2024 Top-Rated Nonprofit

Happy Cats Haven Inc

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Nonprofit Overview

Causes: Animal Protection & Welfare, Animals

Mission: At Happy Cats Haven, our mission is to rescue Colorado cats and kittens and find them new homes. Our vision is to make life better for all cats through adoptions and education. We are a non-profit, Fear Free rescue and adoption center and guarantee safe haven for all cats we take in. No healthy or treatable cat is euthanized, and our Live Release Rate is 98%, which means we meet the definition of a No-Kill Organization and exceed that of Socially Conscious Sheltering. More important than definitions, we back up this commitment by treating our cats as individuals–with respect, compassion and positive reinforcement. We focus on being fully feline-friendly. We believe that cats are valuable, lovable and trainable, not disposable. Feline Friendly means we treat our cats as individuals–with respect, compassion and positive reinforcement–to make their stay as stress-free as possible until they are adopted. We give both our cats and our adopters the gift of time, so everyone can relax and show their true personalities. Each adoption matches our deep understanding of our cats with their new families, handcrafted for a feline lifetime.

Community Stories

33 Stories from Volunteers, Donors & Supporters

amberlb, Client Served

Rating: 5

09/25/2024

Happy Cats Haven is such a wonderful place! The facility is great, the people who work there and volunteer there are great, and they host such wonderful events too! My parents got their cat from here and they helped pick out THE most perfect fit for them. Please go visit, adopt or foster from them, volunteer there , or at least go to one of their fabulous fundraising events!

ColoradoLioness General Member of the Public

Rating: 5

11/08/2024

I live in Manitou Springs and see the great things Happy Cats does for the community. Particularly with their trap-neuter-return program. Happy Cats really loves cats and works very hard towards their welfare.

FosterCatMom Volunteer

Rating: 5

11/08/2024

I have fostered cats from Happy Cats Haven and love the work they do with kitties. So many of them come in with behavior issues and Happy Cats works with them to find them permanent homes. I am happy to help in this process and have lots of kitties come through my home. A great non-profit!

sarahroach9 Volunteer

Rating: 5

10/03/2024

Happy Cats Haven in Colorado Springs is far and away the best rescue to ensure that feral, homeless and surrendered cats and kittens find their perfect forever homes. Thanks to their top tier behavioral, medical, foster and adoptions teams, hundreds of cats are living their best lives in loving homes, including the four I adopted. I am so glad they had the benefit of this wonderful facility until I could find them!

PastorGaye Volunteer

Rating: 5

09/26/2024

This is one of very few no-kill shelters in our area and they are amazing at placing animals with exactly the right folks!! Top notch staff, beautiful shelter. I love how they work with cats with behavior problems as long as it takes. That shows how much they love cats and believe in their mission.

KatieUN1988 General Member of the Public

Rating: 5

09/18/2024

We adopted the perfect cat for our household from Happy Cats Haven, and we couldn’t be happier! The staff was incredibly friendly and knowledgeable, guiding us through every step of the adoption process and helping us find the ideal feline companion for our family. It’s clear how much they care about the well-being of their cats and ensuring they go to loving homes. Our new furry family member has brought so much joy to our lives, and we’re grateful to Happy Cats Haven for making our family complete. Highly recommend this wonderful no-kill shelter!

pgvantil Client Served

Rating: 5

09/17/2024

My Happy Tails are part of an on-going relationship and love for Happy Cats Haven. Beginning with 2 cats who needed re-homing due to an elderly guardian, our family's hearts were warmed by each kittie's adoption into new forever homes. In a deep desire to "pay back" HCH for their efforts on our behalf, my adult son and I began volunteering. And fell in love with our weekly time helping scoop, sweep, socialize, and get to personally know many of the cats...personalities, preferences, interaction, etc. Fast-forward a bit of time and my son increased his love of the mission and became part of the medical team.
I've "fostered-to adopt" a beautiful gal named Chloe, who needed just the right peaceful home away from her previous life in a hoarding situation. I've adopted Heidi (abandoned as a kitten), and she's now 5 year's old. I've learned SO SO much about feline ways, interactions, language...and have always been supported by HCH if I was questioning something. They are absolutely true to their Mission! And the cats say "thank you" :) Well, so does my family!

cneston1276 General Member of the Public

Rating: 5

09/17/2024

Happy Cats Haven is the best thing to happen for kitties in the Colorado Springs area! My partner gave a couple of lovely bonded kitties their forever home from Happy Cats. Everything they do for rescue kitties in the vicinity is amazing! So glad they are part of this community!

MissS Volunteer

Rating: 5

09/17/2024

After I lost the last of my four cats, I didn't think I was ready to adopt more kitties. So I decided to foster with Happy Cats Haven. I welcomed two bonded brothers into my home with the intention of simply caring for them while they waited for their forever family. Well, I became their forever family! Happy Cats provided me with all the resources I needed to foster. And after having Milo and Otis as companions for a couple months, they became cherished members of my family. Happy Cats Haven works tirelessly with each feline to make sure they can recover from their past trauma and find the forever home that's waiting for them. They're a wonderful organization.

duffyfluffy Client Served

Rating: 5

09/03/2024

What a wonderful experience! Happy Cats is the best adoption experience I have ever had. The entire staff is so courteous, knowledgeable and supportive of the entire adoption process. They will go above and beyond to assist in finding a good match and will continue to support you after your new kitty is at your home. I highly recommend to anyone looking to adopt a new family member!

