We are a 501c3 non-profit dedicated to raising visibility, awareness and resources for homeless and in-need animals in and around Rhode Island. Through our networking and fundraising initiatives, we aim to support local animal shelters and rescues; help provide necessary medical and training resources for hard-to-place animals; as well as aid pets whose owners are struggling to care for them due to financial or medical hardships. Can you take my pet that I need to rehome? We do not have a physical location or the means to personally take your pet. We can give you guidance in terms of organizations you can try and recommendations on the best way to go about trying to find a safe and responsible place for your pet, but we cannot directly take or rehome your pet for you. What happens if I need to rehome my pet? First and foremost we will try to help you find a rescue that can take your pet (if you've exhausted all options for keeping them). We do this because rescues have experience and can take the time to properly screen potential adopters and also make sure pets are UTD on shots, fixed and, in many cases, microchipped for safety. There are MANY benefits of working with a rescue rather than trying to rehome a pet yourself, such as the support they provide to new adopters and the fact that any reputable rescue will take one of their dogs or cats back ANY time in the future if necessary. Most rescues are very full and there are often waiting lists, so unfortunately we’re not always able to find a rescue but our volunteers put their time & effort in to trying. We are NOT a site like Craig’s List that just posts pets for direct rehoming or sale. But please note, if a rescue agrees to take your pet you will have to surrender them to the rescue meaning that the dog or cat becomes part of the rescue and no longer belongs to you. We understand this is emotional for many owners -as it should be- but we strongly recommend that working with a rescue is best for your pet in the long run if you can’t keep them. The rescue might agree to give you photos and updates, but you will NOT be involved in the actual adoption process or decision and likely won’t have any direct contact with the new family. If this is something you are not willing to do, please let us know up front so we don’t pursue rescues on your behalf. Can I adopt a pet from you? No, the pets shared on our page are all being networked for other shelters, rescues or, sometimes, owners that need help to rehome. We do our best to be helpful and answer questions based on what we know, but that is often limited. The correct contact information is generally in the post and any questions or adoption inquiries should be addressed directly with the organization that has the pet you are interested in. In the rare case someone asks us not to share their contact info publicly, you may see that we are listed as the contact in which case you can private message us for more information on next steps. Who Runs RI Pet Network? RI Pet Network was started in 2010 by a local animal lover as a way to network and connect various resources across RI to help shelter pets and homeless animals. It has grown over the years and is now overseen by a small team who met while volunteering at various shelters and rescues. We currently have five page admins and over 9,000 members of our Facebook community. Although RI Pet Network itself is not a rescue, all of our members have been actively involved in rescue through their involvement with other organizations in our communities. Many of us foster and may share our fosters on this page, but they are not “RI Pet Network fosters”, we are fostering through rescues or shelters as specified and follow their adoption procedures. How Can I Help? Sharing our page and our posts with your friends and family helps increase visibility for all of these animals and keeps our community growing. By simply hitting “share”, you may be saving a life. At RI Pet Network, we strongly believe in the importance of networking and have seen it work many, many times. We also encourage you to volunteer, foster, donate or adopt from some of the many shelters and rescues in our communities. If you’re looking for an organization that may be a fit for you to get involved with, feel free to contact us and we can make some suggestions. PLEASE NOTE: In most cases we do NOT know these animals personally, have not evaluated them in any way and am only passing along the descriptions and info their owners or the shelters/rescues/fosters, etc. that have them have provided. Please use your OWN discretion when deciding if they are a fit for your & your family. Thank you! Read about us in The Warwick Beacon! http://warwickonline.com/stories/social-media-networking-improves-lives-for-animals-in-need,128914
