My story
Hello! My name is Boss. I am a little uncomfortable around new people, but as you can see from my pictures, I've made some amazing friends at the Roanoke Valley SPCA. Although I've been getting the royal treatment from everyone here, it's time for me to move on and find my permanent home. I need someone who is willing to meet me several times before taking me home, and once I'm there they need to help me with my fears of new people. You won't be all on your own though! I will be a 'foster to adopt' so the folks at the Roanoke Valley SPCA will give you extra support, check in with you regularly, and connect you with a dog professional in the area who can work with us! I've done fine with other dogs in the past, but learning new people and a new home is a lot for a dog like me, so I'd do best being on my own until I get comfortable with my new family! Once I get to know you, I am sweet and love to give kisses! I love to play and go for walks. And I really enjoy learning new things. My friends here have taught me to sit, stay, give paw, nose touch, and to go to my mat. These tricks are fun, but they also teach me how to interact with new people in a positive way. They give me something to do when I'm uncomfortable, rather than just focus on what is making me uncomfortable. I am about 4 years old, white and brown, and I weigh about 52 lbs. I'm neutered, vaccinated, microchipped, and heartworm tested. My adoption fee is $99. In response to the social distancing recommendations from the CDC and WHO, the Roanoke Valley SPCA is modifying our adoption procedures. With these new restrictions, we do our best to be as fair as possible. Pets are adopted on a first come basis. Our challenge is to find homes for the pets in our care as quickly as possible so we can help other pets in need. With the increase in cases in Southwest Virginia, adoption hours are Thursday through Saturday between noon and 7 PM. Unfortunately, we are unable to hold pets nor guarantee a pet will be available at the time of your appointment, but we do promise to call you if a pet is adopted prior to your appointment. If you are interested in adopting me, please complete our online Adoption Application. Our adoption staff will give you a call to give you more information about meeting Boss and answer any questions you may have. Call
Monday - Saturday between noon and 7PM to speak with an adoption counselor for more information.
6 Tips for Following Up with Adopters
Whether you’re conducting adoptions in-person or virtually, there are bound to be some bumps in the road after an adopter brings a new animal home. To help support your adopters, use these six tips from the ASPCA’s Client Services team: Stick to a Timeline We know that most returns occur within two months post-adoption, and the majority of those happen within the first two weeks. Therefore, we recommend following up with adopters 2 days, 10 days and 1½ months after they bring their new animal home. If your adopter doesn’t answer your call, leave a message and try again the following day. Keep It Short and Conversational You don’t want your adopters to feel like they’re being read questions from a survey, so keep your follow-up conversations short, sweet, and friendly—while still asking the important questions. For example, some conversational-style questions that will get you the answers you need are:
How is your new pet doing? Are you having any challenges with your new pet? Were you aware of this challenge when you adopted him/her? What do you enjoy most about your new pet?
Be Prepared to Address Common Issues Every animal has their own personality and quirks, but it’s good to be prepared with tips and resources for concerns that come up frequently. Examples of behavior issues to have responses ready for include:
Inappropriate elimination Separation anxiety Nipping or mouthing Furniture scratching Excessive vocalization Food or resource guarding Fearfulness Leash pulling Mounting Reactivity Stereotypic repetitive behavior Aggression
After providing your adopter with tips, offer to text them a link to further online resources that can help, like those on the ASPCA’s Pet Care page. For medical concerns, have a list of local veterinary clinics on hand that you can share with the adopter. Have a Plan to Escalate Whether it’s a staff member or volunteer doing your follow-ups, it’s important they know what to do if an adopter has a concern that needs further addressing. First, decide on the criteria for when a concern should be escalated. This may include relinquishment considerations or aggression, but think about what makes sense for your organization. Then, identify your subject matter experts, like veterinarians or behaviorists, who may be able to support the adopter. It’s also important to have a plan in place if the adopter presents you with an emergency concern that needs to be addressed immediately. Make sure you have phone numbers for the subject matter experts who would need to be contacted in these cases so that you can reach them quickly. Keep Track of Everything Whether an adopter has concerns about their new animal or just wants to share how much they love them, it’s helpful to keep notes so that you can refer back to the conversation later. You can write a note in the animal’s profile in your shelter software or use a survey form that has pre-built fields for criteria like behavior concerns, medical concerns, and recommendations made. To make sure you’re sticking to your timeline, it’s also helpful to have a separate spreadsheet detailing when you attempted to contact adopters and whether it was successful. Share Good News It’s easy to focus on the adopters and animals who are having issues, but “happy tails” can be a great morale booster. If you have a particularly happy or interesting conversation, be sure to share any non-confidential details with staff and volunteers to help keep them engaged in and excited about your organization’s work.
If you have any questions or would like to adopt Boss, please reach out to the adoption group directly. PetSmart Charities does not facilitate the adoption process. Thank you.
