Humane Society Of The Pikes Peak Region

These people are nothing but bullies and thieves they attack elderly and poor families they don't seem to have Noone that they half to answer to their no one to set them strait they fatten the judges pockets and get away with doing people how ever they want to .while continuing to pat them selves on the back they are cold hearted cowards .if you get a ticket from them before you get a chance to go to court and prove your innocence they immediately confirm you as guilty and continue making attacks on you taken your love ones from you when you have done nothing to deserve it they make alot of money adopting dogs out and need as many good dogs as they can get so their attacks on elderly and poor works good for them judges not going care how wrong these people are as long as they getting their pockets filled

We adopted a dog from HSPPR approx 2 months ago. At adoption we were informed they could re-accommodate him if he wasn’t a good fit (even mentioned If returned within 30 days we’d receive a refund). We worked with the dog over two months but ultimately wasn’t a good fit due to some separation anxiety and my traveling for work and husband being in school. I also called the humane society after a month to obtain information regarding dog behaviorist, but my call was never returned by their behavioral specialist. At the surrender appointment we were informed of contradictory information than we received during the adoption process and that he may be euthanized as a he may be a community risk. I vehemently disagreed with the decision of the dog being a “community risk” as he had never been aggressive and am unsure of the outcome.If you are considering adopting or donating to HSPPR, i strongly encourage you to look for more reputable organizations and rescues

What transpired this morning with the pet of the week by FOX21's Craig Coffey and Keley Likes from the HSPPR is ABSOLUTELY APPAULING!!!  My family has been avid watchers of the show for years, but with this mornings blatant disrespect for a fellow human being and for the 2 of them to circumvent the system and use their status at FOX21 and the HSPPR to gain an unfair advantage, and lie to the public on air while planning the actions!

My mother is 73 years young and handicapped, she moved out here to be with family in March during the height of the pandemic leaving all of her friends behind to be as close to family as possible during these trying times and after.  She has had 3 surgeries in 6 months and is finally doing great again and desperately wants a small dog to be her companion in life!  This morning on the show between 8-9am, Keley Likes from the HSPPR had a small dog Samson on the show as the "pet of the week", it was broadcast for all to see and hear that he would be available this morning after 11am when the HSPPR opens for business.  My mother was so taken by this dog that I brought her to the HSPPR and we were the 1st in line waiting for their doors to open at 9 am which meant we would wait nearly 2 hours outside.  But for my mom and for the sweet sweet Samson it was worth it in her mind.

At just after 10am , Craig Coffey pulls up in his vehicle and walks directly to the closed doors of the HSPPR and phones Keley Likes who lets him in and completely ignores my elderly mother.....only to return about 15 minutes later when Craig Coffey walks out the door with the dog and when my mother attempted to speak to him about the absurdity of the situation....he merely mumbled "we fell in love with him"  and hurriedly got in his car and took off!

This is a blatant abuse of his power and position at FOX21 and the same can be said of Keley Likes at the HSPPR!  He or his family could have done what my mother rightfully did and beat feet to the HSPPR to be the 1st one in line!  This act shows that his moral compass is nowhere near where it should be for one in such a public position.  Shame on you Craig Coffey for using your power and position over the general public to get what you want at the expense of anyone you deem beneath you!  Shame on you Keley Likes and the HSPPR for allowing this to occur, when there were clearly people waiting outside and you blatantly ignored all for the select few!!!

FOX21 still has the pet as available at 11AM on its website...Simply appalling!!!!!

I am a long time member of the uniformed services and know first hand that someone having no moral integrity cannot and should not be at the forefront of any organization!

This is a business looking for money and not a "community friendly non-profit". Our two dogs of 13 years somehow strangely ended up in their dog jail (two old dogs that only go out to pee and have NEVER left our side), and I had to pay $174 to get them out (during the COVID19 financial crisis none the less). I was then subjected to a SALES PITCH for dog insurance. I could not be more disappointed. There is no concern for the animals or their owners. Just give us the money or let us sell your dog to someone else if you don't pick them up quick enough. I'm sure they snatch up homeless citizens companion dogs as well and then don't give them back cause they cannot pay for it. Disgusting. Most dogs are considered emotional support animals so it's nice to know how much this organization truly cares for the community by making sure they get that money first and pump the dogs full of every shot they can to keep the bill going up and up. If I could give ZERO stars I would.

