You want to know how to sell your dog to a good home if you have decided to be without your fur friend. It could be that you struggle financially, your apartment caught you hiding the dog, or you experience pet allergies.
There are many more reasons why anyone would let go of their dog, and that may be understandable. However, you do not want your dog in the wrong hands or shelter.
Your dog deserves a welcoming home that will treat it as a family. You want the dog to experience loads of love, just as you would give it if circumstances allowed them to remain under your roof.
How to sell your dog to a good home
Rescues and shelters may care for animals but your home is always the best place for your pet dog.
If rehoming is your best option, do the following to sell your dog to a good home:
Evaluate your dog
Adopting your dog for money may not be worth it. Meanwhile, an anonymous survey of 650 pet owners found that 25% would sell their dog for the right price.
If you love your dog, you would agree that there is no price for the dog. But if selling it is your best option, just make sure the right home buys your dog.
Prepare your dog
You want your pet dog more attractive to potential owners. Note that “selling” is not always decent but adoption is. Have the dog neutered or spayed.
Your dog should be up-to-date on their vaccinations. Vaccinated dogs can get the PARVO virus, and some pet illnesses have no vaccines.
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Moreover, rescue workers will not bring a dog into their home until a thorough vet check is completed.
Advertise through friends and neighbors
Having a personal network of people – friends, neighbors, vets, etc. – is usually important when selling or having your dog adopted.
Get in touch with your veterinarian to learn about placing a poster advertising your dog in need of a new home. Workplaces, schools, and other public locations are decent places to place the ad.
Local veterinarians will help to ensure a good, healthy new home for your dog, as well as have their vaccines and are spayed or neutered.
Use social media
You could leverage social networks to find a good home for your fur friend. Just post attractive photos of your dog and stories of good adventures you have had with it. Get your friends to share it on their social platforms.
Be honest with potential
Ensure to share honest details about the personality of your dog, and how they interact with other pets or people.
Share the favorite and not so favorite things the person should know about your dog. Share any medical condition or behavior your dog experiences to help the prospective owner gather the information they need to determine if their home is good for your dog.
Get in touch with shelters, rescue groups, or local agencies
Shelters and rescue organizations may help to post pictures of your dog for adoption on their website as a courtesy listing. Your pet will stay in your home during this period.
Depending on your community, local agencies may have programs that help pet owners rehome you’re their pets.
Interview potential owners
The final and most important stage is to know the potential new home’s intention. Not all homes are worth it to keep your dog. Some are too abusive, and a simple interview may be able to help determine a good home for your dog.
Below are some questions you could use to determine a good potential owner:
“What happened to your previous pet?”
If the person says they have never had a pet, it is a sign that they may not make a good home for your dog—they simply do not have the experience.
If the person has had a pet or currently has a pet, they know what it takes to keep your dog. If they lost their previous pet, ask what happened. If they give an answer like “my pet was hit by a car”, it is a bad answer. They probably abandoned that pet to death.
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“Is this dog for you or someone else?”
The answer should be “for me”. Otherwise, tell the person you need to speak with the potential owner.
“How is your current pet?”
If the person currently has a pet, you want to know the current situation. Ask to know how long they have had it and the size of the current pet. It is a good sign that the potential owner will make a good home for your dog if they have had their current pet for a long time.
“Is your current pet spayed or neutered?”
If their current pet is spayed or neutered, it is possible that this prospective owner will be spaying/neutering the dog when it reaches sexual maturity.
Spaying or neutering gets rid of unwanted pet births and decreases euthanasia in shelters due to many companion animals and too few companion homes. Moreover, spaying/neutering prevents cancer and reduces the risk of the dog running away from home or getting into fights.
“Do you rent an apartment?”
If the person rents an apartment, you need to know if the pet policy allows pets. Otherwise, your dog might end up in the shelter since this person would be hiding it during their stay. You could request their lease to verify the pet policy.
Read also: how possible is it to conceal your pet rat?
You need to know if the apartment has fenced yards to keep the dog from roaming the neighborhood at will.
“How often do you exercise or walk your pets?”
If the prospective owner is the busy type, your dog would be living a boring life of not being walked.
“Will you provide references?”
Find out if the person has a record at the vet, a family member’s remark about how much they love pets, or describe what really happened to their last pet.
The point is to sell your dog to a good home that will provide veterinary care.
“Will this dog be your family member?”
Be sure that the dog will be treated by the potential owner like one of their own. The answer you expect here is “yes”, otherwise, the dog may be returned to you, wind up at the shelter, or be abused and neglected.
“Will you allow a home check?”
Like some rescue groups, you should request to do a home check to verify the address of the person. Being able to check on the dog gives you an opportunity to determine if it is happy in its new home.
“How would you correct the dog if it has an accidental in your home?”
The potential owner should be Friendly when correcting the dog. There should be no use of terms like “bad pet”. The potential owner should suggest patience, consistency, and a friendly manner of correction.
“How many hours per day will the dog be alone?”
It is not a good idea to sell your dog to a home where they will be alone for too long, typically more than 4 hours a day.
Nonetheless, an older dog can be alone for a normal working day, possibly 8-10 hours, but should be followed by exercise and playtime.
“Are your children pet-friendly?”
Find out if the potential owner has children. If yes, their age, and whether they have ever been around pets or not.
If the potential owner suggests that children will be responsible for the dog, it is a sign that their home is not good for your dog. Younger kids may hurt or get hurt by the pet outside an adult’s supervision.
