Operational Policy

Birmingham Dogs Home cares 24 hours a day, every day of the year for stray, abandoned and relinquished dogs from across the West Midlands and South Staffordshire.  We work with nine local authorities who trust us to deliver the best possible care.

We work in partnership with local authorities and assist them in providing a first class stray dog service to the community they serve whilst also supporting them in the outreach campaigns they run in an attempt to educate the public in the importance of micro-chipping and responsible dog ownership.

Although kennelled by Birmingham Dogs Home all stray dogs remain the responsibility of the local authority finding the dog for seven days, after this responsibility through ownership is passed on to the charity. This is done regardless of condition and temperament as Birmingham Dogs Home does not pick and choose which dogs to assist. The only exception to this is any dog identified as an illegal breed i.e. Pit Bull Type, these remain the responsibility of the local authority as it is illegal (under the Dangerous Dogs Act) for such dogs to be rehomed.

Working with our veterinary partners all dogs cared for by Birmingham Dogs Home receive professional veterinary treatment, and this is judged on a case by case basis with some dogs requiring very little whilst others need months and months of intensive daily care.

Our rehoming policy is open and transparent and aims to match dogs available for rehoming with suitable loving owners. Our rehoming teams will begin the process by asking a few relevant questions, arranging a meeting with a prospective owner and the dog they are interested in, and if this is successful then a Home Visit is arranged, and if passed a date for rehoming will be agreed.

Unfortunately Birmingham Dogs Home is unable to rehome dogs that are aggressive or unpredictable as these pose a threat to staff and public alike. Dogs are also received that are in extremely poor condition which may be due to a serious ongoing illness or age, if a reasonable quality of life cannot be guaranteed for these dogs Birmingham Dogs Home will arrange for our vets to painlessly put these dogs to sleep.

All dogs that are available for rehoming will remain at one of our centres until a suitable home is found, our aim is to rehome all dogs within six months of their arrival. Birmingham Dogs Home recognises that dogs that are onsite longer than six months may become institutionalised and therefore find it much harder to re-adjust to a normal home environment.

Birmingham Dogs Home understands its role in the community and to its supporters and as such undertakes various outreach programmes with schools and other community groups, these aim to educate young people and promote responsible dog ownership within the areas we serve.

Fundraising is vital if we are to keep delivering the charitable service we provide and as such we operate various fundraising campaigns throughout the year, these involve both the general public and commercial organisations.