Humane Society of South Central Michigan

Natalie Tramel

2024-03

I have nothing but good things to say about all the workers and staff at this shelter. Staff are friendly and well informed of all the animals there and care for them as if they were their own pet. It is always clean which shows how much work is performed on a daily basis. I started volunteering a couple months ago after my shephard and best friend crossed the rainbow bridge and I needed to be around dogs and cats but wasn't ready to replace my friend. All the cats and dogs are very happy and receive the best care daily and each dog is taken care of by their individual needs and personalities. After two months I finally found my new best friend and I couldn't be happier. This puppy is so smart and sweet and we just matched perfectly. I'm so grateful after talking to one of the managers about what dog would be best for myself and my home. I will continue to volunteer and help as many pets as I can as they continue to heal my heart also. Thank you Carrie and staff for all you do every day to help save pets lives and provide them with the best possible care! God bless you and the facility.

david woltmann

2024-04

Great organization. The application and process to get a animal may seem long, but it is worth it. They just want to make sure the animals go to a good home. I was briefed quite well with my dogs past history, great medical records were given to me and great advice on the dog's behavior and what to look out for. I highly recommend the Humane Society.

Victoria Gutierrez

2024-04

My boss was trying to adopt a kitten. After completing the extremely lengthy application, he received an email pretty much discouraging him from adopting his preferred kitten and suggesting other kittens instead. They then called with questions about his previous dog owned during his marriage that his ex still owns, questions how often said dog goes to the vet. How would he know??? When he called to check up on his application and questioned the delay, she said he was more than welcome to look elsewhere for a pet. He called back after contemplating her rudeness to withdraw his application and she responded that it was probably for the best. Do they NOT want to get their animals adopted? I understand wanting to make sure they are going to a good home and a good fit with the new owner, but being rude and discouraging is unacceptable. No wonder the Humane society is full of animals waiting to be adopted. It's more complicated to adopt an animal than a child. A more positive attitude from their staff would go along way.

Ericka L

2024-04

I called the Humane Society today with a concern about one of my cats. I was at a loss with some of her behavior and I received excellent customer service from the woman that answered the phone. She patiently listened to my concerns and gave me a ton of helpful advice that I plan to follow. The advice she provided was beyond what I had found on Google when I was researching my options. Because of her willingness to help me, I have hope. I wish I would've gotten her name!

Fede Conde

2024-04

Great dog park and trails to walk the furry friends. Usually not crowded by comparison to other spaces. Best part, the little fellows inside the Himane Society are always grateful for visitors and volunteers.

Kristen F

2024-03

They won’t let you even look at a dog because you “don’t have breed experience” but like, if I’m getting a new family member, I’m going to learn about them and their health needs, which we communicated with the staff. So they’d rather the dog sit in a shelter their whole life than go to a loving family. Makes no sense at all. Sorry doggies, we tried to help you have a great life!! We’ve grown up with dogs of all kinds of breeds our whole lives but we’re too inexperienced for their dog. Guess we’ll go to a breeder and cause more problems. HSSCM causing more problems than they solve with their gatekeeping.

Jessica Hargis

2022-05

Adopted a 10 week old sibling set of kittens from the Humane Society in 2006. They were the first pets I ever purchased myself. I paid for all of their care as I grew up and loved them both dearly. Both cats had long and happy lives. I just lost them both in October 2019 and May 2021 and am now donating to the Humane Society! I don’t understand the negative reviews, as even at a young age, I understood the reason they have such extensive checks. They want their animals to have supportive, loving homes that are able to give regular vet care and be stable homes for pets. They do not want families rehoming pets shortly after due to the pet being “too much” or not a right fit for children, etc. They try very hard to do what is best for the animal. Even at 19 I understood that. Great job! Keep it up!

Ashley Winston

2024-03

This place is incredible unprofessional and rude! I have owned pets my whole life. l am looking to add an addition to my family after loosing a pet to old age. They are unwilling to consider my family as an option because they word their adoption form in a way to set you up to fail. I have never been more appalled in my life. I just feel sorry for all the pets left in their care that will never find loving homes. Go else where to adopt your future pet and save yourself the Heart ache of dealing with this shelter.

