PROCESS: continued

4) Prepare for callers. Get your Ideal Animal Home notes and add to it a list of questions you will ask and also note expected answers as well. In addition to these notes, jot down “red flag” comments that callers might make; in other words do anything it takes to alert yourself while you are talking to the person to “wrongo” statements. You want to eliminate these people quickly, right then, during that first call. Let me repeat that; eliminate them right then, quickly, during the call; take NO prisoners. The quicker you cut them off, the less investment of emotions/stress you have in this person, and the more available time you have for the “true” companion of this animal. Do not fall into the trap of trying to convert a bad candidate into a good one. This is not your job; it is THEIR job to be a good candidate in the first place. Let them spend a few more years learning how to do that. It is your job to wait for the “true” companion of this animal to call you.

The following are examples based on actual animal adoption conversations. They run the gamut from obvious to subtle. Learn to hear the subtle statements:

Caller: “Hi, I’m calling about the rabbit.”
You: “Yes, thanks for calling. What questions can I answer for you?”
Caller: “Can you tell me how old it is?”
You: “We think he’s about 1 – 2 years old.”
Caller: “Oh…I wanted a baby.”
You: “Why is that?”
Caller: “Well, since it’s going to be a birthday gift for my daughter.”
You: “Oh, well that’s not possible with this bunny anyway. You should never give any animal as a gift as a matter of fact. Wait until after the birthday, when the excitement has worn off, then the animal has the benefit of everyone’s full attention…give me a call afterward if you are still interested. Thanks for calling.”
Hang up – don’t press

Caller: “Hi, I’m calling about the rabbit.”
You: “Thanks for calling. What questions can I answer for you?”
Caller: “What color is he?”
You: “He is brown with a little white here and there…why do you ask?”
Caller: “Oh Good! I wanted a brown rabbit…my room is painted in a chocolate color.”
You: “Oh I’m sorry, my husband just reminded me he is solid black…I was thinking of my sister’s rabbit. Thanks for calling anyway.”
Lost cause: Hang-up right then and there.

Caller: “You still got the rabbit?”
You: “Yes I do.”
Caller: “What’s your address?”
You: “Wouldn’t you like to ask me some questions about him first?”
Caller: “Well, I’m just calling for my son so I can tell him where to come and see it.”
You: “Oh, how old is your son?”
Caller: “Oh, he’s grown…he doesn’t live with me.”
You: “Oh, well could you have your son call me directly then? I would prefer to speak directly to the person interested…thanks for calling.”
Hang up – don’t press

Caller: “Hi, I’m calling about the rabbit.”
You: “Thanks for calling. What questions can I answer for you?”
Caller: “Is he friendly?”
You: “Yes, he’s very friendly?”
Caller: “How about with children, does he like children?”
You: “Yes, my niece and nephew have been over many times to play with him…they enjoyed each other very much…How old are your children?”
Caller: “I have a son, 8.”
You: “How about other animals?”
Caller; “No, no other animals…I had many animals when I was a kid though…so did my husband. It was a great learning experience.”
You: “Oh? What kinds of pets did you have?”
Caller: “We had all kinds…we both grew up on farms.”
You: “Did you have pets though…you know…in the house?”
Caller: “No, they all lived outside…the dogs, the cats…all outside.”
You: “So it’s OK now for you to have an animal inside the house?”
Caller: “Well, that’s why we want a rabbit. He’ll be in a cage, you know, and in my son’s room…”
You: “In your son’s room…you mean all the time?”
Caller: “Well yeah…that’s how he’s going learn responsibility. He’s at that age now where it’s time for him to learn responsibility.”
You: “What’s going to happen when he ‘forgets’ to feed the bunny or clean the cage?”
Caller: “He’s got a chore list on the wall of his room that he has to check off every day…he’s just going to add that to the list.”
You: “How will you know for sure that those things are being done every day if it’s in his room…anyway he can just make check marks without actually doing the chores.”
Caller: “Oh, I go into his room every once in awhile to make sure the chores are actually being done.”
You: “And if you find that he hasn’t done them…?”
Caller: “He gets punished of course! He gets punished until he does them…that’s all.”
You: “I’m sorry; I don’t think this situation will work out with this bunny. We are looking for a home for him where he will be living in the most active room of the house and all family members can participate in his care as well as the enjoyment of his company. Thanks anyway for calling.”
Lost cause: Hang-up right then and there.

