The Dalmatian Club of Scotland Welfare

Head Co-ordinator-Mrs.Elaine Westwater

If you have any questions do not hesitate to contact Elaine as she deals directly with the welfare.

She can be contacted on 07757 723 207.

Scottish Dalmatian Welfare

A warm welcome to the Scottish Dalmatian Welfare site, this website has been set up with a main objective to advise and support owners in need of help with any matter from basic issues such as health and obedience to more problematic cases which may result in the need to rehome a Dalmatian should the situation arise.

Our support is derived from a network of volunteers who give tirelessly to this essential charity all for the love of this wonderful breed.

Character

The Dalmatian is a stunning dog to look at with distinctive black or liver spots against a beautiful white background. See the attached link for the UK Kennel Club Breed Standard for the Dalmatian.

Dalmatians are a fantastic breed to be owned by, but beware they are a handful and should come with an owners manual all of their own. Their energy and love knows no bounds, they are as individual as each human fingerprint, and they are lively, cunning, dominant and extremely loyal, capable of defending their family home. They are a great family dog and are generally good with children and other pets. Dalmatians have a wonderful characteristic which is to smile when he is happy and there is nothing like coming home and being greeted by a smiling Dal.

Owning A Dalmatian

If you are considering a Dalmatian for your household be aware this is not a breed for the fainthearted and there are several main points to consider before you decide. Firstly and most importantly Dalmatians need plenty of exercise, this means not just a couple of half hour jaunts around the local park a day but 1 – 2 hours must be spent walking and running freely off the lead and play time with your Dalmatian. If you cannot offer this for your dog choose another breed, lack of exercise in a Dalmatian leads to boredom which leads to destruction and problems. Ideally it is said if you work full time you should not have a Dalmatian but the majority of us in an ideal world do work and can still offer a stable home, you must be prepared to exercise your dog during your working day and provide stimulus such as puzzle balls etc or have a family/friend/dog walker attend to your Dalmatian during the day. Dalmatians love jogging with you, running alongside a cycle, accompanying you on a horse ride and generally bounding about. Please ensure you have a secure, high fenced garden, of a suitable size.

The Dalmatian is such a loving breed and thrives in an environment with constant companionship and attention, you will find your Dalmatian with you at all parts of your daily life be it doing the housework to leaning against you while watching TV or reading but especially when you are eating just to make sure you have not missed any parts of your lunch, even a few crumbs. They love home comforts and be prepared to have your favourite seat in the house overtaken by your Dalmatian. They are very greedy dogs, they are also very cunning and will construct a game plan to steal anything edible within or out with their reach, be warned. Any situation will be adapted to their advantage.

Dalmatian are very often referred to being ‘thick’, ‘mad’ and ‘loopy’ and un-trainable, this is not the case. They are in fact a very clever breed and require specific training to keep them interested. They are a dominant breed regardless of sex although teenage males do pose more of a problem and do require firm but not forceful handling. You must always be prepared to be one step ahead and anticipate their thoughts; this will be continuous throughout their lives. A strict routine is a must with this breed.

 They respond very well to reward training and will do anything to please their owner although it will often seem that they look at you and ask on several occasions ‘why are we doing this’. Once trained you can enjoy several activities with your Dalmatian including carriage dog trials and agility at which they excel.

Health

Dalmatians are prone to health issues are as most breeds, most common is deafness and urinary stones. For more information click here. Dalmatians must be fed on a low protein diet and for a list to refer to click here.

Rehoming and Adoption

All Dalmatian that come to us for re homing will be individually assessed in order to provide them with the ideal environment for their characteristics. Once placed in a new home support and advice will be available at all times from our area co-ordinators and experienced Dalmatian owners within your area. If you would like advice about rehoming your Dalmatian please call 07757 723 207.

All homes offered to us for fostering and adoption will be assessed as to their suitability to give a halfway and permanent home to a Dalmatian. If you would like to open your home to a Dalmatian please call 07757 723 207.

While we do everything we can to help with the rehoming of dogs,our small organisation is not a registered charity ,and all work that is undertaken is completely unpaid and is at the personal expense of the co-ordinators,sometimes travelling long distances,at short notice.What we need is more people who would be willing to help,perhaps with home checks or assessing of dogs to temporarily fostering until new suitable help can be found.We would be grateful of a small donation in the successful rehoming of a dog,which would enable our financially stretched welfare workers keep doing the voluntary work that the dogs so desperately need.

Dalmatians Needing a New Home

The following Dalmatians are available to be rehomed now, they have all been assessed and vet checked and have been in a foster home or kennel establishment while waiting on a permanent home:

1.Five year old black spotted male.Good with people and other dogs ,although we are not sure about cats.He is currently in kennels and is urgently needing a new home.

2.Two year old black spotted male.He is a little head strong and needs some patient training with an experienced person,ideally someone who has knowledge in dealing with the breed.He is more of a man's dog,he also is living in temporary boarding kennels and urgently needs someone who can take him under their wing.

Lily: She is a gorgeous 9 year old black spotted girl who was rehomed by rescue but has been handed back after her new owners changed their mind after only a week. She needs her own forever family. Is it you?

The following Dalmatians are waiting to be assessed before being placed with a new family, if you are interested in any of these dogs please call 07757 723 207 for more information as assessment progresses

The Oldies

Please also have a thought to giving a home to an older Dalmatian, they are still full of energy and fun and would make fantastic companions for someone maybe looking for a calmer dog. They would also make a lovely second dog for company. They deserve nothing but the best to see out their senior years with a family that loves them and to repay the love they have given unconditionally.