Give Back Day

I know when I have a puppy, people typically come up and ask us if they are allowed to pet them. I usually will say yes and to fill the silence people will always do one of two things; talk to my puppy or ask me questions. My puppy usually gets the rundown of how cute they are or how sweet they are. We will sometimes get praise on how calm they are. When people talk to me, I usually get asked a lot questions. Basic questions are usually how old are they, what breed are they, what's their name, are they in training and finally, how do you give them back?

I want to explain to you what give back day is like.


Give back day is one of the hardest things to do in the world. This has been your puppy to care for and look after. You've fallen in love and know who they are and what they can do. You're nervous of seeing them fail or not be able to do what they were meant to do. You sit with them throughout the meeting. Everyone goes over problems with their puppies and what you can do to fix them. You know your puppy is perfect (at least in your eyes). You're tearing up about how much you two have gone through. You've had them since they were a baby and now they are all grown up.

The meeting is starting to wind down. You're starting to think about what is about to happen.

The meeting ends. The people in charge start handing out papers for your new puppy. You first look at the name; is it cool, interesting, dumb? You then look at their date of birth, are they fixed, their breed, and everything else listed on the form. You look down to your current puppy thinking that no one will be able to replace them.

The people in charge start asking who is ready to go back. You're thinking "I'm never going to be ready." You give your puppy one last hug and one last goodbye wishing them good luck. You start to head toward the front of the room to hand them off. It's heartbreaking to watch your baby walk away. They look back at you and you're about to lose it.

The rest all go back and everyone is silently crying to themselves or talking about the new ones about to come out.

The first puppy comes out. It's a tiny little thing. Everyone immediately lights up. The mood of the room suddenly lifts. You're thinking about the loss of one of your best friends but, you know that they are off to do great things and you have a new puppy to take care of. You have to show them what to do so they can live up to the legacy of the ones before.


I always say that give back day is one of the hardest things in the world, but you know that wherever your puppy ends up, you'll never forget them and you know they are going to do great things. If you get lucky, you can sometimes go to graduation for your foster. You can see what they have accomplished and you can meet their forever family. You can see how much they will make their family's life so much easier. You give them their last and final goodbye with a smile on your face.