Janetwilson Volunteer

Rating: 5

10/26/2023

Over the years, as desperate cats have shown up in my yard, I have turned to Happy Cats Haven and they have always helped save them. A few years ago, I stumbled upon a colony of 42 of the sweetest cats trying to survive outside in the harshest conditions. Once again, Happy Cats Haven came through and has found wonderful homes for every single cat! I've been volunteering there ever since, and have learned so much about what it means to use fear-free handling and how important it is. The staff and volunteers are dedicated, compassionate people, all working toward saving every cat that can be saved. When I see the difference this wonderful rescue makes every day, I wish that every city and town had a Happy Cats Haven. The world would be a much better place! But for now I am just forever grateful that they are here for us, making life better for every cat they possibly can and for the people who love them. Thank you Happy Cats Haven!

AAlbright Volunteer

Rating: 5

10/24/2023

My son and I visited Happy Cats so he could adopt. I was so impressed with the staff and cleanliness of this organization. Cats of all types and backgrounds are loved and well cared for here!

1

celeste131 Volunteer

Rating: 5

10/24/2023

We came across happy cats 2 years ago and we have been volunteering ever since! This place is amazing! The staff is great and they really care about the cats.

1

mobileUser Volunteer

Rating: 5

10/23/2023

The cats are all very well cared for and socialized. Theu put cats happiness and health above all so this is the best foster/shelter for any cat looking for a home. All people are genuine and caring always.

1

KirbyHolly08 Volunteer

Rating: 5

10/23/2023

I first encountered Happy Cats Haven when my husband and I were looking to adopt a kitten in the summer of 2017. We visited the shelter and explained what we were looking for, and the adoption counselors matched us with the perfect kitten for our family. They provided a lot of great information, especially around how to introduce our new furry family member to our resident cat and dog. We walked out of the shelter knowing that we were going to be able to incorporate our new kitten into our home seamlessly. They followed up a few days and few weeks later to see how things were going, which only solidified our positive impression of Happy Cats Haven.

Our experience was so great, I decided to start volunteering with Happy Cats the next year. I started out as a "socializer" so I could learn the ropes of interacting with cats of various confidence levels before moving into adoption counseling. I had more support than I could ever dream of every step of the way. The policies and procedures the organization has in place to ensure that both people and cats have positive interactions throughout the process are really evident. We experienced this support and solid procedures again as we began fostering kittens with Happy Cat. I have been with them for 5 years and had many roles, and I can say there is truly no better place to volunteer.

Coinholio Volunteer

Rating: 5

10/23/2023

What an excellent Cat rescue. Very knowledgeable staff and they offer training as well. I look forward to being able to volunteer with this worthy organization in the future.

audraa86 Volunteer

Rating: 5

10/23/2023

I’ve been a volunteer with Happy Cats Haven since 2015 and the proud mom of a Happy Cat adopted the same year. The work HCH does is so invaluable; the shelter goes above and beyond every single day to care for homeless cats in the Pikes Peak region and I’m so honored to be a small part of their organization.

jennaholm Volunteer

Rating: 5

10/23/2023

My daughter and I have been volunteering for Happy Cats since 2017. Happy Cats not only helps cats find their forever homes but they also provide opportunities for their volunteers and the public to enrich the lives of adopted their pets . We have attended quite a few of their classes such as Shy Cat training and Click With Your Cat Training.
We adopted our sweet kitty, Bliss from Happy Cats and through the clicker training and shy cat training programs we have implemented many of the techniques to give our kitty a safe, enriched environment for Bliss to thrive.

auntmike9953 Volunteer

Rating: 5

10/23/2023

Happy Cats Haven is making a HUGE difference to cats in the Colorado Springs area. They have covered all the bases. As a volunteer, I was trained to interact with the cats and kittens at their wonderful well-maintained facility. The kitties in their care are very well cared for. All cats receive the best medical care. Experts address behavior issues that some cats might have. Prospective adopters are carefully screened to ensure all kitties find their best home.

Brbt1 Volunteer

Rating: 5

10/23/2023

I’ve never volunteered before and coming to Happy Cats Haven has definitely enriched my life. Working with knowledgeable and compassionate staff, volunteers and kitties has been such an enjoyable experience.

jlfritz Board Member

Rating: 5

10/23/2023

I have been with Happy Cats since it started in 2011, helping wherever needed -- with coordinating events, volunteers, doing adoption follow ups. Watching the organization grow out of my skills and having folks who know more about each take over, has been SUCH a privilege. What made me jump in and stay so long???? The absolute commitment to always do the right thing by the cats . . . and the adopters. Dedication to every cat, to get them adoptable and with the right people. I will never forget an older kitty who was kind of grumpy. Because of this, we said no young kids. Then one night during open hours, some kids came in and were visiting some other kitties. She came to her door and was struggling trying to see them. We asked the visitors if they would mind bringing their children down to meet this older girl -- turns out she LOVED kids. We were able to get her a home where that is what she had. Even though we have grown a lot -- the entire team works very hard and cares so much about the cats. The vision has not been lost. I am proud to be a part of Happy Cats Haven.

