Would you adopt a tripod?

[GreyhoundAdopter]

I have one rear-leg amputee who is the best dog ever.

I am also fostering a young greyhound who is a front leg amputee. We have been fostering her since October. And even with advertising on the rescue's website, on petfinder, on Facebook and Craigslist ---- we can not get people interested in her.

So I wanted to pick everyone's brains to see what your concerns would be with a tripod. Maybe I just need to help the group update or change the way we are presenting her to the public. (?)

Is it because she's considered "defective?" And - I am not going to tell you where to find her on the internet, as I am NOT advertising her here. I just want any ideas from other dog owners on how to make her look more attractive to adopters.

I do want to add that when we adopted our tripod a couple years ago, he went to two different groups trying to place him, and waited over 6 months for our home to come along ..... and he was heavily advertised on the internet.
Poodle Power - She IS with a greyhound rescue group and well promoted with them.

And to the others who have suggested we keep her - that may very well happen if we can not find an adoptive home for her. The only thing is - if we adopt her, my DH won't let us continue to foster ... as we will have 3 greyhounds in our home everyday. We've helped many greyhounds find new homes over the years and really want to continue to foster for this rescue group.

[Highbread Dingbat]

From my experience people seem to be drawn to the "defect" dogs and special heart wrenching back stories. They want to feel like they've done a hugely noble thing.
It's some sort of do-gooder bragging rights.

We just got one in through our rescue a few weeks ago, and she's already on an extended home visit, likely to be adopted.

Just stress that the dog can keep up with the other dogs just as easily and no special care is required for that missing leg. (While people love the sob story, they don't want a dog that requires special work).


Edit:
As for whether or not I personally would take one in? It depends on how high functioning the dog is. We do 1-2 hour off-leash hikes through the woods every day. If the dog was unable to keep up, then I wouldn't be able to justify taking the dog in. However, with my breed of choice being a Border Collie, I've seen many not only tripod, but disabled in other ways (back end paralysis, and weakened/missing bones in the legs) dogs of this breed that would be able to keep up just fine.

[Rosie]

If I had unlimited space, I would. But, I compete in agility, and have a limit on how many dogs I can have, so my dogs need 4 legs. That's not to say I would give up one of my current dogs if they lost a leg, because I would never do that.
I do have friends that have adopted tripods in the past. They were great dogs.

[Steven]

Well done Greyhound I have an old cat who lost her back leg years ago in a road traffic accident, I did not even consider euthanasia because if it was one of my children I would allow them to live with no legs. We have to think of the quality of life my cat is 19 years of age it was better she lost a back leg because the front legs are there for jumping and clinging onto obstacles. She has lived a full life getting into many scrapes then getting out of them.
I think people like you are the unsung hero's in this cruel world. We did have a dog that went blind we coped until he died.

[Ruth]

My neighbors had a tri-pod about twenty years ago and they told me that the reason that they adopted him wasn't because of his lost leg but because the descriptions of him included how is was great with kids, basically a couch potato, loved pretty much everyone he met, was extremely lovable, liked to play and run with the other dogs he was with, had a very expressive face and was just sweet all the way around. He kind of became the whole neighborhoods adopted dog as we lived in townhomes and he visited every single family to the point that most of us just left our doors open enough for him to come and go as he pleased. Stress all of the good points about him and let people know that just because he only has three legs there is nothing wrong with him both physically and mentally and taking care of him barely differs from taking care of a four legged dog. In my opion Godfrey was one of the sweetest most trusting dogs I had ever met. I hope you are able to find this guy a loving home but if you can't why don't you just adopt him since he probably already feels like one of your family and adding one more dog isn't all the difficult. I have four dogs and five cats so I know what it's like to have a large family and that is exactly what all my animals are to me, family.

[CDog]

Several years ago, my mom was looking for a new dog after her's had passed, but didn't want to deal with a puppy. We went to the nearest city to check the available dogs at the SPCA and and Animal Shelter, both large facilities. She wanted a female and at the large county shelter, we didn't even go down the aisles containing males. She couldn't quite find what she wanted, so we came back to our small local shelter. There were only 4 dogs available. One was a three year old MALE Kelpie mix with 3 legs. Something about him attracted her, so we took him out to the "get acquainted/exercise yard." He was very mellow and affectionate. She took him home and he has bee the BEST dog. Great with children and a perfect pet.

I would suggest taking her to adoption events so people could meet her. Years ago I was Christmas shopping and went to a Petsmart at the beginning of my trip. I walked in the door and there was a Dalmatian up for adoption and I just looked at him and said "aww." I couldn't stop thinking about him while I was in the store and stopped back by on my way out. It was then that I discovered he was missing a leg. This made me want to save him even more. It was evening and I had a lot more shopping to do and couldn't see leaving him in the car for that. I wasn't in the market for a dog anyway, I was just attracted to this particular dog. So, I would try to get her out in the public eye as much as possible and maybe someone will fall for her. Good luck.

[Lara]

No. I don't think I'd be able to commit to caring for a the special needs of a tripod dog. I wanted a Boxer for so long and realized it just wasn't possible, too high energy. I think it is important that I be truthful with myself. I don't see them as defective, just a dog with 3 legs. I find most people want them because they are "different".

I'd foster though! Short term is a lot easier than life.

[girl]

I always check for special needs dogs first when looking to adopt. I would love to have a three-legged dog, or any dog that isn't "perfect" for that matter. When I look at special needs dogs, I see nothing different than I would a regular dog. They deserve a home just like any other. Unfortunately a lot of people want that "perfect" dog and look past ones with any disabilities.

I think the only thing that has stopped me in the past, is that a lot of rescues insist on only adopting out to people who have had disabled dogs in the past...but other than that, as long as they fit my lifestyle and don't require a BUNCH of expensive medications, then I would certainly be interested.

[Borders Rock]

Since we cannot see the ad, we can't advise you on improvements to it. Personally, I would want to know the sad story behind the amputation. I am sure that is included in your ad.
If I was in a position where I was looking for a rescue, I would certainly consider her. I am heavily into Dog Agility and she would not be able to perform the obstacles (and the Association will not allow a "tripod" to compete for safety reasons) but if I just wanted a pet, I would definitely consider her.

[poodle power]

Rescues centres usually find animals with diabilty like limp or eye missing are quickly adopted . You need to find better place to advertise her like a greyhound rescue she would have a much better chnace there . I would never look on one of the sites you listed for a puppy or rescue dog.