They promote themselves as being a no kill shelter and that is not true . They killed a perfectly healthy young trained Saint Bernard named Duke . They did not have to kill him. A reputable rescue was fighting for him. The rescue was fully capable of taking him and actually was fighting for him in court when this place ordered him to be killed . Before you hand your money or dog over to this place please do your own background work . All that glitters is not gold and they had no right to needlessly kill a dog that people were begging to take .

You call yourselves a “humane” society, yet just yesterday you did the most inhumane thing I have heard in a very long time.

Humane societies and rescues should be FOR the animals, defending them, caring for, loving, and believing in them. Trying to make them and their lives better while finding them their perfect situation/family. I understand the world isn’t a perfect place and you can’t save every one, but in this case you most certainly could’ve. Your organization spent weeks fighting really hard AGAINST an innocent dog. This fight unfortunately resulted in your unjust victory and an innocent, sweet soul wronged and dead by your doing. You have blood on your hands. There were so many people on dukes side, experienced, knowledgable, professional people who loved him and fought so hard to get him back.

You truly make me sick. You are a perfect example of people who do rescue WRONG. It makes me sick to think of what happens behind the scenes in your facility and that there are any animals in your care. Do you just euthanize any animal that comes in with behavioral issues, or if you even suspect behavioral issues? You don’t care if an animal has been abused or provoked, death is the only answer. So incredibly terrible. I would hate for any of the animals in your care to suffer from this, but I really would love for your followers and donors to hear dukes story and know what you did to him, the people who loved him and possibly even other dogs you come across that we are unaware of.

Today my heart is broken and I shed tears over a dog I never had the pleasure of meeting, but felt like I knew throughout his entire miserable journey with you. Rest In Peace Duke, you did not deserve this, all you deserved was endless treats, toys, snuggles, love and a home where they didn’t torment you. I wish we could have had the opportunity to give that to you.

For any followers who are curious, you can follow Adriana's Saints and Angels Rescue to hear his full story and see the amazing people who fought so hard for him.

We love you Duke.

#justiceforduke

Worst Humane or should I say Inhumane society I have ever seen. These people are crooks and people just keep sponsoring them and donating to them with no care in the world. With all the money they make you would surely think they would hire some trained professionals, but no they hire people they can brainwash to rip people off, steal their pets, sterilize them without their consent, then adopt them out as quick as possible to remove the evidence from their hands that they just destroyed of someone else's property. They are sick individuals and the supervisor of the admissions department, Kelly is a twisted individual and does some very illegal, unethical business practices. DON'T TAKE ANY ANIMALS HERE, YOU WILL NEVER SEE THEM AGAIN AND YOU WILL BE TREATED LIKE A LOW LIFE PIECE OF SCUM. I don't have a clue how they stay in business, they are fraudulently stealing peoples money, lying about ages and breeds of animals to push them through adoptions faster and much much more. Pretty sad when no one will come forward for the CEO position, kinda fishy don't you think? Screw this place, they will eventually have all of their illegal practices catch up to them and hopefully all will be held accountable and never allowed to return to the care of pets.

Veterinary spay and neuter clinic staff is rude and uncaring. Treat the client like they are unwelcome. Collect your money and tell you to go wait somewhere else-not in thier lobby??? Really?? Instead of polite caring staff they keep repeating you can go somewhere else. not recommended at all!!

HSPPR & PAS are run by the same individual. It is a shame that this individual has no compassion for the animals. Her passion is strictly for the money, just as it was in SF, Ca. Removing NO Kill for her vocabulary & doing everything she can to not have to save animals. Deeming 3 out of 4 animals as unadoptable, aggressive, a public safety risk. Sad to know that 1 in 4 never make it out alive & she is ok with this. Where is the compassion for the animals? Not anywhere at HSPPR or PAS that is forsure.

