Rehoming and Owner Surrender
Information and Resources
Misfit Ranch is not licensed to take owner surrenders from the general public. Our residents are pulled from local shelters and animal hospitals to prevent their scheduled euthanasia or were found as a stray by a member of our team and owner location was not successful.
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It's IMPORTANT TO KNOW that owner surrenders are the first to be euthanized at shelters because holds are not required if the owner is willfully surrendering the dog. With shelters being consistently overcrowded and frequently at critical capacity, we hope you will consider the likely outcome for your dog if your choose to surrender.
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​As a community, how do we prevent overcrowded shelters and unnecessary euthanasia? We believe the answer is by providing education and assistance to people which would prevent dogs from being surrendered in the first place.
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While we can't save them all, we sure are going to try!
Our goal is to help owners keep their dogs at home and from our experience, many dogs are surrendered due to lack of resources, lack of assistance in a troubled area and lack of breed education. If you are an owner that is considering rehoming your dog, we'd be happy to share our knowledge and resources for training, low or no-cost veterinary care and food assistance with you in an effort to keep your dog home with you where they belong.
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If you are considering surrendering your dog due to behavioral concerns, we can help.
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We always start with diet when evaluating a dog with behavioral issues. Eighty percent (80%) of the dogs with behavioral issues we have evaluated were allergic to an ingredient in the food they were eating daily. Systemic inflammatory response due to food allergies often go undetected because the most common symptom is behavioral. The behavioral response to the food is caused by chronic inflammation, which results in pain and discomfort that can affect the GI system, inner ears, muscles, joints and more. Imagine living every day with abdominal pain, sharp pain in your head, body aches and other discomfort without ever being able to communicate the problem or receive any help for it. Our Clinical Pet Nutritionist has extensive experience working to evaluate if diet could be the cause of a dog's behavioral issues and if so, finding the right food for the dog to recover. Taking a moment to collect a hair sample could be life changing for your dog and could create the path for you to keep them home.
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We have training resources available and specialize in "crate and rotate" routines for dogs experiencing behavioral issues. We regularly teach this topic and have experience with establishing successful schedules and routines for all lifestyles. We offer to educate our community on this topic at no cost and can establish a healthy routine for you in an effort to keep your dog happy and heathy at home. We can promise you, that your dog would be happier in a crate at home with their family than in a shelter or rescue environment. Whether a temporary routine during testing and training or as a permanent solution for your household, there are many families across the country who live and work with a crate and rotate routine successfully and we can help you accomplish that as well!
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If behavioral issues are severe and its determined that advanced training is necessary, we've partnered with local trainers who specialize in behavior modification. Together, we can work to provide discounted training services and an affordable payment plan to have your dog return home disciplined and with a structured routine. You'll receive a complete in-home training session of your own to learn all about the training so you can feel confident and in control of your dog's behavior.
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If you are considering surrendering your dog because you just had a baby, we can help. It's not uncommon to be unsure how to handle both and become overwhelmed but surrendering your dog isn't necessary.
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We have training resources available and specialize in "crate and rotate" routines for families. We regularly teach this topic and have experience with establishing successful schedules and routines for all lifestyles. We offer to educate our community on this topic at no cost and can establish a healthy routine for you in an effort to keep your dog happy and heathy at home. We can promise you, that your dog would be happier in a crate at home with their family than in a shelter or rescue environment. Whether a temporary routine until your little one is older or as a permanent solution for your household, there are many families across the country who live and work with a crate and rotate routine successfully and we can help you accomplish that as well!
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If you are considering surrendering your dog because you don't have the time or aren't active enough, here is some helpful information to consider.
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No matter how much time you spend working or are away from home, your dog will get more time with you than they will from anyone else in a shelter environment.​
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You can utilize a mobile dog runner to exercise your dog, without ever having to leave your home. RUN DAWG Mobile Dog Gym services the entire valley. You can visit their website for more information and to schedule a run.
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The K9 Aquatics center in Henderson offers a wonderful opportunity for dogs to get activity with a swim. You can visit their website for more information and to schedule some swim time.
