How to Adopt

Please read through all the following information, which explains our adoption process and should hopefully answer any initial questions you may have.

To start your application, you first need to submit a Perfect Match form for the relevant species; dog, cat, rabbit or  small animals. This can be completed online without needing to download and print (see links below). We can send paper application forms in the post if required, but this may delay your application.  Our kennels and cattery are not routinely open for the public to look around, and once you have submitted an application form, we can review this information and make an appointment to meet any suitable animals.

The online forms link to our Centre database so look different to this page. When you hit “submit” your form uploads directly to us, so there is no need to email anything. You should receive email confirmation of your submitted form, but these sometimes go into “Spam” so please check.

Landlord Consent to Keep Pets

If you live in rented accommodation, you must provide written consent to keep pets from your Landlord/Housing provider.  This can either be attached to the online “Perfect Match” form, or emailed to rehoming@rspcacornwall.org.uk when you submit your form.  If emailing, please use the title “Landlord consent for (your name and postcode)” as we receive many emails every day, so this will help highlight it to us.  Until we receive Landlord consent, your application will be put on hold.  It may therefore be a good idea to obtain this from your Landlord/Housing provider before you submit an application to avoid delay or disappointment if you are applying for a specific animal.

But there are no animals on your website I am interested in …

You may only see a few animals currently showing as available for rehoming are shown on our Find a Pet page.  At all times, we have many more at the Centre going through assessments in preparation for new homes. We would encourage you to complete a form even if there is no specific animal shown which you’re interested in.  Once we have your details, we may contact you with suitable matches already at the Centre, but not yet advertised for adoption.  All forms are retained for 3 months.

When we receive your application form, the information will be checked against the assessed needs of the animal you are interested in. If we think your home may be a match, one of our team will give you a call to discuss next steps. From there, a video call may be arranged to introduce you to the animal or an appointment will be offered to meet in person.

In most cases, we also like a dog to meet all regular members of the household. Some dogs will require several visits in order to establish a bond with potential owners, or may need ongoing support and input from our Behaviourist to ensure they settle into their new home. We therefore have restrictions on certain animals only being adopted locally (within an hour’s drive from the Centre), so that we can maintain contact to support with them and their new owners. We aim to make the adoption process as easy as possible, but it can take time to ensure everything is in place to achieve this. The animal’s needs always come first, so please do not expect to take them home on your first visit. If you have a resident dog or one that visits you regularly and are looking to adopt a dog, you will also need to arrange a “dog meet” at the Centre. We request you please bring the vaccination card for your current dog to this appointment.

We often get a huge amount of applications for particular animals, and do not have the time or resources to contact everyone.  If you do not hear from us within 10 days of sending your application, please assume you have been unsuccessful on this occasion.  However, we will keep all applications on file for 3 months and review against other animals at the Centre to try to match with you.

After you’ve met the animal(s) you’re hoping to adopt, we ask you to ‘phone the Centre the next day to confirm that you would still like to proceed with the adoption. If you change your mind, that’s not a problem, but do let us know as soon as possible so we can start looking for another home. Once you have confirmed you would like to adopt, our team will talk through next steps with you.

The process on Adoption Day will be discussed with you, as we have different protocols based on each animal’s individual needs. You will be asked to pay the relevant adoption fee (see below) when the animal is collected/dropped off and all paperwork that needs to be signed will be organised for you.

We supply a lead and collar for your dog and we have harnesses, bowls, cat litter, pet carriers and foods at competitive rates.  You can add the cost of anything you wish to purchase to your adoption payment.

A few weeks after you have adopted your new pet, we will call you to ensure all is well. We are always available to offer advice and support, no matter how much time has passed since you’ve adopted your animal.  If your circumstances change, and you need to rehome your animal, please contact us immediately.

• If you have a holiday booked within the next 3 months, please do not consider taking on a new pet until you return; It takes time for any animal to settle into a new home, family and routine, so asking pet sitters, relatives or boarding kennels to care for them so soon after they have started their new life with you can be distressing for them.  
• If your previous pet has recently passed away, then please think carefully about whether this is the right time for you to adopt. Everyone reacts to the grief of losing a much loved pet differently.
• If your last animal was elderly, it’s worth bearing in mind how much hard work, attention and training a younger animal demands. We do have lots of older animals in our care, which may be a better match.
• We cannot move animals to other Centres nearer a potential adopter’s home, or bring animals here from other locations for adoption purposes.  If you have seen an animal online that you are interested in adopting, please make sure the location is shown as at the Cornwall Branch Centre.

Thank you for considering adopting an animal from us.

Please note that we are often receive a large number of applications for certain animals, especially puppies and kittens which sometimes run into the 100’s!  This is great for them as we have a good choice of possible adopters, but is disappointing if you are not the chosen home.   Unfortunately, we do not have the resources to call everyone back who is unsuccessful in their application, so if the animal shows as “reserved”, but you have not received a call from us, this means the animal has been matched to someone else.  This does not mean that there is anything wrong with the home you are offering, but just that the home chosen is a closer match to the animal’s needs.  We also have a requirement for certain animals to be adopted no more than 1 hour travelling time from our Centre near St Columb, so that we can maintain contact and support them in their new homes.

We hope this information has been useful to you, but if you have any queries, please do not hesitate to contact the Centre directly.