About Us
100% Volunteer Organization
100% Volunteer Organization
100% Volunteer Organization
The true heart of your rescue is our volunteers. They show us each day was true love in action is.
100% For the Dogs
100% Volunteer Organization
100% Volunteer Organization
This junior volunteer donated her allowance to help Sam an Aussie mix.
All of the money donated goes to the care of the dogs in our rescue.
100% Commitment
100% Volunteer Organization
100% Commitment
We promise to provided continued care should the need arise.
We consider each dogs individual needs when placing in a forever home.
Sheltie Care & Advice
Coastal Sheltie Rescue Virginia
How Responsible Dog Rescue Really Works
People often have questions about rescue dogs, adoption, fees, puppies, breeders and how placement decisions are made. After decades in rescue, we have learned that responsible rescue is about much more than finding a dog a home. It is about finding the right home for that individual dog. At Coastal Sheltie and Collie Rescue in Virginia, we believe the more people understand how responsible rescue works, the better the outcome is for both dogs and families.
Do rescue dogs usually have behavioral problems?
No. Dogs enter rescue for countless reasons, and very often the reason has nothing to do with the dog. An owner may become seriously ill. A family may experience a financial crisis or housing change. An elderly owner may no longer be physically able to care for a dog they deeply love. Sometimes work schedules change. Sometimes there is a death in the family. Sometimes a dog simply finds himself caught in circumstances he did not create.
Some rescue dogs do arrive frightened, undersocialized or in need of training. Others arrive beautifully trained, deeply loved and confused about why their world suddenly changed. That is why we evaluate the dog in front of us rather than assuming his past determines his future.
Why doesn't Coastal simply place a dog with the first good applicant?
Because responsible rescue is about finding the right home, not simply finding a home. Coastal Sheltie and Collie Rescue in Virginia routinely receives more applications than we have dogs available. Our responsibility is to the individual dog, and sometimes that means telling a wonderful applicant that a particular dog is simply not the right match.
Our dogs live in private foster homes whenever possible. That allows us to learn things that are difficult to determine in a kennel environment. Does the dog enjoy other dogs? Does she need another dog for confidence? Is he comfortable being left alone? Does she become overwhelmed by children or a busy household? Does he need a fenced yard? Is she happiest with an active family or would she rather spend her afternoons sleeping beside someone on the sofa?
We look at the whole picture. A successful adoption is not about getting a dog out the door quickly. It is about making a match that still makes sense years later.
Does rescue always have puppies?
No. Puppies come into rescue, but they are not the majority of the dogs we receive. Many Shelties and Collies entering rescue are adolescents, adults or seniors. Occasionally we have very young puppies, but anyone who is only interested in a very young Sheltie or Collie may be waiting a long time.
And sometimes the dog people thought they wanted is not actually the dog that best fits their life. A well matched adult dog can be an extraordinary companion. With an adult dog, we often have a much clearer picture of size, personality, energy level and temperament than we would with a young puppy.
Why are adoption fees $485 to $585?
This is one of the questions people ask most often, and I think it deserves an honest answer. Coastal Sheltie and Collie Rescue in Virginia is not a city shelter. We are not supported by a municipality, a taxpayer funded animal control program or a large government budget. We are donation driven.
We are a small but mighty group of volunteers trying to stretch every donated dollar as far as it will go, and the reality is that the cost of responsible dog ownership and veterinary medicine has increased enormously. Anyone who has owned animals for a number of years has watched it happen. A veterinary visit that once cost around $40 may now cost considerably more. A rabies vaccination that years ago might have been $10 or $15 can now be many times that amount depending on where it is administered. Spay and neuter costs have risen dramatically as well. Even when rescue pricing or a lower cost clinic is available, surgery can easily cost several hundred dollars. When a dog needs to be altered through a full service veterinary hospital instead, we may be looking at $750, $800 or more.
