I apologize in advance for offending anyone, this is a topic that I feel very strongly about.
I could not agree more with this statement. In my area there is a huge disconnect between the shelter owners/workers and a potential adopter. As I posted earlier in this thread I have had lots of problems trying to adopt a dog. One rescue required a fence so I wrote a polite email to see if they make exceptions to that rule under certain circumstances. The response I got was beyond rude and this particular women equated letting my current lab play in my unfenced yard to letting my child play in traffic. Mind you I have several acres of land and an electric fence not anywhere near a road. That is the type of nonsense that I have been dealing with. Meanwhile the dog that I am interested in sits in a kennel with several other dogs waiting to be adopted. In my opinion it is bad logic to equate having a fence with being a good pet owner. If your idea of exercising a dog is letting it out in your fenced yard, you are doing that animal a disservice. I truly believe that some of the rescues in my area do not actually want to adopt out the pets that they have in shelter and this is sort of a legal way to hoard animals. Please understand I am not saying all shelters are like this, but in my limited experience they are not necessarily looking out for the best interest of the dog/cat/whatever. The screening process can be absurd. I have been asked for tax returns, mortgage statements, future child planning, and page after page of application information. The amount of time and energy I have devoted to trying to rescue a dog is completely exhausting. I will provide a home that most dogs could only dream of having. Really the bottom line should be can I provide the dog a good home and a better environment than it currently has. If the answer is yes than the dog should be adopted. With these stringent requirements and hoops to jump through, please do not cry to me that you can not find homes for your dogs and xxx animals are put to sleep every year.
Just to provide a bit more light on this situation, I decided to stay away from the rescues and found a perfectly suitable lab on craigslist. My current lab is 7 now and is starting to slow down in the goose blind so I wanted to get a companion for him and my young son to grow up with. This dog came from a family home, is 6 months old and was just way to much for this family to handle. He has been in my home for a few days, is still learning the rules and we are working on correcting all the bad habits he has. He is going to make a great family pet and companion to my current lab. They say is a pure bred lab but I have my doubts due to his size (big). It does not really matter to me. To exercise him I have begun obedience training and who knows maybe he will be hunt ready by the end of next year. He is not gun shy and shows strong retrieving instincts so I have a good start.