This shelter and it's employees have no interest in helping the public. I was bitten by a dog in 2015 and needed stitches. I reported the bite as required and gave my statement. Instead of asking me about the facts, the lieutenant of animal control decides that my story was not true and took to harassing me for 2 weeks. She would come and literally bang on my door after I told her I didn't want her at my house again. She left me voicemails threatening me with being arrested if I didn't call her back. I know my rights and understand that they have no power to arrest me. I had to call the animal control dispatch 3 times and tell them that if she didn't stop, I would call the cops and file a complaint. After the 3rd call, she never returned. She held a grudge and had other employees visit my house to ask questions about my pets. Again, I knew my rights and refused to answer questions they had no right to ask. My animals were contained and had all the necessary vaccines and licenses. After moving, I haven't had anymore issues with that lieutenant or her friends. This doesn't even touch on how easily they kill the animals they are supposed to care for. This entire organization is headed by women who have a major power trip and want nothing more than to prove that they are the final word in whether an animal gets to live or not. You can see the story on Charlie, another animal they killed out of spite. I do volunteer in the Pueblo location in hopes of showing the animals they may kill a little bit of compassion before they meet their fate.

The Director of the HSPPR came from a shelter in Northern California who was delighted to see that person leave. They are unresponsive and they also run the shelter in Pueblo. I went to see if I could adopt and in that huge shelter there were only 4 pups to choose from. I got my kitten from there years ago and there were so many wonderful animals to choose from but no more. It is all about the Benjamins for this "shelter". Only want designer dogs and they seem to make rapid judgement on animals regarding behavior not taking into consideration that the animal could be scared or confused. Looks like only the wealthy seem to be able to adopt as adoption fees are higher than most. Also read that this shelter was on the bottom of the save rate list in Colorado. Personally I will be heading to a smaller shelter to get my new pup from there.

From the beginning we tried to work with PAS and they refused. I have met with one staff and they do not see the need to change. Have you gone to the shelter ? Have you seen empty kennels? If you wanted to adopt an animal changes are you will not find one as they transfer them to CS or are in the back room where they will never make it out except in a trash bag headed to the landfill.They may state the fact that stray numbers are down. Let me explain why stray numbers are down. Members of Reform Pueblo Animal Services go out looking for animals and watch lost and found sites to get animals reunited with their owners. We have full time jobs but we want to keep our communities pets out of the shelter so they are not killed because they cannot pass their assanine behavioral test which I can assure you my dogs would fail. Maybe if you would do a little digging you will understand our cause. Saving healthy and adoptable pets is not unreasonable to ask for . Ninety percent is not unrealistic to save healthy and adoptable animals.IT is unreasonable that 1-4 animals are killed. When it comes down to it PAS was asked by City Council for documents and they never received them. I am surprised the PAS, County Commissioners and yes our local paper are ok with this. Reform Pueblo Animal Service is not going anywhere and we will continue to gain and speak facts.

I have spent the last few months actually researching this shelter. HSPPR also runs Pueblo Animal Services (PAS). There are a lot of shady doings happening between these two shelters. The ones that are suffering are the animals. The CEO, McHugh Smith has NO compassion for animals. They are just a tool to be used to gain money, and if they can't be used for that, they are killed!! Her history speaks for itself! She ruined a no kill shelter in SanFrancisco as head of SF/SPCA. Google SFWeekly for 2009. Or check out Northside Magazine for the same year. A group of former workers and volunteers called fix San Francisco formed to run her out of San Francisco and now the same thing is happening in Pueblo, CO. She is all about the money at the expense of the animals!! And yes, her salary is extraordinary at 194,00.00 per year, plus benefits!!!! She enjoys this pay as she sits back and denies the animals. Makes me sick!!