And that is only one piece of getting a dog ready for adoption. A rescue dog may also need vaccinations, a heartworm and tick borne disease screening, flea and tick prevention, heartworm prevention, deworming, medications, collars, leashes, food, shampoo, grooming and routine veterinary examinations. We generally use a 4DX screening rather than looking only for heartworm because we also need to know whether a dog has been exposed to several important tick borne diseases. In our area, that testing alone can run approximately $85 to $100.
Then there are the dogs who need more. Dental work, bloodwork, X rays, ultrasounds, specialty consultations, emergency hospitalization, treatment for infections, treatment for heartworm or tick borne disease, surgery and medications for chronic conditions can quickly add hundreds or thousands of dollars to the cost of one dog before adoption is even a consideration.
We cannot ask our veterinarians to work for free. We would never walk into our own doctor's office and expect the physician, nurses, pharmacy and laboratory to provide everything at no charge simply because the patient needs help. Veterinary professionals have staff, buildings, equipment, medications, insurance and operating expenses too. Larger organizations may have municipal contracts, tax support, major corporate funding or in house veterinary services. We do not. We have volunteers, foster homes, donations and people who believe the dogs are worth helping.
So when someone asks whether $485 or $585 is a lot for an adoption fee, my answer is that in today's world, it often does not even represent what it costs to get that dog through routine veterinary care and ready for adoption.
There is another part of this conversation that matters. We are rescue. These dogs have already lost one home, and sometimes more than one. We do not want to rescue them twice. Our responsibility is to place them with families who are emotionally prepared to love them and financially prepared for normal dog ownership.
That does not mean someone has to be wealthy. It does mean understanding that veterinary care, prevention and good nutrition cost money. Heartworm prevention is not optional to us. Flea and tick prevention is not something we want skipped because money became tight that month. Annual examinations matter. Dental care may eventually be needed. Dogs get sick. Dogs grow old. Emergencies happen.
When we evaluate an adopter, we are not looking for millionaires. We are looking for people who understand what responsible dog ownership costs today and who have thought about how they will provide that care not only this month, but years from now. We also encourage families to plan ahead, whether that means maintaining savings for veterinary care, considering pet insurance while a dog is healthy, purchasing preventive medications responsibly or simply building pet expenses into the household budget.
Adoption fees are one part of keeping this rescue functioning. They never cover everything. Donations make up the difference, and every dollar that comes into Coastal Sheltie and Collie Rescue in Virginia helps us care for the dog who is here today and be able to say yes to the one who needs us tomorrow.
Does breed rescue support responsible breeders?
Absolutely. Responsible rescue and responsible breeding are not enemies. Coastal Sheltie and Collie Rescue in Virginia supports ethical breeders who health test, carefully plan their litters, properly socialize their puppies, screen potential homes and remain responsible for the dogs they produce throughout their lives.
If someone has decided that a responsibly bred Sheltie or Collie puppy is the right choice for their family, we would much rather help them understand how to identify an ethical breeder than see them purchase from a puppy mill, broker or irresponsible breeder. What we oppose is breeding that places profit or convenience ahead of the welfare of the dogs.
We are equally cautious about any rescue or placement system that moves large numbers of dogs quickly without adequately evaluating the individual dog or the home receiving that dog. Dogs are not inventory. Every dog deserves to be understood before being placed.
What responsible rescue really means
Rescue is not simply moving a dog from one address to another. It is learning who that dog is. It is providing medical care when needed, giving frightened dogs time to decompress, learning what makes them comfortable and what frightens them, understanding their energy level and relationships with other animals, and determining the type of household in which they are most likely to thrive.
Then it is finding the person or family whose life fits that dog. Sometimes that happens quickly. Sometimes it takes time. We are comfortable taking the time.
At Coastal Sheltie and Collie Rescue in Virginia, our goal has never been the greatest number of adoptions. Our goal is the greatest number of successful ones.
Is a Sheltie Right for Me?
