Question 1

What Are Colorado Puppy Rescue's "Credentials?"

Answer

Colorado Puppy Rescue has been licensed with PACFA for almost eleven years and is subject to annual inspections. As a 501(c)3 non-profit, CPR can accept tax deductible donations. Colorado Puppy Rescue's volunteers are allowed into every aspect of the organization and can attest to our genuine care and love for our puppy's health and well-being. Many CPR adopters add comments and follow us on Facebook. It is easy to find a previous adopter who can give a shining star recommendation or testimonial.

Question 2

What Is Colorado Puppy Rescue?

Answer

Colorado Puppy Rescue is a non-profit, no-kill rescue dedicated to saving young puppies. We provide love, safety, and health care for our puppies while we search for their new forever family. A CPR puppy is always a CPR puppy. We adopt exclusively out of the Hopeful Hound adoption center in Aurora and work side by side with trainers to make your adoption experience a good one.
Since CPR fosters first opened their homes in 2005, our CPR community has helped us rescue and find homes for over 16,000 puppies. We value our volunteers and adopters tremendously; we could not run the rescue without them. Thank you for considering Colorado Puppy Rescue and helping those who cannot help themselves.

Question 3

Where Does Colorado Puppy Rescue Get Puppies?

Answer

Our puppies come from rural shelters & rescues in Colorado, New Mexico, Arizona and Texas. The Humane Society of Deaf Smith County, Stray Hearts Animal Shelter, The Animal Welfare Coalition of Northern New Mexico, Angel Fire Animal Rescue, Conour Animal Shelter and Walsenberg Animal Control are just a few of our rescue partners. Our partner rescues and shelters transfer puppies to CPR because shelters in rural areas often do not have the funding, the facilities, the personnel, or the population to adopt. Each of our partner rescues and shelters can explain their individual communities and challenges better than we can. This is a link to a letter from Cuba Animal Welfare.
Our partners contact us when our support is needed and our driver picks up the puppies. Because we pick up our puppies from shelters and rescues, we do not usually see the puppies' parents.
The truth is that the puppies transferred to Colorado Puppy Rescue were not bred for profit. They were a mistake and unwanted from the start. Our partner shelters and rescues often pick up young puppies dropped off on the side of the road, find them left in boxes in front of the shelter door or accept the puppies as relinquishment. Much of the time dog owners love their dog, they put money into keeping their dog healthy and trained, they just don’t want the puppies. Here is a link to a Facebook post from the Humane Society of Deaf Smith County for just such an instance.
Our partner, Stray Hearts Animal Shelter in Taos, NM has a program called Last Litter. People with puppies can relinquish them to the shelter and then the shelter will spay the mama for free so that the dog and her owner will not have another litter of unwanted puppies. We have found homes for many puppies from the Last Litter program.
Sometimes shelters choose to separate mom and pups because of issues the mom is going through. Mom’s milk may have gone bad or Mom might hurt her puppies like in Tyson’s case, and the shelter doesn’t want to chance sending her with her pups. The moms that come in with their puppies or give birth to pups while in our care stay in foster homes with their puppies until we have found homes for the pups, her milk dries up, and she is spayed. Then we start the process of finding her a home as well. Our moms stay in our care for several weeks after their pups find homes. We almost always have at least one adult dog in our foster system.
Whatever the case might be, rest assured that this is a joint effort and everyone involved in the rescue process wants mom and puppies to have the best life possible. That’s why we all do this.

Question 4

How Much Is The Adoption Fee?

Answer

In order to continue to rescue puppies, we request an adoption fee. Adoption fees generally range from $300-$400. This does not include the spay/neuter deposit. To find out more about the spay/neuter deposit please visit our Spay/Neuter page. See our Unexpected Expenses page as well to truly understand the potential cost associated with adopting a puppy.

Question 5

Do You Have An Application?

Answer

Yes, we have an online application that must be filled out prior to the event. This application can be found at https://www.coloradopuppy.org/online-application.

Question 6

Have The Puppies Had Shots?

Answer

Yes. All puppies receive current vaccinations, deworming, and kennel cough vaccine. Most puppies over 12 weeks old have received their rabies vaccine. These vaccines are just the start. Dogs need vaccines throughout their lives.

Question 7

Do Puppies Get a Vet Check?

Answer

All of CPR's puppies are given a full examination by our veterinarian prior to adoption. Dr. Brown at Raton Veterinary Clinic in Raton, NM are dedicated to the health and welfare of our puppies. Our adopters are still encouraged to ask their vet for a free wellness checkup. Colorado Puppy Rescue would never knowingly adopt an ill puppy, but just in case, an illness clause is included in our adoption contract.

