I started volunteering for this shelter in August 2023 I have been retired a few years and wanted to find a cause that I thought was a good fit and one that really needed me. I was sure that it would be something connected to animals. I found out about this shelter and checked it out. It didn't take long for me to decide this was the 'cause'. And, something that is very important to me is that this is a no-kill shelter. I do what I can with various forms of donations and helping as much as possible at the Adoption Fairs in Colorado Springs. I have developed many friendships with other volunteers including the Executive Director and the Facilities Manager. We are ALL volunteers with the exception of one person who cleans at the shelter. I love all of of the dogs, the ones who come to the Adoption Fairs and the ones that basically live at the shelter. I was impressed with this shelter when I visited in August and I'm even more impressed with the Director and the Facilities Manager. They are good people and genuinely care about all of the dogs. This is not easy as they have quite a number of dogs to care for. If I lived closer to the shelter, I would definitely go and help them there. However, it is prohibitive for me to travel that far. I have much admiration for all of the people working with the shelter. I have learned a lot about what it takes to do this work and it's not easy. What the average person sees when they come to an Adoption Fair is just the tip of the iceberg. There is so much more!! There are questions that our Director asks the potential adopters and there are very good reasons for those questions. Some dogs have been returned for whatever reasons the people give - and not all of them are realistic and good reasons. Being returned to the shelter is tremendously difficult for the dogs. I can see the confusion in their eyes and I'm sure they wonder what they did wrong to get returned. I hate it when that happens because I want to take all of them and give them the true love they deserve. And, of course, that is not realistic! I love on them when I can. The Director tells us on a regular basis how much she appreciates all of us. Even if she didn't mention it, I know she does. Some things just don't need to be said all the time The dogs are well cared for by a trip to the vet, being spayed or neutered, getting vaccines and becoming microchipped. So, I totally disagree with the negative reviews. If we as volunteers feel that a certain adopter isn't the right person or something is off, the Director welcomes our input. There have been a few potential adopters that just didn't feel right and I'm sure there may be a few more in the future. I don't think some of the items contained in the negative reviews are required now. As far as changing leadership, I don't feel that it needs to be changed. I think we already have the best!!
Much like Lolly81, I too had a terrible experience with this rescue. I went to my local pet store and looked at the puppies there. I talked myself out of getting one, as I already have three dogs. Throughout the next couple of days, I kept thinking about one that I saw. I went back to the pet store and asked for the contact information for the rescue. They gave it to me and I called that night.
When the woman picked up, she was a bit abrupt but mentioned she was in a meeting. She said she would need to call me back the next day.
She called me back the next day and I said I was interested in one of the puppies. She said I could go to the next adoption fair, once she figured out where it would be. I asked "what about if someone else wants this dog? Then I would have shown up for nothing." She said she could put a hold on the dog, but needed to ask me a few questions.
She asked me if we have a fenced-in yard. I told her we do. Then she asked if we walk our dogs every day. I told her not every day. We are on a quarter acre lot and most of it is backyard space, so the dogs can run around and wander pretty much when they want. I work from home, so they can go out whenever they want, as well. She told me that dogs really should be walked every day, but also told me to contact her later to see where the next adoption fair would be. This conversation took place on a Tuesday.
I waited a couple of days and reached out to her on Thursday by text, asking if she'd figured out where she would be able to hold the fair. I didn't receive a response, but I thought it might be because she hadn't solidified anything or was busy and forgot to respond.
On Friday evening I checked out their Facebook page and saw they would be holding the fair at a Wag 'N Wash across town. I texted her and said I saw that post and asked if the dog would be there. I received no response.
Saturday morning rolled around and I thought yoga and belly dance classes, then had lunch with my sister as these were already planned. After lunch, I drove up to the Wag 'N Wash. When I got there, the dog I was interested in was outside. I started chatting with a couple of the volunteers and got to know the dog a little more. I learned that they had a money-back guarantee so I decided to try it. I'd previously been hesitant because of my other dogs.
I went inside with the dog and told another volunteer inside that I wanted to adopt this puppy. The volunteer said that the owner needed to ask me some questions. I met up with the owner of the rescue and mentioned I was the one who called and texted her.
She said she knew who I was and she told me the reason she didn't respond to my texts was because I wouldn't walk the dogs every single day, regardless of weather, or personal issues, or whatever. Then she turned and walked away. I sat there just dumbfounded. The least she could have done was let me know that before I drove all the way up there.
I ended up leaving without adopting the dog, crying. I was treated like I was a terrible doggy mama.
The owner is passive-aggressive and has unreasonable expectations. I wouldn't give them the time of day.