I lost my beloved Aussie and went to the shelter to find a new dog. There was a beautiful Aussie and s border collie that I was very interested in adopting. I was told they were not adoptable because of aggressive behaviors. They next day they were both killed. Not that long ago there was a dog named Charlie. Charlie was an awesome dog and had interacted with people in an awesome way. We had city Council meeting and before that meeting Charlie was killed even though city Council requested that they put it off. There are some things the shelter does a good job on the killing of healthy adoptable animals is just not right. It isn’t because there are too many animals in the shelter. Most kernels are empty, usually more than half. The papa ordinance is to give boundaries for them to follow that won’t cost the cost to go up. It will save healthy and adoptable animals. If you go into the shelter to adopt an animal chances are high that you are going to walk out without an animal. There are rarely Any adoptable animals. They are usually transferred to Colorado Springs or killed. Pueblo citizens deserve more. Our voiceless animals deserve More. The shelter is ran by our tax money and we should be fighting for the shelter that our community wants and deserves.

I have watched with dismay for the last several months as leadership at the Humane Society of Pikes Peak Region has made repeated false statements to the public relating to animal sheltering in general and their operations specifically in an attempt to derail a proposed ordinance in Pueblo that would require they do more to help save animals.

The ordinance, called the Pueblo Animal Protection Act, or PAPA, has been implemented elsewhere, including in the capitol city of my home state. In each case where this law has been enacted, it has saved animals' lives without costing more money. Yet, because it would require HSPPR to do more to save animals they are currently killing, they oppose the ordinance and have not been truthful with their donors or the citizens of Pueblo in their public commentary relating to PAPA.

They maintain one of the poorest save rates for animal shelters in the State of Colorado and continue to excuse the killing they do by blaming it on so-called "pet overpopulation" even as they import animals from out-of-state and keep many empty cages. Last time I checked their web site, they had only 4 dogs available for adoption. And, that is typically the case. Clearly, "overpopulation" is not the cause of the killing. Outdated policies and practices are.

While HSPPR has steadfastly refused to modernize their policies and practices, and while they continue to use their resources in order to spread false information about badly needed animal laws, they pay their leadership exorbitant salaries.

Through their words and actions, they have made clear what their priorities are.

This Humane Society is all about the money. I volunteered here for a short time but could no longer spend time under their greedy policies. Volunteers got nothing in return (discount on tag fees, HSPPR items and apparel with logos?) for their time and effort and told there is no extra money for this. When I reviewed their most recent Form 990 (public information), it was disheartening to see that they bring in over $16 million and actually had a surplus of over $50 million. Where does that money go? Even worse when you see that Jan (CEO) receives an ungodly salary for a non-profit of over $180,000 plus they pay her country club dues. She is never there (I asked) and I'm sure is skating by like in CA. So very disappointed in all of this as I did enjoy helping dogs find new homes but this place needs a major overhaul from the top down.

DONATOR BEWARE! They have a dark side,,,,
Animals they take in come from many miles away,,, puppy mills, rescues, etc. Much like shady used car dealers who use 90 weight gear oil and sawdust to make a vehicle 'sound' good, they leave out the 'rest of the story',,, failing to properly age a dog (claiming a 10 YO dog is only 5 YO),,, failing to tell you that the dog has kennel cough that needs treating,,,failing to tell you that the same dog has terminal liver disease and will die in 4 months,,, the 9 month old replacement puppy you got also has kennel cough,,,, failing to tell you that this dog also has terminal gastric, liver and esophageal problems and probably won't live past 4-5 months. No, just like the unscrupulous used car dealer, they give the animal a quick shot or simply leave out the critical (and life ending) details, pawning a sick animal off on you so YOU pick up all the vet bills! Seem fair? Hardly!! Want to drain your bank account? Then go ahead and get one of their extremely expensive,,, and sickly animals. The vets will love you!!

This Humane Society cares much more about its business than it does about animals. They don't cooperate with other rescues and their live release rate is deplorable. They always seem to have money to spend on the building but not on the animals.