Question 8

Can My Dog Meet The Puppy?

Answer

Absolutely. We may ask you to leave your dog with a friend outside until you find your new puppy; this helps to cut down on distractions for our puppies. Make sure that dog is current on all vaccines. We want Colorado Puppy Rescue puppies and your dog to stay as healthy as possible. Due to COVID this has beed modified. Please visit our How to Adopt page for the most up to date information on the adoption process.

Question 9

How Do You Know What Breeds The Puppies Are?

Answer

Most of our puppies are considered mutts. Mixed Mutts are dogs that are descended from many generations of mixes. They are typically light brown or black and weigh about 40 lb. They typically stand between 15 and 23 inches tall at the withers. Many people enjoy owning mixed-breeds, valuing their unique appearance and characteristics. If you are looking for a pure bred puppy for your family, we are not the place for you. We rarely receive pure bred puppies because the puppies we get were not bred for profit. They were accidents. If you are looking for a pure bred puppy for your family, click HERE for a list of PACFA licensed Colorado breeders.
Sometimes we will have the mother or on rare occasions, our driver will see a picture of the mother. However, in most situations at CPR (like other rescues and shelters), the breeds and ages are best guess based on coat, color, teeth, tail, size, and feet. We use years of experience, books, and the opinions of volunteers to help us. Sometimes we just get it wrong and sometimes the puppies' looks can change as they grow. See our "Before and After" photos. For more information on Mixed Breeds click here.

Question 10

I Don't See The Puppy I Want, What Do I Do?

Answer

Colorado Puppy Rescue receives new arrivals every week. View our web site at www.coloradopuppy.org for updates. Also try looking for your new puppy www.adoptapet.com.

Question 11

My Puppy Isn't Working Out, What Do I Do?

Answer

Try our Pet Resources page first. You may return your puppy during the first week for a refund of your adoption fee. We want you to keep in mind that the puppy needs time to adjust to you and your home. For this reason, Colorado Puppy Rescue will not offer a refund for the first three days after adoption. Of course, puppies adopted at Colorado Puppy Rescue can always be returned to us. Return policies will be reviewed with you at time of adoption.

While a Colorado Puppy Rescue pup is always a Colorado Puppy Rescue pup, if the pup is outside of our refund period you can try adopt by owner as well. Here is the resource for Adopt By Owner services.

Question 12

I Can't Come To The Adoption Event, What Do I Do?

Answer

We do not allow viewing and adoption outside of adoption events. We occasionally have adoption events during the week if we have more than five carry-over puppies. Keep an eye on our web page on Saturday evenings to see if we will hold a Sunday or mid-week adoption and which puppies will be there.

Question 13

Can I Put A Hold On A Puppy?

Answer

No. Colorado Puppy Rescue does not take requests. Due to our limited foster homes, we cannot hold puppies for anyone, nor can we board puppies after they are adopted. We do not ship out of state. You must be 21 years or older to adopt from Colorado Puppy Rescue and attend the adoption event virtually in person. We also do not allow puppies to be purchased to be given as gifts.

Question 14

What Happens To a Puppy That Doesn't Find A Home?

Answer

Puppies that do not find a family at our adoption event will go back home to stay with fosters until our next adoption event.

Question 15

How Does The Breed Ban Impact Colorado Puppy Rescue?

Answer

Colorado Puppy Rescue's home office is located in Aurora, CO.
On October 24, 2005, The Aurora City Council passed an ordinance (Ordinance Sec 14-75) prohibiting the following breeds of dogs and/or any dog exhibiting distinguishing characteristics which substantially conform to the standards for any of these breeds: American Pit Bull Terrier American Staffordshire Terrier Staffordshire Bull Terrier
We are no longer able to accept the above breeds into our rescue.

Question 16

I want to adopt a puppy so I can breed with another dog

Answer

Colorado State Law 35-80-106.4 requires dogs adopted from rescues to be spayed or neutered. Colorado Puppy Rescue takes a $50 deposit to ensure that our adopters follow the law. We will not adopt to anyone who is intent on breeding a puppy adopted from our rescue.

Question 17

I have a long drive to get to your event. Can you guarantee my puppy will be there?

Answer

It's our policy to encourage adopters to find pets at their local rescues and shelters. Not only is the drive to adopt a puppy stressful. What if this puppy doesn't work out? What if she gets sick? You have a long way to travel before we can help you.

We do not reserve puppies for any reason and will not ship puppies out of state for adoption.

Question 18

I have a newborn baby and want to get a puppy. Can I adopt from Colorado Puppy Rescue?

Answer

It is our policy that adopters must wait until a baby is 6 months or older to bring one of our puppies into their household.

Frequently Asked Questions