We've lived in the general area of this rescue and had interactions with them for over 11-years now. I have to totally disagree with the person who left the long negative complaint; it would be interesting to hear the director of SLVAWS's side of that story! My husband and I have found this organization to be top notch in every aspect. Above all, they strive to find the best possible home for every dog in their care. They make a point of knowing the temperament and needs of each dog in their care and truly do know what is best for each one. These dogs have been through too much already and they want to place them in homes/situations that will last, so they don't end up in a shelter environment again. With that in mind, sometimes it's best for them to keep a dog a bit longer to ensure that the best match is made, than to adopt the dog out to the first person who expresses interest. Anyone who truly loves dogs and wants what is best for them should understand that and respect it. We've had nothing but positive interaction with this organization and don't hesitate to recommend them to anyone who is interested in adopting a new family member. Don't let a negative review fool you...this is an excellent organization!
Review from Guidestar
This was the most offensive interaction I've ever had. I left crying in the car.
After a year of planning, my husband and I were ready to start looking for a puppy. We started with Petsmart on Academy and Briargate, and SLVAW was there for their adoption fair. We noticed a sweet puppy that had the temperment we were looking for, and we took it on a walk. We fell in love with it, and we tested it (intelligence, any touchy spots, reactions around other dogs). It seemed to love us, too. We decided to adopt it.
The Director of SLVAW then began our interview. She asked us a few preliminary questions, and we told her we had other animals--a dog and some cats. The dog is ok with other dogs, but we wanted a gentle introduction so that he wouldn't be jealous. We have a spare bedroom, and we would keep the puppy in there at night and when we weren't at home for the first week or so, until everyone seemed to get a sense of each other. She really didn't like this, and told us that we needed to crate him in our bedroom, and that a wire crate would be best (btw, a puppy broke a tooth on the wire crate as we began talking, and she completely ignored us telling her that). We said we would get a crate (even though I HATE crating).
My husband also told her that he's had dogs all his life, and he's great at training them. This dog would be trained to go on hikes with us, and we lived next to a dog park, so we'd get a lot of good activity (she never asked whether we lived in a house or apartment, had a yard, etc).
She then told us that we would need to purchase an $89 puppy training package from Petsmart. We had not seen any signs for this, so we were shocked (that would make the puppy cost nearly $350 to adopt; we'd still have to microchip him on our own). We aren't impressed with Petsmart's puppy training (it's not bad, just not the best--if we're paying for classes, we'd like something more than the basics). We would have been fine with having to do a training, but we would have liked to choose. When we asked why they had this requirement, she got evasive, and eventually told us that they are required by contract with Petsmart to make adopters purchase the puppy training. My husband was annoyed at this, and started saying that he wasn't happy that Petsmart would put up such a barrier to people adopting dogs. The lady said that we had two strikes against us for refusing to crate (which we did not), and refusing to purchase the training (though she said she would have waived that had it not been for the crating). She then told us that our willingness to put a puppy in a room by himself showed that we didn't know about dogs, and we could not adopt the puppy.
I was upset, and decided to talk to the Petsmart manager (they did, after all, lose out on the sale of all of the stuff we would have bought for our new pack member). I spoke to a very nice manager who said she would email her store manager, gave us his number to call, and mentioned that there had been other complaints.
I was still upset over the situation, and really liked that dog, so decided that we should give it one more shot. I approached the Director again and told her that we had just spoken with the manager, and that we would be calling the store manager, but we wanted to give her an opportunity to talk to us first when tempers were cooler. I also said the manager had mentioned there had been other complaints. She talked to us for a moment, and we told her we would crate the dog, and we would do the puppy classes. She then said that she had made her decision and us "badgering her" would not change her mind, and walked away. I then unfortunately made a bit of a scene, starting to choke up and call out to her that I was so sad that she was doing this to the dogs and not letting us adopt simply because she didn't like us.
She then went inside to talk to the manager. Another volunteer who had worked with us and liked us went in as well. We waited for several minutes; the volunteer came out and said a puppy trainer would come out and speak with us, and not to worry--we'd get the dog. We waited, the Director came out again and said she had been prepared to let us adopt, but the manager told us that she hadn't said to us that there had been other complaints, so since we lied, we didn't get the dog.
And that is why I cried in the car. We had fallen in love with the perfect puppy for us, and were denied after all of these emotional encounters. We were called bad dog owners and liars. A puppy didn't go home today, and SLVAW didn't have the funds/space to rescue one more pup from euthanasia. All because the organization's director is reactive, rude, and arbitrary. Be careful adopting from this place, and be even more wary to donate to them. They desperately need a change in leadership.
This is a great rescue for both dogs and cats. They come to Colorado Springs, CO, every saturday, to Petsmart near Chapel Hills Mall, and I go to help out with walking the dogs and giving them treats. I also periodically donate to their cause. Please help out whenever and however you can, by either donating or volunteering.