Brett Cosner

2024-01

I've rescued multiple dogs and cats over the years, cared for their needs, and have never had a bad experience working with shelters to adopt. I would consider myself an excellent pet owner. Sadly HSSCM has an extremely narrow view of what constitutes a responsible pet owner. I filled out the application truthfully (first mistake) and shared that my dog is not fully up to date with vaccines because he will not tolerate going to the vet after having a traumatic experience with a vet that tried to pin him down to draw blood for a heartworm test causing my dog to crap all over the table while thrashing around until I put an end to the madness. My dog is well and getting up there in years so it’s more of a priority to keep him happy than it is to have him jabbed with vaccines and heartworm tests that he can’t tolerate without causing him additional trauma. I am still looking for the right vet for my sensitive pooch, but this actual caring act disqualifies me from adopting a cat from HSSCM. They would “need to verify that my dog has been current on at least two vaccine cycles” before they can approve my application. We also have a cat that spent the last year scratching at the window begging to be let outside, so we got him up to date with all vaccines and have slowly introduced him to the outdoors which has stopped all the scratching and calmed down his demeanor, but again meeting the needs of this specific pet was seen as undesirable. “We do not adopt out cats to anyone who will allow them to be outside because indoors is all they have ever known”, and I believe it. Indoors and in a cage all their lives while HSSCM denies them from being adopted by many would be loving families. Some cats love being outside, but that is not responsible pet ownership according to HSSCM. In my opinion this shelter is an elitist organization only accessible to people who have and care for pets in very specific ways. If you take the time to read through their adoption policies they are very upfront about their policy to discriminate against families that work long hours, have limited income, or do not own their own home, even people with disabilities will likely be denied for not possessing the “ability” to control an animal of a certain size. You must be privileged and able bodied to adopt a pet from the Humane Society of South Central Michigan. My kids were sad to hear that there was no chance for us to adopt the cat were interested in that we found on Petfinder so we have moved on and will likely pick up a kitten off craigslist or a pet from another more family friendly shelter of which there are many. I’m a local realtor and I love supporting local businesses, charities, and organizations that do good work in the Battle Creek community. Unfortunately I will not be recommending HSSCM to anyone I care about or any of the many clients I serve or the many people I work with in this community. The experience was disheartening and the discriminative policies at this organization set people up to fail. Ultimately these types of discriminatory policies only work to push people to find pets on sites like craigslist or to puppy mills where it’s easy to pick up a pet without being treated like you aren’t worthy to care for one. Shame on you HSSCM, you have made adopting and rescuing animals a negative experience for so many families in the Battle Creek area. I hope the board of directors reads this review and really considers changing policies, but unfortunately from the responses to other negative reviews it seems they will continue defend their discriminatory practices making adopting pets unobtainable to most families in the area.Edit: I was able to find a wonderful rescue cat locally in Battle Creek and did not receive any criticism for the way I have taken care of my other animals. When I shared my experience the lady said it was a shame because there are so many cats that need to be adopted and HSSCM is not helping the situation.

Liz Overhiser

2023-12

They rejected my application despite fulfilling all stated requirements on their site, stating that despite my current dog never having been boarded or spending time around other dogs, it had to have parvo vax for two consecutive years or I couldn't adopt. Despite my already having an appointment to get this vaccine updated. And despite my having spent thousands of dollars on vet care in the last year. Apparently because I didn't get my dog vaccines he didn't need, I wasn't qualified. Dont even waste your time applying, they will find a reason to reject you. I feel like they aren't very committed to finding homes for these animals.In regard to their response. My records did reflect that my animals are seen regularly and I only refused what care they told me was unnecessary. Perfection is the enemy of progress, they could have more animals in loving homes instead of cold jail cells, but they choose not to. The reason they gave me over the phone was precisely that my dog did not have 2 annual Parvo vaccines in a row. I told my vet that I did not board him and he did not share any spaces with other dogs and we agreed it wasn't necessary. I'm changing my rating to one star from two due to their disingenuous response.

Alexa Lewis

2023-11

Really disappointed in my experience with this place. Being told I was “sketchy” and a “liar” because Lakeview Vet ( who is known for their awful record keeping) couldn’t get my records straight. I contacted Lakeview Vet they admitted their mistake. I am a wonderful loving pet owner and treat me fur babies better than I do myself. It’s very disheartening and very unprofessional for LACEY to call me a liar and tell me I’m sketchy. She also hung up on me. I work with the public every single day and I would never speak to anyone like that let alone a customer. No wonder their shelter is overflowing. I sadly do not want to do business with this establishment and will take my business and love to another rescue who actually wants to see their pets and rescues in great homes. Good luck to anyone who deals with these unprofessional power trip of women who run the desk. As for the Director she was nothing but kind and understanding to the misunderstanding. Unfortunately after consulting with my Vet and hair clients apparently this place is known to treat people this way. I’m just sad for the animals who are sitting there without homes while these workers interrogate and call adults names like children. Let’s hope their caring and animals skills are better than their social and people skills. I recommend taking your love, money, and time to a rescue who is kind and has nothing but good intentions and plans for their shelter animals.

