Livingston County Humane Society

Adoption Policies • Our adoption program is for individuals and families seeking a pet to live indoors and provide companionship. • You must be 21 years of age or older to adopt. • We require that all household members meet the animal during the adoption process, if all family members are not/cannot be present at the time of the meet and greet we cannot send the animal home. • If you rent or lease your home, we require written or verbal approval from your landlord before you adopt a pet. • If you currently own animals, your pets must be up-to-date on vaccinations (rabies and distemper) and be spayed or neutered.? Dogs must also be on monthly heartworm prevention.? This also applies to previous pets if you do not currently own any pets.? We will contact your veterinarian to confirm this. • In addition to local increases in heartworm disease cases, many of our dogs come from higher risk areas of southern Illinois. We treat all positive cases prior to adoption but it is very important adopted and current dogs stay on heartworm prevention to stop the spread of this deadly disease. Prevention is a fraction of the cost and safer for dogs than treatment. Talk to your vet about options that are best for your furry friends. • Some veterinarians require that you give them permission to release records to us.? Please call your veterinarian prior to submitting an application and make sure this has been done.? This applies to any vet reference you may be using if you are a first time pet owner. • If this is your first pet, we will need a friend or a family member’s contact information to provide a vet reference.? This means that they must have pets or have had pets in the time that you have known them.? We will need their name(s), their pet’s name(s), and the clinic that they use.? You must also provide a non-familial reference’s contact information that we may contact to get a character reference. • You must live within a 100 mile radius from our facility to be eligible for an altered animal.? Puppies/Kittens we like to keep closer to the facility so that they can return easily when they are old enough to be altered (60 miles). • Please take the size of your residence and you activity level into account before applying for a large, high energy breed.? Generally speaking, we do not adopt large breed, high energy dogs into apartments. • All adult cats and dogs will be spayed or neutered and microchipped prior to adoption. Kittens and puppies must return to the shelter to be spayed and neutered at a later date. • If you’re in the process of moving, we recommend you delay adoption of an adult cat or dog until after you’re settled in your new home. • If you have any existing dogs in your household, a meet and greet is required, but only AFTER you have been approved. • The adoption committee will approve/deny the application. We do not do same day adoptions. • The adoption committee also reserves the right to deny ANY adoption that they feel is unsuitable.