SMART is a team of volunteer Mini American owners and enthusiasts who want to help other Mini's in need.

Many are owners of puppies I have produced who are willing to open up their home to help another Mini American. Our team members take these dogs into their homes at their own risk. The team members help transport dogs as needed, get them to and from appointments or from one location to another. Team members take the dogs in and help socialize them and evaluate them in different situations so we can place them in the most suitable home for each dog. They help with basic manners and obedience skills.

When a breed of dog becomes popular it is inevitable that some of those dogs will end up in need of rescue. While good responsible breeders always take their dogs back for any reason with no questions asked, and are there to help and support their puppies new owners, that is not always the case with lesser breeders. When a breed becomes popular there will always be people who breed their dogs just to have puppies and make a few dollars. If the families run into problems with those puppies the breeder is no where to be found and the dogs often end up in shelters.

We would like to be an alternative to a shelter. Mini Americans are not for everyone and we understand the breed completely. We are equipped to deal with different behavior problems in the breed and have a wide network of people to help us locate the best family possible for any dog surrendered to us.

There is a $500 charge to surrender your Mini American to us. 

Please remember this dog is NOT my responsibility, I am not it's breeder. You chose to purchase this dog from someone who is not willing to support you now and for what ever reasons, no longer want to keep this dog. We are doing you a favor by offering to take it in. You however are responsible for the dog and your $500 will help provide food and veterinary care until this dog finds a new home. 

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 We must make it very clear that we DO NOT purchase rescue dogs and we do not BROKER rescue dogs. You may surrender your dog to us but there will be no compensation for you to do so and we do not keep in touch with previous owners. Dogs surrendered to us deserve a fresh start in life and their new owners do not deserve to be bothered by previous owners.

We will ask relevant questions that will help us take care of the dog you are surrendering, and ask you to sign an acceptance of Surrender form found below.

 

There is also a series of tasks the dog MUST perform for us before we take it in. Our goal is to place this dog into another family situation as soon as possible, so the dogs MUST be stable and a good candidate to be re-homed. We DO NOT take aggressive dogs, period. If you have a dog with a bite history, it is a liability to both you and me and sadly your best option is to keep it or have it put to sleep humanely. 

 

When you arrive with your dog we will ask to see/do the following. 

• I MUST be able to take the dog out of your car without the dog reacting in fear/aggression. 

• I MUST be able to send the dog into a crate without a fight, close the door for a period of 3 minutes, while we walk away, without any barking and fighting from the dog. 

• You MUST be able to have the dog off leash on my property and call it back to you without it disobeying. I am on a highway and if your dog runs and does not come back it will be killed by a car. 

• The dog MUST be able to greet a couple of my dogs with no aggression presented. 

• We MUST see this dog around children, be it at a park, with your own children or possible on video. We have grand kids and we will not take in any animal that is a danger to them. If the dog reacts aggressively to my grandchildren it is a same day death sentence and we WILL send you the veterinary bill for euthanasia. 

• We may ask to go for a walk with you and the dog to see the dog around other people. 

​In short we take in dogs who are good candidates to find new homes. We are not looking to keep the dog with us long term, we have enough of our own dogs to tend to. So if your dog has aggressive issues and will not be wanted by other families, then we can not take it in. We are happy to work on high energy and high drive issues, manners, basic obedience commands, walking nice on a leash, which can all be issues with this breed in the wrong home and are easy to fix to get the dog into a new family, but the dog MUST be a good candidate before we can agree to take it in. 

When we place a dog it is placed in the same manner any rescue organization would place a dog.

• The dog will be fully evaluated so we know the dogs personality and what type of family it would fit in with the best.

• We will asses the dog's temperament to see what situation it will thrive in best.

• We will ensure the dog is kept up to date on all medical needs prior to being placed.  

• We will ensure the dog is spayed/neutered or require it be done.

• We will place pictures and a description of the dog and it's needs on the website.

• Any one interested in one of the rescue dogs will be interviewed and must be approved for the adoption of that particular dog.

Adoption costs are a real thing, nothing is placed for free.
The average price for a quick turn around rescue is $500. This covers some of our time evaluating the dog and providing any and all medical treatment necessary such as vaccinations, worming, flea and heart worm treatment if necessary, spay/neuter and microchips. As costs go up to care for the dogs, so must the sales price. We are not a non-profit, we do not get donations, all costs come out of our pocket and are taken away from the care of our own dogs, so we have to recover those costs when placing the dogs in new homes.

If you have a dog you are considering surrendering, please let us know and read the Surrender form below.