If I could give this sorry excuse for a shelter a big fat 0, I would. I would like to inform everyone on google that this humane society is running a big fat scam that is costing pet parents an arm and a leg. A few months ago my cat went missing. I was desperate to find her. I placed several ads through them, made several phone calls and sent several emails to them. Not a single phone call, or email was returned. After several days of trying to hunt my kitty down my mother looked on their web page just to find my cat. They had her and claimed I had abandoned her. She was wearing a harness and a tag. When I went to retrieve my cat they charged me $175 to bail her out. I asked where they had picked her up from and they then gave me MY address. I asked why they hadn't called me and they then claimed it wasn't their reponsibillity. When I got my cat home I had noticed that she wasn't acting like herself. I figured she was in shock from the craziness. This continued for several days. My cat had caught a viral upper respitory infection that in more cases than not is caused by keeping sick and healthy animals together. They are running a scam and blindsiding responsible pet owners with fees that are outrageous. I am a full shelter supported but this one WILL NEVER recieve my support, nor should it recieve yours.

I have adopted several dogs from this humane society over the past 14 years. Last year I adopted a 9-week old puppy that had been abandoned in downtown Colorado Springs. I suspect that the puppy was dumped because she had a cherry eye. In addition to the normal spay and giving shots process, the HSPPR actually surgically fixed her cherry eye at no additional cost to me. This was above and beyond the call of duty!

I have also volunteered with the TNR program for cats. The people working with this program are amazing; and the TNR program is so very critical in controlling the feral cat population.

For the past year and a half, I have been researching dog rescues. I am a strong believer in the no kill philosophy. In order to become a total no kill facility, many things have to happen. I know that HSPPR is working hard toward this goal. They are increasing the fostering program, they are creating many new & creative ways to advertise the animals needing adoption, they are making relationships with the pet stores in town to provide more opportunities for the public to see animals needing homes; they are making relationships with other rescues in town to cooperate between rescues as numbers of animals dictate, and they have a reasonable adoption process. They WANT to adopt out their animals. They believe what you write on an application and/or contract. They do not come inspect your home, and when you adopt a pet from them, you actually own your pet. These things are important because there are many rescues--especially puppy mill and specific breed rescues--that make adopting a dog more difficult that adopting a child and, even, more absurd, their adoption contracts include a clause saying they may reclaim your dog at ANY TIME IN THE FUTURE. Thus, you are actually only renting your dog.

If you are considering donating either your time or your money to a rescue, please place the HSPPR at the top of your list. Also, please check my website and read the ten items that you should check into before donating financially to any group.

http://slicktipsaboutdogrescues.com (Slick Tips About Dog Rescues)

Apparently the truth doesn't matter about HSPPR. Only friends & relatives of employees of HSPPR write these reviews. The truth is that HSPPR is in the "business" of filing bogus animal cruelty charges against innocent people in an attempt to financially destory them with smear campaignsand then the courts don't even know where the money or the animals end up. HSPPR is about to be sued by a couple that was found innocent by a jury. HSPPR can only whitewash so many people, and then the truth starts coming out. Jan McHugh-Smith, the CEO at HSPPR, was run out of the San Francisco SPCA by her own employees and staff because of her greedy deeds.

The Humane Society of the Pikes Peak Region is an amazing organization of people dedicated to the animals of Colorado Springs. The care they provide and the work they do is a vital part of the community. They provide Sterilization services at low cost and a Trap-Neuter-Release program that serves the feral cats who live in the community. They provide education to students of all ages including a wonderful kids camp in the summer. They are constantly trying to improve the care to the animals and have added a surgery center that sterilizes pets before they go out into the community and can help injured animals and provide surgeries that are necessary for the animals that are in their care. They are innovative and have utilized the ASPCA in gaining and improving their adoption rate with cats. The dogs who come to the shelter are in good hands with a TLC program that teaches the dogs socialization skills that are necessary to have happy endings. I enjoy volunteering in this environment where teamwork among volunteers and staff thrives.