Screening Process

If you see a dog that you would like to potentially adopt, you must first be screened in order for us to determine if the dog is a good match for you and you are a good match for the dog. All of our dogs are in the private homes of our foster volunteers and in order to respect their time and privacy, potential families must be screened before meeting a dog. HART adopts to families anywhere in Ontario as we have volunteers all over to facilitate adoptions.

Our screening process involves 4 steps and if all are successful, an applicant is approved to meet and adopt the dog if he/she meets your expectations. The process typically takes one week.

  1. Submission of an application 
  2. Telephone interview to determine suitability 
  3. Vet and personal reference check
  4. Home visit by one of our volunteers

Once approved, a meet and greet is arranged with the dog. This is when, if you have an existing dog, you would have a chance to see how the dogs got along. If all goes well, families take the dog home with them that day.

NOTE: If approved to adopt, the meet and greet will be scheduled within 7 days of your approval date. This means you will need to be available to meet the foster parents. We cannot "hold" dogs for people. It is not fair to the dog nor is it fair to other applicants.

Why So Detailed?

Because we care about our dogs of course! We want to make sure they go to the best matched homes possible. A dog is a 10-15 year commitment so ensuring a good fit is critical to the health and happiness of both the dog and the adoptive family.