Misled by the Meriden Humane Society

Marlena lies a lot is a control freak MHS is her very own hoarder
situation never calls people bsck is the only person who can
approve antything. Does not delegate. Money donated unaccounted for
Donated cameras disappear She answers to no one and animals miss
out on good home because she cant do it all, will not accept help, and
applications sit in piles unreviewed and people not called back
place needs new director and board that will really do whst is best
for animals and not M's ego. Dogs sit in cagesvfor years

Hello, everyone.

Wanted to stop by and give you an update. We received a call from the
director of this shelter. She apologized for what happened and
informed us that the volunteer who called us to let us know we were
not approved for Casper should've gone on to say that we were approved
as adopters for another dog or cat of our choosing, if we wish.
Apparently, although Casper did well in the interaction with the
shelter cats, he didn't do so well when he spent the night at the home
of a shelter volunteer who has two cats of her own. Based on some
aggression he showed in the home environment, they didn't feel it
appropriate to send him into our home with a cat, and under those
circumstances, I certainly agree. As of today, Casper is still
available for adoption.

We have completed an adoption with the Meriden Humane Society for a
2-year-old Shih Tzu mix who was brought to the shelter more recently.
We are excited that we will be able to bring him home today or
tomorrow.

Well it could be several things...


as suggested below, it's possible that someone else wanted the dog and
they don't want to tell you the truth about it.


OR it could be that the dog worked well with cats at first but then
something else happened which would make the dog a bad fit for you.




Now personally if it was the latter, I'd rather not even take the
animal home... cos what if it was the truth and doggy decided your cat
was a chew toy?



As for breed temperament... no idea. Never heard of this breed before.
However I do know my boyfriend would love to have a dog. and that
whatever breed we get, he'll be stuffing my brain full of info on what
the breed is like etc... because if it's not a breed he's familiar
with he'll learn up on it.


but even then, breed tendencies might not matter much. like
greyhounds. we thought about them for a while but can't get them for
this apartment. (too big) They're traditionally hunting animals and
athletes. so some will want to chase Kitty until kitty's heart
explodes (same way they hunt rabbit... case it until the heart blows
up). However not all greyhounds are like that. some like cats just
fine, others don't.

Usually however with the greyhound adoption group it will state "cats,
no cats, or untested".



And with ANY dog - if the warning isn't listed, I'd recommend going
with "UNTESTED". I wouldn't consider it to be an actual "safe" unless
it's specifically listed as such.

Without knowing exactly what happened you might just want to look at
this as a good thing.

If the Dog (casper) had done something while they were Cat testing
him, like fight with the cat, or bit him etc. They may have decided
not to put him in a home with a cat.

The last thing you want is a new dog and a wounded or dead cat as a
result.

This letter is very sad. I'm sorry you weren't able to adopt Casper.

Based on your detailed letter, I do not see any reason why you were
denied the chance to give him a forever home.

Thank you for being good people in your willingness to adopt animals
from shelters. Despite the poor experience you had with this shelter,
please do not sour on all shelters. They are truly the best place to
find a loving companion animal.

I adopted my cat Sami from the local SPCA and he has been the best cat
I ever could have wished for.

How sad. I recently went through a similar situation. I was able to
go to my local SPCA and adopt an adorable kitten. I found that
everything truly does happen for a reason. If I hadn't had my sad
experience, I would not have ever met Santino and wouldn't have gotten
to share my home with such a wonderful cat. Wishing you the best -
try your local SPCA!

Dogs are large and muscular doesn't mean they were bred for the same
purpose, same temperment nor same traits. For example, the Dogo
Argentino was bred for hunting game including boar and puma. It can be
dog aggressive and it has a high prey drive(something you want to be
very careful with since you have a cat). Compare it to a Rottweiler,
which is another large muscular breed, which was bred to be a cattle
droving dog and to pull carts. They have nothing in common which is
why it's important to be educated on the breed before you bring one
home.

Anyways, I do agree that they handled the situation wrong and they
should've been honest with you as to what happened with the dog and/or
why they did not place it with you. If anything, if you're interested
in a large breed of dog, especially if you have children around and
other pets, your best bet may be to contact breed specific rescue.
These folks are more experienced with their chosen breed and can help
you find the appropriate dog for your family.

Personally speaking, I've had various issues with rescue, which turned
me off to it and I ended up getting my dog from a responsible breeder,
so I wouldn't rule out a good breeder as well. Good luck in your
search.

OK, if the rescue people came and snatched up the dog, then that is
even MORE ignorant. Why would they assume that they know more or
better if this family is compatible? That's a little shortsighted,
IMHO.

To read the description of the dog, it was deliberately bred to be a
COMPATIBLE dog in hunting with other dogs. I can't imagine it being
aggressive with a cat that is IN THE HOME (since they are supposed to
be protective of their families) and then using that as a reason to
deny the adoption.

But overall, I believe that this organization handled themselves
unprofessionally. The very LEAST the director could have done was
speak to them. That is what she is PAID to do.

I'm really getting worried about adopting a shelter animal in the next
year or so if this is what I have to look forward to!

My God! I wasnt even scrutinized this extensively when I had my kids,
and they do home visits, TO PLACE A DOG???

Honestly, I think they probably adopted the dog to someone else --
possibly an employee or volunteer -- and just are lying to cover their
tracks. I'm sorry they treated you this way. I have a lot of respect
for the work that animal lovers do for pets that need homes, but so
many of these shelters are just ridiculous and absolutely hinder the
process.

I say this with one rescue cat, almost 17, dozing on her shelf,
another rescue cat sleeping on my bed, and another sitting on my lap
purring right now (and she doesn't even like me that much, but she
sure loves a lap when I'm at the computer).

I've adopted numerous cats and a dog and never had to jump through
hoops except for one cat who was retarded or brain damaged in some
way. They wanted to make sure that he went to a home with no kids and
that EXTRA precautions would be taken to keep him from going outside.
Given his lack of normal cat sense and intelligence, descriving the
excessive amount of doors in our home, we got him over another family
with a kid.

I'm really sorry you went through all that - as a pet owner and animal
lover myself it seems very unfair that the shelter would allow you to
do so much bonding with the dog only to not return your calls or let
you know what was going on. I do hope you get a proper explanation. I
have been turned down by shelters and it can be a big blow especially
after you have your heart set on one. I do feel that some shelters
can be a little extreme in the screening processes. I understand why
they do all they do but feel as though they are allowing some of the
animals to miss out on some wonderful families. good luck!