 dogs were all hit by cars/poisoned/stolen,” etc., this is not a good home. One negative incident doesn’t immediately rule them out, but does require closer examination. If, for example, the previous dog was hit by a car, what precautions has the person made to ensure that this is unlikely to happen again?
   
   
7. Do you have children? If so, what are their ages?
   Children can be a blessing or a curse to a pet. It is unadvisable to place a puppy or kitten with children under 6 years old. There are many incidents where children have inadvertently killed puppies and kittens by picking them up the wrong way or rolling over on them. In a good home, parents carefully control the interactions between the animal and the children.
   
   
8. How many hours would the animal be alone during the day?
   The number of hours that the animal will be alone needs to be taken into account. A young dog or cat can get very lonely and destructive if left alone for long periods of time.
   
   
9. Do you own your home or are you renting?
   If a person is renting their home, verify that they have permission from the landlord to have a pet (and the size and kind the landlord allows).
   
   
10. Does your lease allow pets?
    
    
11. May I have your landlord’s phone number?
    
    
12. Who is your veterinarian?
    You may or may not decide to phone the vet for a reference but the answer to this question will let you know if they ever take their animals to the vet for shots, etc.
    

Again, thank you for caring about animals, and we wish you good luck in finding your animal friend a great home!

If there is anything else you would like to know about Animal Friends Rescue Project, please email us at info@animalfriendsrescue.org or call us at (831) 333-0722. Also, let us know if you are interested in joining our mailing list.