Saw this on Facebook - most of the dog posts are interchangeable with cats.
So glad our rescue doesn't have an answer machine!
In the last few weeks I've had :-
Someone in the car with their 2 cats looking for the premises as they were moving the next day and couldn't take their cats.
A lady adamant that the extremely shy cat that she adopted wasn't going to 'come around' although she had only had him a week (after a very long discussion she did decide to persevere with him - he had hidden behind his bed for the first 3 weeks in rescue, which she was aware of)
Had someone on the phone demanding their cat back even though it had been rehomed 2 weeks previous.
3 kittens brought in by the police, then 3 separate people ringing up claiming they were theirs and had been stolen.
A very irate gentleman messaging through facebook, angry because the kitten he had collected had been given a name he hadn't agreed with (needed a name for vaccination records).
A RESCUERS ANSWERING MACHINE:
Hello: You have reached _________ Rescue. Due to the high volume of calls I have been receiving, please listen closely to the following options and choose the one that best describes you or your situation....
Press 1 if you have a 10-year-old dog and your 15-year-old son has suddenly become allergic and you need to find the dog a new home right away.
Press 2 if you are moving today and need to immediately place your 150 pounds, 8-year-old dog.
Press 3 if you have three dogs, had a baby and want to get rid of your dogs because you are the only person in the world to have a baby and dogs at the same time.
Press 4 if you just got a brand new puppy and your old dog is having problems adjusting so you want to get rid of the old one right away.
Press 5 if your little puppy has grown up and is no longer small and cute and you want to trade it in for a new model.
Press 6 if you want an unpaid volunteer to come to your home TODAY and pick up the dog you no longer want.
Press 7 if you have been feeding and caring for a "stray" for the last three years, are moving and suddenly determine it's not your dog.
Press 8 if your dog is sick and needs a vet but you need the money for your vacation.
Press 9 if you are elderly and want to adopt a cute puppy who is not active and is going to outlive you.
Press 10 if your relative has died and you don't want to care for their elderly dog because it doesn't fit your lifestyle.
Press 14 if you are calling at 6 a.m. to make sure you wake me up before I have to go to work so you can drop a dog off on your way to work.
Press 15 to leave me an anonymous garbled message, letting me know you have left a dog in my yard in the middle of January, which is in fact, better than just leaving the dog with no message.
Press 16 if you are going to get angry because I am not going to take your dog that you have had for fifteen years because it is not my responsibility.
Press 17 if you are going to threaten to take your ten-year-old dog to be euthanized because I won't take it.
Press 18 if you're going to get angry because the volunteers had the audacity to go on vacation and leave the dogs in the care of a trusted volunteer who is not authorized to take your personal pet.
Press 19 if you want one of my PERFECTLY trained, housebroken, kid and cat-friendly purebred dogs that I have an abundance of.
Press 20 if you want me to take your dog that has a slight aggression problem, i.e. has only killed your neighbor's cats.
Press 21 if you have already called once and been told I don't take personal surrenders but thought you would get a different person this time with a different answer.
Press 22 if you want me to use space that would go to a stray to board your personal dog while you are on vacation, free of charge, of course.
Press 23 if it is Christmas Eve or Easter morning and you want me to deliver an eight-week-old puppy to your house by 6:30 am before your kids wake up.
Press 24 if you have bought your children a duckling, chick or baby bunny for Easter and it is now Christmas and no longer cute.
Press 25 if you want me to take your female dog who has already had ten litters, but I can't spay her because she is pregnant again and it is against your religion.
Press 26 if you're lying to make one of my younger volunteers feel bad and take your personal pet off your hands.
Press 27 if your cat is biting and not using the litter box because it is declawed, but you are not willing to accept the responsibility that the cat's behavior is altered because of your nice furniture.
Press 28 if your two-year-old male dog is marking all over your house, but you just haven't gotten around to having him neutered.
Press 29 if you previously had an outdoor only dog and are calling because she is suddenly pregnant.
Press 30 if you have done "everything" to housebreak your dog and have had no success but you don't want to crate the dog because it is cruel.
Press 31 if you didn't listen to the message asking for an evening phone number and you left your work number when all volunteers are also working and you are angry because no one called you back.
Press 32 if you need a puppy immediately and cannot wait because today is your daughter's birthday and you forgot when she was born.
Press 33 if your dog's coat doesn't match your new furniture and you need a different color or breed.
Press 34 if your new love doesn't like your dog and you are too stupid to get rid of the new friend (who will dump you in the next month anyway) instead of the dog.
Press 35 if you went through all these 'options' and didn't hear enough. This press will connect you to the sounds of tears being shed by me or one of my fellow Rescuer's/volunteers who is holding a discarded old dog while the vet mercifully frees him from the grief of missing his family.