Sarah Lilly

2024-05

This is a good place to go but if you are in a pinch and people do that have a rough spot sometimes, this place is not Free. You must have Money for it.

Sealcoat

2023-10

So this is the third time since i was 18 that i have tried to adopt a pet from this place. First time they said my other dogs vacs were not current, which were per dickman rd vet clinic. Second time it was i wouldnt have enough time for a pet with my work hours and now the third time its my current dog doesnt have vacs up to date which they are . And they also now have a standing policy on other dogs being in the household . I dont see how this place stays in business. Seems like they discriminate. My dog is always up to date on her shots per my vet. I dont get what they are looking for .....maybe goverment funding.

William Bogen

2023-05

Over the years, we have adopted a total of five cats from these fine folks. After two passing away (in the last two years) it was time to refill our kitty population. The staff is very aware of each cat's personality. They were very helpful in assisting us in selecting two sister cats that might best get along with our remaining cat. ( They are fine with each other) We've always had an excellent experience. I highly recommend them!

Kali Lechtanski

2023-05

I had applied to hopefully adopt a dog from this shelter as a family pet and a best friend to the dog that we already have. I received a phone call from a representative to this shelter not even 24 hours later basically rejecting my application (that they hadn’t even reviewed) solely based off of the fact that I don’t have a fenced in back yard. The excuse that I got from the representative was “the dogs don’t recall or know how to walk in a leash”. I had mentioned in this conversation that with time and training we would get that down. The rep was rude and told me that it wasn’t going to be a good fit when I started asking more questions on the situation. I just don’t understand how this shelter expects get these pets to loving forever homes when they are so quick to decline people based off of something minimal.

Alex M

2019-05

I love this place! Me and my family still bring stuff there to donate towards the Animals! We got one of our cats from there, and he couldn't have been any happier at a pet store! They do refuse animals to some people, because they get nervous sometimes and just hope for the best for those animals. His name is Polly:)!

Kellie Clay

2023-05

I'm changing my review and letting everyone know that I got a private email from Kari and it was very mean and extremely unprofessional because I adopted josie and she was sick. They are very rude people and she took it one step farther and called my vet. She has no right doing so. Vet said people complain about them constantly and I want everyone to know that I changed josies name and she's out of that cold jail cell and we love her more than life. So I'm taking this email and I'm going to the proper authorities and hope justice is done on behalf of these animals. I hope animal lovers like me stand up and have a voice because they don't and people working at Calhoun county humane society should be fired. Rude, mouthy, and I can only imagine what those poor babies go through. I love my puppy and she wakes mommy up every morning slapping my head and face.i will not tolerate being treated like that again and I will make sure this issue gets resolved

Todd Kuty

2023-05

If you are reading these reviews and wonder why some people are blown away by the effort and care this staff put into placing these animals and others are so put off this is why….. these people really care about giving these animals the best shot at a successful adoption and forever home. All too often people want a certain type of dog or cat that maybe their situation isn’t best suited for, but don’t like to be told this is the case. If you want the best chance at a successful adoption I have not ever been to a better place hands down. Wish this was the norm for adoptions and glad to have gotten lucky enough to choose them.

Nicole Wilkinson

2021-05

Some things to be prepared for: If you are seeking a certain animal that is in demand, don't get your hopes up. We were specifically trying to adopt a dog of the breed we're familiar with--even though we'd have to drive 2 hours to this shelter. We were told that there were other applications and I accepted that.However, they reached out to me multiple times through phone and email to get our information. When they called our vet for references and had me email them heart worm preventative receipts, I was under the impression we were being chosen, pending a meet-and-greet.Then, I saw the dog posted as "pending" online. I asked if it meant for us, and the answer was basically that they had a potential adopter coming already, AND a back-up and I was somewhere much further down the list.I'm sure they're doing their best for the animals, but our hearts were broken. If we basically had no chance of adopting this dog I specifically applied for, we should have been told that and they shouldn't have gone so far as to call our vet twice for references they didn't need. I wouldn't have wasted time emailing receipts!If this is their normal practice, all potential adopters should be aware. It's hard to fall in love with an animal and get strung along for over a week just to have no chance. In our case, there weren't other dogs we were interested in. I hope they all find good homes--but we were looking for the breed that suits our family.

