How to Rehome a Pet on Craigslist

Be aware of the pitfalls of rehoming a pet on Craigslist.

Rehoming a pet should never be undertaken lightly. When getting a pet, you should expect to provide a loving home for the life of the animal. For dogs in particular, you can help many behavioral issues with adequate exercise, training and neutering of the pet.



However, circumstances such as serious illness or injury, or the safety of young children, can mean that a pet must be rehomed. If you are in those circumstances and you are using Craigslist to find your pet a new family, take the time to help your pet find a loving, permanent home.

Instructions

Create and Post Your Ad

1. List your pet's good points and bad points. Don't whitewash any concerns you may have about your pet's behavior. If the pet is not good with young children, you don't want to place him in a family with toddlers.

2. Brainstorm the situation in which your pet would be successful. If your dog needs an active home, state that. If he is fearful in new situations, look for a quiet home.

3. Write your ad. Organize the content of your ad to make it easy to understand. To ensure your pet is placed in a good home, request a reasonable rehoming fee, personal and veterinary references, and a home visit. Proofread for typos or grammatical errors.

4. Photograph your pet. Remove any background clutter from the area you'll be taking the photo. Try to focus on the pet's eyes to enhance the emotional impact of the photo. If your pet has red-eye in the photo, use a photo editing tool to remove it.

5. Post your ad on Craigslist. Follow the onscreen instructions for placing the ad and uploading photos. Confirm the ad when you've received the confirmation email.

Respond to People Interested in Your Pet

1. Follow up on a promising potential adopter's references and schedule a home visit.

2. Explain your reasons or say the pet is no longer available if a potential home does not sound appropriate.

3. Remove the Craigslist ad when you have successfully rehomed your pet.

Tips & Warnings

• A well-written ad with engaging photos will attract the greatest number of potential adopters.

• If the adoption goes through, request to keep in touch with the adopter, and to visit the pet in a month or so to ensure the placement is working out for both the pet and the adopter.

• If your pet is a purebred dog, you may prefer to find a breed-specific rescue. Many of these rescues have experienced foster homes and waiting lists of potential adopters. Breed-specific rescues are often better prepared to work through any issues that are prevalent in a breed.

• If you feel uncomfortable profiting from rehoming your pet, donate the fee to a worthwhile animal shelter or rescue.

• When conducting the home visit, bring at least one friend with you. If anything about the location or the potential adopters makes you feel uncomfortable, leave immediately.

• Check personal and veterinary references before conducting the home visit. If the references aren't positive, don't conduct the home visit.

• If the potential adopter does not own her own home, request landlord contact information so you can verify that the pet is allowed.

• Request a reasonable rehoming fee to eliminate potential adopters who wish to use your pet for fighting dog bait, snake food or to sell to research laboratories.