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 Misled by the Meriden Humane Society
Posted Fri August 19, 2011 12:00 pm, by Susan R.
On August 4, 2011, my husband and I, along with our two young nieces went to the Meriden Humane Society to adopt a dog. My husband has wanted a dog for a very long time, but we needed to find one who would be a good fit for our home as we have a 4-year-old cat and our nieces and nephew are around our house often. We started by reviewing the shelter's large book of pets available for adoption. Each animal photo is accompanied by a description of the dog, his/her temperament and a warning if the dog cannot be around other dogs, cats, children or other environments.
We came across a listing for a Dogo Argentinium by the name of Casper. His listing carried no such warnings mentioned earlier, and was said to be of excellent temperament. We were told by a volunteer that he had been in a family that had to move and was forced to leave him behind in the care of the humane society. We asked to meet him and in the presence of the volunteer, Jenn, we played with him, walked him a bit and got to know him. We met the director of the humane society, who was excited that we were interested in Casper. We filled out an application, which included references and the name of our cat's veteranarian. We were told that our application would be reviewed and that a home visit would be scheduled to be sure that our environment would be suitable for Casper. In addition, Jenn advised us that because we already own a cat, Casper would be part of a "cat interaction," whereby he would be placed in a room with cats who are also residing in the shelter to gauge his reactions to them.
The next day, August 5, we returned to the shelter again with our nieces. We brought a rope toy, a blanket and some training treats. We spent a significant amount of time bonding with Casper and we were told by Jenn that he had done well in the cat interaction, showing no aggression and allowing the cats to be near him. When we left, we took the blanket so we could allow the cat to become accustomed to Casper's scent. Later that same afternoon, we received a call from Jenn, who stated that she wanted to conduct the home visit that day. We agreed to this and Jenn arrived at our home with her mother that afternoon. During the home visit, Jenn advised us that we had a wonderful home and neighborhood for Casper, that our cat looked very nice and healthy and that our vet had given them very satisfactory information. She advised us that she would write a very positive report and that the director would contact us within 2-3 days with her decision, which Jenn was sure would be in our favor.
On Sunday, August 7, we returned to the shelter to visit with Casper. A volunteer (not Jenn) welcomed us and said she would send the director out to speak with us. The director never came outside. We didn't think much of this and returned Casper to the volunteer when we were ready to leave.
On Tuesday, August 9, when we hadn't yet received a phone call from the director, my husband called the humane society and left a voicemail requesting a callback. No callback was received.
On Thursday, August 11, after receiving still no response, my husband left another voicemail at the humane society. He then called an alternate number he had been given, not realizing that it was Jenn's personal cell phone number. She answered and was extremely surprised that we hadn't yet been contacted by the director. She stated that she couldn't understand why it would be taking so long, but that she would speak with the director and have her call us. No callback was ever received.
On Friday, August 12 (a full week since the home visit), we sent an email to the humane society, explaining the situation and requesting a call or a return email. No call or return email ever took place.
On Saturday, August 13, we visited the humane society in person, to find that there was an adoption event taking place. We asked one of the volunteers if we could speak with the director, and she got on a walkie talkie to let her know we were there. The director never came out to see us. We instead spoke with another woman who stated that she worked with the director. We spoke with her about the situation. She said she couldn't help us due to the event that was currently taking place; that the humane society was closed for business. She wrote down mine and my husband's phone number and said she would call us the next day. As we were leaving the humane society, we saw the director, who purposely turned from us and ignored us.
On Sunday, August 14, we received a call from a young volunteer that we had never before worked with. She stated that she was sorry, but it had been decided that Casper didn't do well with cats and we would not be allowed to adopt him. Upon trying to ask her why this was not told to us before, and in fact, why we had been told exactly the opposite, she had no answers.
I do not know the real and true reason that we were not allowed to adopt Casper. Were we lied to from the beginning, or at the end? We are very disappointed in this outcome, as we had bonded with Casper and had begun preparing our home for his arrival based on the positive information we had received from the director on our first visit and from Jenn before, during and after our home visit.
My husband and I would like a truthful explanation for this adoption gone wrong. We are loving and responsible pet owners and we support shelter adoptions; but we feel we were misled, ignored in the hope that we would go away, and then lied to in an attempt to make us go away. We hope that Casper and all the animals at this shelter go to loving homes. We will be going elsewhere to open ours to a needy animal.
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by undercover Posted Tue October 2, 2012 @ 11:51 PM
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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
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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.
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Lucky dog!
by cissy Thu August 25, 2011 @ 11:15 AM
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by PepperElf Posted Wed August 24, 2011 @ 2:59 PM
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That's one of the things we're thinking of for getting a house... that
he'll be able to get the dog he wants.
and i may get a cat. it depends. Sis may want me to take Viggo back
in that case... although to be honest I think he's more their cat than
mine now. Even though I do sign his name to cards still. ;)
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by Jared C. Posted Mon August 22, 2011 @ 11:12 AM
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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.
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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.
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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!
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