Caller: “Hi, I’m calling about the rabbit.”
You: “What questions can I answer for you?”
Caller: “Is he friendly?”
You: “Yes, he’s very friendly?”
Caller: “Can you tell me how old it is?”
You: “We think he’s about 1 – 2 years old.”
Caller: “Oh, then he’ll live for a long time yet…is he cute?”
You: “Yes he is as a matter of fact.”
Caller: “That’s great! He sounds perfect! I love him already!”
You: “You haven’t even seen him yet!”
Caller: “I don’t care. I know he’ll be adorable.”
You: “Do you mind if we talk a little more about it?”
Caller: “No…go ahead.”
You: “Have you had animals before?”
Caller: “Oh yeah…lots.”
You: “Can you tell me about that?”
Caller: “When I lived at home we had dogs, cats, birds, guinea pigs, rabbits….even a snake!”
You: “Did you take care of all these yourself?”
Caller: “Sometimes…also my brother did sometimes, and my sister too. Mostly my mom took care of them.”
You: “So were any of these pets ‘just yours’ only.”
Caller: “They were all of ours…really.”
You: “So can you tell me what happened to them…?”
Caller: “Oh yeah, well Sparky…he had cancer I don’t know what kind it was, but my mom took really good care of him. We still have Lulu…I got her for my birthday 4 years ago, and Punky…he became a companion for Lulu since she didn’t have anyone left to play with”
You: “I see. So where are you living now?”
Caller: “I just moved to this animal-friendly apt. over here by ASU. It’s a totally nice place…everybody has pets here! Everybody! Oh…by the way, I have the landlord’s phone # right here so you can call and check their policy about animals if you want. I’ve already given him the deposit and everything. I am sooooo ready for this!”
You: “OK…great…you can hold on to that and give it to me in a minute…so you’re a college student?”
Caller: “Yeah, I’m going to start my sophomore year in the fall. So I’ll have this whole summer to bond with my new little baby.
You: “So you don’t have a job then?”
Caller: “No, I do have a job. I work at the bookstore on campus. It’s really great….I can just walk over to my job from class. I don’t have to waste gas. I don’t even have to come home to change or anything. So when can I come to see the bunny…does he have a name yet? What’s your address?”
You: “That’s great about the job. So are you a part-time student then…?”
Caller: “Oh no…I have to maintain full-time status to get my scholarship every semester. And a B average too….or I don’t get it. See, so I have enough money to buy the little guy his food and everything.”
You: “Wow, you sound like you are pretty busy!”
Caller: “I know. Sometimes I don’t get home until like midnight. That’s why like last year when I had Punky here I had to take him to my mom’s because he got sick. I don’t know what was wrong with him. I didn’t have time to take him to the doctor’s or anything. My mom said it was OK since Lulu needed a companion anyway…”
You: “Ok, I’ve heard everything I need to make a decision. I thank you very much for calling, but it doesn’t sound like you are ready to take on the responsibility of caring for an animal yet.”
Caller: “What do you mean? I would love him like my very own baby.”
You: “I don’t doubt that. But he needs more attention than you are able to give right now. After you start back up at school, you won't even have time on the weekends for a pet. Plus, you need to learn how to successfully stop relying on your mom to bail you out concerning your pets…then you might be really ready. Perhaps when you are finished with school you’ll be ready. Again, thanks anyway. Bye now.”

