On this page you’ll find answers to the most frequent questions asked of American Bulldog Rescue. This page exists to help you and, to be honest, help us. We receive many emails each day about our adoptable dogs, all asking similar questions. We could sit around all day answering them but we’d rather have that time to help dogs!

If you’ve been referred to this page, it’s best you read through the information here before contacting us.

• Is this dog available? Yes, if you see the dog listed on any adoption websites, it means that dog is available for adoption. If you’re interested, submit an application.
• What are your hours? We don’t have hours. Our dogs are not housed in any one location that you can visit. They are in private homes with loving foster families. When your application is approved, you’ll schedule a convenient time with the foster family to meet the dog.
• I’m interested in this dog. Great, submit an application!
• Can I make an appointment to meet this dog? Yes, after your application is approved. Approved applicants will be put in touch with the dog’s foster family to talk about the dog and schedule a meet and greet. We do not arrange meetings without an approved application.
• Why can’t I meet the dog before applying? Maybe I won’t want to apply after I meet them. Most of our dogs live in private homes. For the foster family’s safety and out of respect of their time and privacy, we need to verify your information and confirm you meet our application requirements. It’s true, you might not make a connection with the dog in person. That’s OK. Now have an approved application and that puts you into a great position when new dogs come into our rescue.
• Will you ship/transport this dog to me? No.
• Why don’t you transport your dogs to adopters? We find an adoption is most successful when a family has the opportunity to meet the dog in person. We will not transport a dog to a prospective adopter only to have that family decide they’re not interested.
• I would never turn the dog away, please, can’t you transport them to me? No.
• Other rescues transport dogs… Yes, some do. If that’s what you want, pursue an adoption with one of those rescues. Each rescue has their own policies and requirements.
• I’m willing to travel from [insert some state more than a 4-6 hour drive from foster location], why won’t you consider me? The overarching rationale is because of volunteer support. When you’re out of our adoption range it can be difficult if not impossible to find a trusted organization/individual to conduct your home visit. If an adoption takes place outside of our range but there’s difficulty or it doesn’t work out, we do not have the volunteer support to respond appropriately. We encourage you to look in your area for a needy dog. We haven’t found a state yet that doesn’t have wonderful, loving, dogs who need a home.
• Is this a full bred dog? We usually cannot confirm this. If this is a concern to you, sadly, adoption is probably not the option for you. Most of the dogs come here from shelters. Occasionally a dog surrendered to us by their owner may have papers.
• Will you waive or reduce the adoption donation? No, we won’t. The adoption donation makes it possible for us to continue helping dogs. As it is, we struggle to meet the financial needs of rescue work.
• I’m on a fixed income and/or I really love this dog but can’t afford the donation, will you reconsider? Sorry, no. Our adoption donation is reasonable. It takes money to properly care for a dog. To take proper care of your dog, you can expect to spend upwards of $50/month. The basics alone–quality food, heartworm preventatives, wellness vet visits, supplies–can run you $0 a month. Dogs get sick and have weird things happen. A vet visit for an issue could easily start at $100 for basic blood work and an exam. If you cannot afford a one-time donation, you should reconsider getting a dog. This is not a judgment of your ability to love a dog. Understand that we receive emails daily from owners who cannot afford their dog. We don’t want you to face that heartbreaking reality!
• The dog I’m interested in is healthy, why do I have to make a donation? It is extremely rare that we have a dog that “comes free” to us. Even a healthy dog might have costs associated such as neuter/spay, fee paid to shelter, fees paid for transporting dogs to one of our foster homes, bringing the dog up-to-date on vaccines, temporary kennel stays, monthly flea/tick/heartworm preventatives. Our adoption donation is standard across all our dogs, with some exceptions. If one dog was healthy and cost almost nothing in vet care, there’s another dog we’re caring for who has plenty of vet bills.
• I know you said this dog can’t be with {other dogs, kids, cats} but are you sure? Yes, we are sure and no, we aren’t going to try it out with your family. Our foster homes do an amazing job at evaluating their foster dog’s needs and limitations. Most of our foster homes are very experienced dog owners and fosters. If they tell us their foster dog has needs or limitations, we respect that input.

Why haven’t you responded to my email?

When you emailed us, a reply would’ve been sent to you automatically. That email provided important information for you to proceed. If your question was answered by the info sent, you might not hear back from us. Please understand that we are volunteers with the normal demands of life, including fostering dogs. Our time is limited and we have to allot it to where we can most benefit dogs in need. We hope you appreciate that and take time to review what we’ve provided.

Some specific reasons we may not respond:

• You inquire about a dog who has specific needs listed and your email indicates your situation conflicts with these needs. For example, the dog’s bio might state he cannot be with male dogs and your inquiry indicates you have a male dog. Another example would be a dog’s bio states they need an experienced owner and you state you’re looking for your first dog.
• Your email provides information that is directly in conflict with our posted policies.
• You ask about breeding the dog.
•  You ask any of the questions answered in the section above.