Rules for using our service

By having pet listings through our Service, we are promoting your pets and organization in many ways. We request that in return, if possible, you place a link to Adopt a Pet on your organization's own website. This helps search engines direct people to our site so they can find a pet to adopt near them if they are not in your area.

We don't require 501 (c) (3) non-profit status of organizations that list pets with us. However, you must be a legitimate rescue organization. You may not engage in activities counter-productive to or inconsistent with the cause of animal rescue, including, without limitation, using Adopt a Pet to list puppies acquired from auctions or breeders. You must be in possession of any local or state-required permits necessary for your operations. You must not have any pending or confirmed animal control or criminal citations or violations.

While we admire and applaud all organizations that help animals, AdoptAPet's specific mission is to help companion animals waiting to be adopted. To that end, we will only list your animal shelters, rescue groups, and veterinary offices on Adopt a Pet if it has an ongoing pet adoption program in compliance with these Rules.

You must keep your pet listings on Adopt a Pet current and accurate, and promptly remove listings of pets that are no longer available for adoption.

You must have a valid email address or phone number for pet inquiries listed with your account at all times, and you must respond to all pet inquiries made by the public. We kindly ask you to treat members of the public, especially those Users who find you through Adopt a Pet, in a courteous fashion. Rudeness hurts the cause of pet adoptions and sends potential Users to breeders and pet stores. If you get more inquiries than you can respond to, or if you can't respond to certain inquiries at all (out of state, for example), we require that you have your voicemail or email automatically give the public with information regarding the scope of your services so they do not expect to hear back from you!

Adopt a Pet is a family-friendly site. All pet postings and information about your organization viewable by the public must be suitable for people of all ages. No profanity or content unsuitable for children, or any content which is otherwise offensive or discriminatory, is allowed. We want to make sure that pet adoption is perceived as a fun, positive thing for everybody!

Only pets that are available for adoption may be posted on Adopt a Pet. You cannot post missing or deceased pets, or pets which have already been adopted.

Your pet postings through the Service about breeds, ages, and all other information must be true and accurate. Further, when dealing with Users, you must disclose any known health or behavior issues about the pets.

You may not charge Users an Application Fee if they find your pet via Adopt a Pet. An “Application Fee” is a non-refundable fee charged to submit an application to adopt the pet, even if the application is not approved or the User does not adopt. You may charge Users an adoption fee when the application is accepted and the adoption is complete.

If you maintain multiple accounts for separate locations on Adopt a Pet, you may not post the same pets within 250 miles of each other.

Your organization may only post pets that are directly in your care, or that you've received permission to post. If you are posting pets cared for by another organization or individual without their permission, you must immediately remove those postings or we may suspend or deactivate your account.

According to the American Veterinary Medical Association, "Onychectomy [cat declawing] is an amputation and should be regarded as a major surgery." “Cat Declawing” means onychectomy or other similar surgery that removes distal phalanges, or end bones, of the cat's toes. There are other benign ways to deal with cat clawing issues when they arise (clipping nails, nail caps, covering furniture, etc.) that do not involve Cat Declawing which prevents a cat from engaging in a natural behavior. There is also evidence that declawed cats are more likely to not use a litter box, which is one of the most common reasons people relinquish cats to shelters. If a cat enters your organization's care already declawed, they can be placed for adoption on Adopt a Pet. But you may not post any content that encourages elective (not medically needed) Cat Declawing, nor may you indirectly or explicitly encourage or undertake this elective Cat Declawing when posting cats through our Service, or require Cat Declawing as a prerequisite to participating in your posts.

From time to time, we need to email you notifications about changes to the Service, important new features, and other relevant information. By creating an account to post pets for adoption through our Service, you agree to receive these emails from us.

You must at all times operate your organization in accordance with all applicable local, state and federal rules and laws.

We may remove your account or any post from the Service if you: (i) violate any of the Rules or the Terms of Service; (ii) defraud a potential User financially or otherwise; (iii) make untrue or inaccurate claims; (iv) are convicted of animal cruelty, neglect, or related crimes; or (v) violate the terms of any adoption contract you provide to a User. Notwithstanding the foregoing, we reserve the right to remove your account(s) for any other reason at our sole and absolute discretion.