Frequently Asked Questions

🐕 I found a stray! What do I do?

A.) First and foremost, contact or visit your local shelter to report the found dog. The dog must be placed on a stray hold per NC law to give the owners time to step forward. NCQ does not take strays found by the public. We only pull stray dogs once the mandatory stray hold is complete as this is the law.

🐕‍🦺 Do you take owner surrenders?

A.) We take owner surrenders on a case by case basis as there is a major shortage of foster homes. We cannot take a dog if we don't have a foster home to place them in. Owners are welcome to apply to foster in these cases. That said, we will not take in/adopt out severe behavioral cases as this is a risk to the public AND our fosters/rescue volunteers. We are in a dog overpopulation crisis where safe, family-friendly dogs are being euthanized every single day and those dogs have to take priority.

📍 Where are you located?

A.) We are a foster based rescue located in Eastern North Carolina. Our dogs live in private foster homes, not a shelter or facility.

✈️ Do you adopt out of state?

A.) Yes! We do allow out of state adoptions, HOWEVER, the adopter is responsible for transport.

🪖 Can I adopt/foster if I live on base?

A.) Base has strict breed bans! You can adopt as long as we do not suspect the dog to have any percentage of a restricted breed. These breeds are American Pit Bull Terriers, American Staffordshire Terriers, Staffordshire Bull Terriers, Rottweilers, wolf hybrids, Doberman Pinschers, Chow Chows, Akitas, Mastiffs, Great Danes, Alaskan Malamutes, or any mixes of these breeds (even 1%). .Base does not allow fostering, unfortunately! 

🕛 How long does the adoption process take?

A.) Most applicants are processed within 1-2 days. We move as quickly as possible but we never rush placements.

📄 What are the adoption requirements?

A.) Our requirements are simple! We require a (1.) home check (a quick video or FaceTime of the main areas of your home such as living room, dining room, kitchen, and the backyard if you have a fence) and your current pet(s)'s (2.) most recent vet records. This is just to show that your pet has been seen by a vet within the last year. We simply want to make sure our pups are going to safe and responsible homes! We do not require adopters/fosters to have a fence.

🐕 Can I meet the dog before applying?

A.) Short answer, no. Outside of adoption events, we require an approved adoption application before meet and greets. This ensures a good match and saves everyone a little time before asking our fosters to meet potential adopters. However, if you're coming to an adoption event to apply, you're more than welcome to meet the dogs before applying.

🤔 What breed is he/she? Do you DNA test?

A.) Truth be told, we have no idea! Most of our dogs come from shelters so their listed breed mixes are our best guess! That said, we usually do not know their past or history. Our dogs are sometimes DNA tested but via donation only! DNA tests are costly and our rescue resources are realistically better spent on vet care and essential supplies.

💲 What do your adoption fees cover?

A.) Unlike county shelters, animal rescues are NOT government funded. This means we pay out of pocket for everything! The adoption fee covers their distemper/parvo vaccines, spay/neuter, heartworm test, flea/tick/heartworm prevention, heartworm treatment (if needed), medicine when sick, microchip, fecal checks, deworming, food, etc... Adult dogs have an adoption fee of $250. Adult medical cases (like heartworm positive dogs) have an adoption fee of $300. It helps to think of it this way; when you obtain a free dog from social media (or wherever), the initial vet visit cost for all of these things will be well over $300, and that's just for the basics. Spay/neuter is roughly an additional $100-$800 and heartworm treatment is well over $1,000.

💲 Okay... but why are puppies more expensive than adults?

A.) Simply put, puppies require at least two but up to four vet visits for vaccines and fecals. That alone just about quadruples their vet care costs compared to adults! Not to mention, puppies are often times sick and full of worms when they first come to rescue, requiring antibiotics, multiple rounds of deworming, and sometimes even hospitalization/fluids/blood transfusions for things like parvo and anemia from parasites. You're talking $1,000+++ in vet care alone when acquiring a free puppy, a backyard-bred puppy, or even a pet store puppy where puppies are handled and exposed to new puppies/people constantly, skyrocketing their parvo/disease risk. Our puppy adoption fee is $400 for a fully vetted and healthy pup. I'd say that's worth it! 

♥️ What is the process for adopting a heartworm positive dog?

A.) A heartworm positive dog can go home anytime before they start their heartworm injections but once they start treatment, that dog must stay with their foster family until it is completed unless adopted before hand. Changing homes is stressful for any dog and once treatment is started, that dog must be kept calm and stress free to protect their heart and lungs. NCQ completely covers treatment and the adopter is only responsible for the take home meds! A freaking bargain! 

🐶🐕 Can I adopt more than one puppy?

A.) No. Having two puppies with less than a 6 month age gap in the same household, whether they're from the same litter or not, can often times cause Littermate Syndrome. Littermate Syndrome causes extreme reliance on each other, sever separation anxiety (whining/destruction when apart), poor socialization (fear/aggression towards others), difficulty training, leash reactivity, and aggression between the two as they mature. Trust us when we say, it is not worth the risk!

🎉 Do you offer same-day adoptions?

A.) Yes! Home checks are still required so if you have a recent walk-through video of the main areas of your home, we can absolutely accommodate same-day adoptions! If you rent, please bring the pet portion of your lease! If you currently own a pet, please bring their most recent vet records for the vet reference check.

🏡 Why do you require home checks?

A.) Simply put, we want to ensure our dogs are going to safe homes. We are looking for things like unsafe/unlivable environments and hoarding situations. We are NOT judging your cleaning habits/home setup. We understand and empathize with things like clutter and piles of laundry because girl, same!

🤔 Why do we sometimes require breed-specific experience?

Some breeds, like Australian Shepherds for example, require a specific job and lots of training. When a high energy breed is not given the appropriate outlets, they can develop unwanted behaviors like reactivity and anxiety. When a working breed lacks a job, they'll take that reactivity and anxiety and "create their own job" which usually includes destructiveness and aggression. Breed-specific experience is not always required! Someone who has shown effort and done their own thorough research on the breed will have a fantastic chance at adopting!

🚩 What if it doesn't work out?

A.) We require that you reach out to us in the event that things aren't working out. We do ask that you give the dog ample time to settle in (3,3,3 rule) and/or consult a trainer and/or a vet before throwing in the towel! Lots of things can be fixed via proper training/treatment or simply giving a pup time to settle in and feel comfortable.