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You can schedule a dog walker, dog daycare, drop-in visits for bathroom breaks, dog boarding and more through Rover. Please visit their website to discover all of the available options.
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There are also quite a few people on social media that offer services for dogs locally. Be sure to check on Instagram and Facebook for people who offer dog walking and more!
Dogs do not need large yards or marathons to run in order to be properly cared for. All the need is a loving human to care for them. Sometimes, mental stimulation can be more powerful than physical exercise and there are things you can do for your dog that take just a moments worth of work, without leaving your home and can be a ton of fun for you in the process. We'd be happy to share some information and ideas on how to work with your dog and provide education on breed needs as well. Please reach out for more information.
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If you are considering surrendering your dog because you live in or are moving to an apartment and "it's not fair" to the dog, here is some helpful information to consider.
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Your dog will have more space in your apartment than they will ever have in a shelter environment.
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Your dog would rather be crated in your apartment than spend any amount of time in a shelter environment.
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Many dogs (including large/giant breeds, high-drive sporting dogs and working dogs) live happy and healthy lives in apartments.
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There are crates that can serve as pieces of furniture and creative storage solutions for pet supplies. Bathing can take place at one of the many self-grooming places in the valley and mobile groomers are all over the valley.
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You can utilize a mobile dog runner to exercise your dog, without ever having to leave your home. RUN DAWG Mobile Dog Gym services the entire valley. You can visit their website for more information and to schedule a run.
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The K9 Aquatics center in Henderson offers a wonderful opportunity for dogs to get activity with a swim. You can visit their website for more information and to schedule some swim time.
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You can schedule a dog walker, dog daycare, drop-in visits for bathroom breaks, dog boarding and more through Rover. Please visit their website to discover all of the available options.
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There are also quite a few people on social media that offer services for dogs locally. Be sure to check on Instagram and Facebook for people who offer dog walking and more!
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Dogs do not need large yards or marathons to run in order to be properly cared for. All the need is a loving human to care for them. Sometimes, mental stimulation can be more powerful than physical exercise and there are things you can do for your dog that take just a moments worth of work, without leaving your home and can be a ton of fun for you in the process. We'd be happy to share some information and ideas on how to work with your dog and provide education on breed needs as well. Please reach out for more information.
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If you are considering surrendering your dog because you don't have money for food or vet care, low/no cost veterinary care and pet pantry resources are available.
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Low/No Cost Veterinary Care
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• Hearts Alive Village - (702) 780-0002
• Heaven Can Wait - (702) 655-4800
• The Animal Foundation Low Cost Vet Clinic
• Dewey Veterinary Medical Center - (702) 873-0946
• Spay & Neuter Center of Southern Nevada - (702)240-7729
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Additional Pet Resources
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• Kendall's Kupboard (via Hearts Allive Village)
• Animal Foundation Pet Food Bank - 702-384-3333
• Nevada Human Society Pet Pantry
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​If you are committed to surrendering your dog for reasons that no one can assist you with, please consider starting the process with talking to people you personally know or are acquainted with first. Your friends, family, neighbors, co-workers, etc. may not be able to personally take your dog in but chances are they know someone who can!
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• Post to your personal social media profiles. Make sure to share pictures and positive information that will attract people to your posts. Make sure that your posts are shareable and ask everyone to share. Include important information like age, spay/neuter status, etc.
• Find Facebook groups that you can post in.
• Find local community groups to post in.
• Use online rehoming sites like Adopt-A-Pet to post your dog as available.
• Ask your current pet professional (groomer, walker, veterinary staff) if they know someone who may be interested.
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Lastly, you can view our list of local rescues with contact information. We cannot guarantee any rescue's ability to assist you or have the ability to take in owner surrenders. This is a list that was put together of open and active local rescues that is verified as operational once a year and updated. Some rescues have breed specialties or restrictions, some have age restrictions and some have medical or circumstantial restrictions. We cannot speak to the restrictions, licensing and insurance of other rescues so you'll need to contact them for more information and assistance.