Sheltie Rescue of Utah: Saving the World, One Sheltie At A Time

The goal of Sheltie Rescue of Utah is to help Shetland Sheepdogs who turn up in shelters, are found lost on the street, are no longer wanted by their owners, or whose owners can no longer care for them.

We seek to prevent the euthanasia of any Shelties. To avoid this, we place Shelties found in shelters or elsewhere into foster homes where they are cared for as a member of the family. They are then more likely to be successful when the right adopting family is found, because they are accustomed to a home environment rather than a kennel environment.

We also diligently search for possible owners of lost Shelties, while our foster Sheltie lives in one of our foster homes.

Our ultimate goal is to ensure that all "homeless Shelties", most of whom have been badly neglected and/or abused, are placed in permanent, loving homes as a special four-legged member of the family. Many of our Shelties are recovering from being neglected, abused, and/or abandoned by people the dog loved. Our primary concern is placing each Sheltie into an environment that is most likely to be supportive of that particular dog's physical and emotional recovery. As with us humans, these needs vary from Sheltie to Sheltie.

To achieve this goal, we have our foster homes evaluate the physical and behavioral characteristics of our Shelties. All known medical problems are addressed while the Sheltie is in our care.

Behavioral issues are also observed and are an important consideration when evaluating whether a particular home or family is likely to result in a successful placement. For example, we observe how the dog gets along with other dogs in the foster home and how it gets along with children of different ages. Is the dog fully house-trained? Can it be a good canine family member, or does it need training to help it integrate into a family successfully? Is the dog very social or shy, timid or aggressive, fearful or calm?

An unhappy dog will ultimately result in a family that's an unhappy dog owner. We strive to have your family and our Sheltie Rescue dog delighted by this adoption. To this end, we are ready to provide ongoing support to you after the adoption, as needed. Adopting families have varying degrees of experience with and knowledge about dogs. We are here to help you learn. If you have questions about training, grooming, nutrition, dental care, nail care, behavioral issues, or health questions, we can help you or direct you to resources in the community who can help. If the adoption does not work out, we readily accept the Rescue dog back. In fact, we require that the dog be returned to us if the adoption doesn't work or cannot continue for any reason.

To achieve these goals, we use phone interviews, in-person interviews, home visits in the foster home and/or in your home, and an extensive Application for Adoption. You'll notice that the Application for Adoption asks many questions about your family setting, physical home setting, past experience with dogs, and plans for how you'll care for your Sheltie Rescue dog. If you've talked to us on the phone, we may have already asked you many of the questions on the Application for Adoption. Please fill in your answers on this form anyway.

The evaluations of our Rescue Shelties, the many questions we ask you, and the interviews are all intended to ensure, as best we can, that you and your Rescue Sheltie are thrilled to have found each other and live happily ever after.

For further information about adoption, the Application for Adoption, or any other aspect of Sheltie Rescue of Utah, please see our Forms/Apps page or contact us through our Contact Us page.

If you might be interested in adopting a rescued Sheltie, please send email to our adoptions office. If you need to relinquish a Sheltie for any reason at all, please send email to our relinquishment office.