Holly Schmidt

2023-05

I put in an application, answered all questions, was upfront about my plans about what I’ll do with a dog when not home, etc. Was told I was approved. Then a week later and now the adoption coordinator has all these reservations and it’s a no go. I was given the run-around and the adoption coordinator blamed it on the front desk staff. Very unprofessional and many of the assumptions made about me were downright rude (like a person new to the area is incapable of making friends/connections who could help out with things? Or assuming I didn’t do research on dog daycares already?) Don’t waste your time.

Nancy Douglas

2024-04

I'm glad for those who are there to help all those beautiful little faces waiting for there forever homes...

Sophie

2020-05

Wonderful cat room with lots of toys and scratching posts for the kitties. Very committed staff who keep the facility clean and really care about the animals.Many of the one star reviewers mention being rejected from adoption because of their pets at home not being spayed/neutered or not up to date on vaccines. These ARE legitimate reasons for rejecting an application, and I fully support this organization in their effort to adopt to only responsible pet owners.That being said, even if you aren't looking to adopt, the staff is very welcoming and they let you interact with the cats and see the dogs. I'm so glad to see the level of care that this facility extends to their animals.

Sue Myland

2019-05

Loved our experience while adopting our new puppy. Very friendly, knowledgeable, caring and passionate staff. They were extremely thorough in their investigation of our family and our home environment. These people love each and everyone of their fur babies and want to make sure their pets get the best placement possible to insure a successful partnership.Our questions were handled efficiently and with much patience. Also appreciated getting paper copies of important information regarding training, vaccinations etc.

Mike Johnson

2021-05

Beware, awful experience trying to provide a good home to a pet in need. After filling out extensive paperwork, providing three personal non-family references and sending multiple emails providing even more information...was informed recently by their office...'Sorry I was rejected because I could only provide two vets that had seen and took care of my previous healthy cat and that was an unacceptable care record for them. Thanks for nothing. I will find another shelter that is truly driven to find good homes for pets that need love and not making people jump through hoops for no reason.

Sheryl Danke

2022-05

Don't bother, I walked in a lady said sorry you have to have an appointment to see anything. she showed me a book I asked her well is there any way I can see Stella,Absolutely nobody is in the place...she said NO, you have to fill out an application first, i said just to see her?? She said yes its easier on the dog! What!!! ALSO they don't participate in the " empty the shelter". DON'T bother going there!!

Mary Clark

2022-05

We have always had girl dogs and wanted another girl dog. We met with the adoption counselor and she said she really thought a boy would be best with our situation. I really kind of fought the idea, even asking if they would bring the girl sibling in. After the girl was brought in, boy did we change our mind. Our adoption counselor really knew the dogs at the facility and after meeting with our dog really knew the perfect match. Thank you for everything!

Kelsey Near

2019-05

Me and my husband were not allowed to adopt because we did not have 2 years of vet history for our deceased dog (Current vaccinations) and on the cats and that we were bringing home from my parents care. We hadn't even owned them yet. They require a tremendous amount of specifications that most people would not be able to provide. It seems a shame they are so picky that even good people who would give the pets loving homes can't adopt from them. I hope they change their policy so the average person can adopt.

S B

2023-05

Friendly staff. We visited the cat room and although they had lots of great kitties, we did adopt the one we originally wanted. Explained everything about the paperwork, cat's history and answered all our questions.

Two Toros Vintage

2017-05

They were super helpful and spent about 3 hours with us going over information about the dogs we were interested in and then allowing time for each dog to meet our dog to find a good match. We ended up with a happy and healthy 6 month old puppy who loves to play with our 6 year old dog. We had a very positive experience and would recommend anyone looking for a pet to go here. They truly care about the animals and their selective application process, which some of the other reviewers take issue with, is another example of how much they care. These animals have had a rough life and the staff are just trying to make sure they go to loving forever homes.

Diana Prince

2020-05

I've had two bad experiences with the Humane Society of South Central Michigan. Recently I tried to adopt a puppy, I provided all the documentation needed and was told I was approved... But, not for the dog I applied for... This is so illogical, either I'm approved or not. My other bad experience was last year when I tried to adopt a cat and was denied. I ended up going to Companion Cats who still evaluates applicants; but, cares more about placing pets in good homes then having them live in cages. The Humane Society needs to reevaluate their policies. No wonder they have so many animals, they aren't doing a good job at placing them.