Catnut4 Donor

Rating: 5

10/16/2023

Happy Cats built their new shelter in Manitou Springs one block from our house. They went to great care to make their new facility as cat friendly as possible. I stopped in one day to investigate being a foster mom and went home with two beautiful kitties that were being returned by a couple who were moving and couldn’t take them. I love that Happy Cats insists that if for any reason you can no longer care for a cat that was adopted from Happy Cats that you must return them to their shelter for rehoming. I cared for these two large cats for several months until the perfect family adopted them. My own two cats were not happy about this but we all survived.

1

askora General Member of the Public

Rating: 5

10/13/2023

Happy Cats truly cares about the cats and finding the right homes for them. They work with the community to better rescue cats situations and they do so much for our feline community in Colorado Springs. Thank you so much for all you do!

RaeBitner Volunteer

Rating: 5

10/13/2023

I have been a volunteer feeder of several colonies for Happy Cats Haven. They care so much for all cats. I am so thankful to them for supporting the voiceless, innocent feral population within our communities. They are an amazing asset ensuring the health and welfare of our Feral Community Cats.

lcraft Client Served

Rating: 5

10/12/2023

I started volunteering at Happy Cats earlier this year before I had a cat of my own. I met my current cat, Evie, at Happy Cats and fell in love immediately. She is so sweet and Happy Cats gave me everything I needed for her success, knowledge included. Happy Cats truly cares about the cats and the families they go home to.

ShannonVT89 Volunteer

Rating: 5

10/12/2023

It all started back in 2016 when I rescued my first cat from Happy Cats, Toby. After reading his description on the website I HAD to go meet him. He was the sweetest boy and he snuggled right into my arms the minute we met. Flash forward to 2018 I met my husband, Ben. We connected over our love of cats and I found out he was a staff member with the company. He knew my Toby before I did! We fell in love and got married in 2021. Come the end of 2022 and my husband's cat of 20 years passed away. We weren't looking for a new addition but our boy, Toby, was so sad and anxious. Happy Cats Haven saved the day and we met Callie. A beautiful short-haired white cat with a lemur stripped tail cat whom was found on the street with her kittens. Once Ben saw her he instantly fell head over heels for her. We adopted her and took the proper steps before introducing them. Once they met the instantly became bonded at the hips. Lastly, we recently tried their foster program and took in a darling gray kitten whom had to have eye surgery after getting rescued from a hoarding house with over 20 cats. I got a crash course in quarantine procedures as this little kitten had been exposed to a potentially very dangerous virus! Happy Cats provided us with all the necessary materials to take care of her. She also has won our hearts over so she'll be joining our wonderful Happy Cats Clan.

Carmstrong Client Served

Rating: 5

10/12/2023

I love these guys! I got my Mojo here and they are there for you and will answer any questions you have! I tell people to go to Happy cat Haven all the time! They truly care and want to make sure the kitties get the best home possible!

AHood General Member of the Public

Rating: 5

10/12/2023

I needed help placing 2 cats that didn’t belong outside anymore and Happy Cats stepped up and took them into their program. They’re now loved family members and I’m so thankful!

alyssahoneycutt Volunteer

Rating: 5

10/09/2023

I've started volunteering with Happy Cats earlier this year and it's been such a great experience for me. Everyone who works and volunteers here truly cares about the cats and the work we do, and I love seeing the positive effects the Fear Free practices and positive reinforcement training does for the cats. I've been able to help cats that were so fearful of people go from hiding in a corner under a blanket to actively seeking out affection and playing out in the open. It's amazing and I love the work I get to help with!

Marvin G. Donor

Rating: 5

05/08/2021

This is such an amazing organization. The staff and volunteers work tirelessly to save and provide the best opportunity for loving forever homes for so many cats and kittens.

1

Susi Holmes Board Member

Rating: 5

05/07/2021

Have been volunteering for this organization for many years now. We are on the forefront of cat care and strive to always be FearFree with our feline guests. We offer education to the community and are the leading organization involved in local TNR efforts. Happy Cats is not just a shelter, it’s a network of wonderful souls, friends and leaders of our community.

3 mabuss24

mabuss24 Volunteer

Rating: 5

05/07/2021

Happy Cats Haven is the standard in feline animal sheltering! They go above and beyond for every animal that walks through their doors and are tireless in their efforts to find the right fit for both adopter and kitty! The photo below is a prime example. Odin (the orange one) came into the shelter when I was volunteering and was swatting at everyone. They created a team of volunteers (which I was grateful to be a part of) to identify and work on his specific behavioral needs. Fast forward to his adoption - this kitty who never wanted to be with another kitty now has a kitty bff in Elvis and is loving life with his new family! They are the best organization around :D

3

Writer Volunteer

Rating: 5

04/17/2017

Happy Cats is such a great organization, they really care about the cats and their well-being!

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