What happens when you want to adopt a Basset Hound and contact BHRSC? Quite a lot happens. Here is a brief overview of the process.

1. You call, e-mail or letter will be answered by one of our volunteers. This one is easy because we are all volunteers. Most of us work at least one full-time job, some more than one. Most of us have families, shopping, laundry, medical problems, broken cars and everything else the general population has. Into the odd, spare minutes, we manage to fit in some Basset Rescue work.

2. You will be asked to complete an adoption application. We will ask you questions about prior pet experiences, your yard, where the dog will sleep and several other questions that you may think are none of our business. If the questions seem intrusive, ask to tag along on a few shelter visits. When you see 200 dogs in a shelter and know that statistically 75% or more will be killed (euthanized sounds so much nicer, doesn't it?) because someone decided that the dog was too much trouble, maybe you will understand our need to ask these questions.

3. Your application will be circulated among a select few volunteers. If anyone has questions about any of the responses, you will be contacted for clarification. If there are honest responses that any of us are not happy with, you will be contacted and told why we believe this is not the time to add a dog to your family. Examples are families with very young children, no fenced yard, poor prior history with pets, wanting the Basset as a gift for others, etc.

4. We will visit your home. This is to ensure that everyone in the family agrees with the adoption desire. We'll also look over your fenced yard and sleeping accommodations planned for your new family member. In our collective experience, families who keep their Bassets outside all the time frequently do not allow their dogs to become a part of the family. Most Bassets prefer to be family dogs.

5. If everyone is satisfied, then we start the search for what we hope will be the perfect Basset Hound for you. Most of our Bassets spend time in volunteer foster homes before final placement. These volunteers will evaluate the Basset's behavior and recommend proper placement. This may be a home with no cats, no other dogs or no children. It may be a home where someone is there all of the time or there are no men with beards. (Yes, we had one who feared men with beards, probably due to prior abuse.) Most of our Bassets are suitable for any placement, but we do screen for behavioral quirks as we are able.

6. All of our Bassets are spayed or neutered and have shots updated as required. This requires someone to transport to and from the vet. Major known health problems are corrected when possible.

7. We look at your request for gender, age and color. The average age of our rescues is probably 3-6. If you want a loving middle aged Basset we can usually accommodate you soon. If you want a show quality red and white puppy under six months, you may have to wait for years. (A special thanks to the "Angels" who adopt the gray faced senior Hounds. You can both give and get a lifetime of loving in a year or two with these senior Bassets.)

8. When we find your Basset Hound we ask for an adoption fee of $200. This covers well under half the expenses to rescue and place a secondhand Hound. Where does the rest come from? Fund raisers and appeals for donations help keep the wheels turning. Some of our volunteers dip deeply into their own funds to help.

The frosting on this cake is that all of the above are performed by less than ten volunteers who are available almost always. There are a few others who are always faithful in helping with specific events. We appreciate them all!

Our service area starts in the Ojai area, south to North San Diego County, inland to the high desert and Inland Empire and north again to the Antelope Valley and Bakersfield. That's a lots of square miles, including parts of 12 counties. If we take a few days to return your email, please be patient with us. Want to help? Send an E-mail to BHRSC .