Rescue dogs for adoption and rehoming in and around Brighton and Hove

Until this update we listed hardly any dogs within 19 miles of Brighton. Four Sussex rescues now add theirs, and the closest is Raystede Centre for Animal Welfare, on the B2192 between Ringmer and Halland, about 10 miles out. Its kennels are closed to visitors, so you meet a dog only once Raystede invites you.

Wadars has helped animals around Worthing for more than five decades and is moving to Willow Farm, Patching, where it plans its first kennels; until then it uses commercial kennels where it needs to. Holbrook Animal Rescue keeps its dogs in the family house near Horsham, and The Kit Wilson Trust runs a rescue centre at Hadlow Down. Both are about 18 miles away.

England's law sends strays to the council when the owner can't be found (GOV.UK). In this city that means the Animal Wardens of Brighton & Hove City Council, with an out-of-hours company taking reports after 4pm. An owner pays £117 to reclaim a dog on its first day and £36 for each further day; after 7 days the council usually rehomes an unclaimed dog.

Raystede asks £300 once a dog is 7 months old and £350 for a puppy of 6 months or younger, and both include 4 weeks of Petplan cover. Wadars asks £280 for a dog older than six months and £300 for a younger one.

The Kit Wilson Trust sets no fee and asks for a donation of your choice instead. Holbrook says a donation and a home check apply but names no figure, so ask.

Each rescue sets its own adoption fee. Dogs Trust charges £300 for a puppy or adult dog in England, Wales and Scotland, and Blue Cross fees start from £235 for dogs aged 8 or over and £335 for dogs aged 1 to 7. The fee usually covers neutering, microchipping and first vaccinations, and each rescue confirms its own fee.

Each rescue runs its own checks, set out on its own pages (Raystede, Wadars). The points to know:

• Raystede: one form, then patience. You apply online once and email about any dog you like. Its dog FAQs say it can't answer every form, most of its dogs need a garden of their own, and 80% of them need extra training and support.
• Wadars: a form, then a call. You apply first, with garden photos if you can and proof of address, and a phone call follows before you meet. Its dog form rules out homes with children aged 3 or under and homes whose pets aren't neutered, chipped and vaccinated.
• Holbrook: online only. Apply through the dog's own form and don't phone, the dogs page asks. Many of its dogs are listed as needing a companion dog, so a home with a friendly dog already can help.
• Kit Wilson: register first. The Kit Wilson Trust takes your details by phone or its enquiry form, may visit your home, then brings suitable dogs to its reception to meet you.

Two charities that rehome dogs locally are not on this page. Dogs Trust Shoreham, on Brighton Road in Shoreham-by-Sea, opens for browsing on five afternoons a week, and the RSPCA Brighton & The Heart of Sussex Branch has an animal centre at Patcham. We don't show either charity's dogs, so look on their own sites too.

Our guide to dog rescues in Brighton and Sussex compares the four rescues in detail, and our rescue puppies guide answers "puppies for sale" searches for Brighton, Worthing and Eastbourne. The puppies and older dogs pages list who is waiting now; our Worthing and Eastbourne pages start from those towns.

Need a new home for your own dog? See our Brighton rehoming page.