The more that you get the caller to say to you, the more you learn about what's really going on in their lives. It may seem hard, but even when you have a long conversation and really get to know the person, you still have to remind yourself that you are doing this for the benefit of this animal you have under your care who is depending on you completely for placement in a good home. The objective here is not just a good home, but a compatible match. Also, you are looking for the home that will be the last one on the list for this animal. You want this home to last as long as the natural lifetime of this pet. It is probably a truism that you will be talking to a lot of people who are wrong for this animal, before you get a trickle of an idea that you might have the right one in the next call:

Caller: “Hi, I’m calling about the rabbit.”
You: “Yes, thanks for calling. What questions can I answer for you?”
Caller: “Is he really friendly?”
You: “Yes, he’s very friendly?”
Caller: “How about with children, does he like children?”
You: “Yes, my niece and nephew have been over many times to play with him…they enjoyed each other very much. How old are your children?”
Caller: “I have a boy 8, and a girl 10.”
You: “What a coincidence! My niece and nephew are the exact same ages!”
Caller: “Do have a cage for him that I can buy with him?”
You: “Yes, we can include his cage for a reasonable amount…do you want all the dishes and stuff too…or do you have all that stuff already?”
Caller: “Oh yes, if that would be possible?”
You: “Have you ever had a rabbit before”?
Caller: “We had one last year…he died…so we waited awhile to make sure we
wanted another one.”
You: “What did he die of?”
Caller: “One of our other dogs got a hold of him…we just didn’t get to them in time. It was so sad. It was our fault because we weren’t keeping him in a cage. He was just loose around the house. We thought he would like it better that way. So we learned our lesson. As long as we have a dog we won’t be doing that again.”
You: “Well that’s good, but where will you be keeping the cage?”
Caller: “We’ll probably keep it up high on a counter or a desk, most likely in a room where we all can keep an eye on him too.”
You: “Do you have any other animals?”
Caller: “No just one dog now. The one who did that before is deceased.”
You: “Okay, let’s talk more...”

Don't dismiss a caller because of a mistake if it seems that they learned from it. We've all been there, right? However, you may still get a better candidate calling:

Caller: “Do you still have the bunny?”
You: “Yes. Can I answer some questions about him for you?”
Caller: “Well, we have been reading a lot of material about rabbits, and a few other animals too. But we think that a bunny would be the perfect pet for us. But we’re undecided if we should get a boy or a girl. What do you think?”
You: “Well it’s always a matter of personal choice. Some people like girls best…some boys. I think that if you have a good connection with the animal it shouldn’t matter. Have you had any pets before now?”
Caller: “No this will be our first as a family. Our girls are older now; 10 and 12. They have learned a lot of responsibility already. But we have also taken them to lots of animal-related events, you know…to see how they interact with them. Also, my brother in Phoenix always has all kinds of pets…well we always did as kids too, and the girls have helped pet sit them when they go on trips. They have done very well with that. Of course if they needed us to help with that…they could always count on us to help.”
You: “So are your daughters going to be the only ones taking care of the pet?”
Caller: “Oh no, no, no…we’ll all participate. This is a family endeavor. If one of us didn’t want to participate…we wouldn’t be getting one at all.”
You: “So what sort of place do you live in?”
Caller: “We live in a 3-bedroom house…that we own. We’ve been here for about 5 years now.”
You: “Where would you keep the rabbit?”
Caller: “If you’ve got a spare cage and stuff we’d be glad to buy that off of you. Or if not we’ll get a cage and everything he needs beforehand. Oh…do you mean in the house?”
You: “Yes.”
Caller: “Ok, we were thinking of the kitchen area or the family room. Somewhere where we can see him all the time, and he can see us.”
You: “Ok…this sounds good. When would you like to come and see him? Can you come with the whole family?”

Either of these last two callers could be the best home for the bunny in question. This is not a "first come, first serve" situation however. They still have other tests they must pass before you make your decision. They'll first make a visit to you, then you'll make a visit to them. We'll talk more about this in the next few posts.