I kind of side with the SPCA or Humane Society... private rescues can be a pain in the balls to deal with. My girlfriend works with horses, and was looking for a dog that would be at the barn with her. Private rescues... "a dog needs a small fenced in area for play." At that time, she was working at an all girls high school, which had a large equitation program... so a large barn and 50+ acres of fields. That is unacceptable to them. Prior to us meeting, I was trying to adopt from Puppy Love; they do things at Petsmart. My previous dog was an outside dog... hated going inside. The girl I talked to made me out to be a scumbag because I didn't force the dog to be an inside dog. I told her if the dog wants to spend time outside, she would go outside for as long as she wants. "How does the dog know what's best for her?" [emoji15] In regards to that rescue, their foster homes are very good people, but the people making decisions are very shortsighted. They turn people away that would make good owners, because they have very high standards for dog ownership. It is a sample size of one (two if you count the Maryland one with my girlfriend; she took a dog from a friend that brought him back from the Virgin Islands), but reason why I still suggest the SPCA. The adoption costs are usually cheaper, as well.