I am devastated writing this. I adopted from this shelter believing I was bringing home a kitten who needed love and care. According to her paperwork, she weighed just 3 lbs--which I later learned is completely abnormal for her age. She was 10 months old, not a young kitten. That means she was severely underweight and likely starved or chronically underfed while in their care. The place was also filthy, and she was not fixed. From the start, she had eye issues and ongoing respiratory problems. Under vet supervision, I did everything possible to rehabilitate her. We slowly increased her food, treated her symptoms, and managed to get her weight up slightly--but the damage had already been done. Her immune system was so compromised that despite all efforts, she suddenly passed away. She was eating, drinking, and seemed stable. There was no warning. Losing her has been absolutely heartbreaking. This shelter either failed to properly feed her, failed to disclose the severity of her condition, or both. A cat in this state should never have been adopted out without full transparency and medical intervention. I trusted this place. I trusted their paperwork. That trust cost an innocent animal her life and left me grieving a cat who never even got the chance she deserved. Please think very carefully before adopting from here. read more

Please do your research and don't go to the vetinary clinic with Dr bleese. I would Type the whole terrible experience but google wont allow one that long. Broad overview, it's unsanitary, cluttered, animals roaming, and just down right disgusting. They don't clean it and it's obvious. No other vet offices are this dirty. Second the staff will give you the run around because they overbook themselves and waste everyone's time. My cat went in with no problems to get a spay and came out with having random "concerns" and charges that they couldn't prove with a diagnosis of any sort and lack of communication during this time. I expressed my concerns of having to wait excessive amounts already and after hearing all different excuses and stories... the terrible Communication to why and how long or any sort of status. I announced that I would not be paying my bill except for what was originally agreed upon. The front desk staff yanked my cat carrier out of my hand (which had my post op cat in) and rushed her up the stairs to where the doctor is while shaking her around aggressively. I said something and she just gave me a sarcastic response. After speaking with the dr it was obvious they could not take accountability and blamed everything else for not doing their jobs right. If you really were that busy, then use your front office staff to make those calls and schedule smarter expecting emergencies to occur or walk in. It's not that complicated. In addition to that already terrible experience, they were unable to provide me with much discharge and aftercare details and then called me hours later to tell me I forgot my medicine and follow up apt. I had the medicine already and was not going to be scheduling my cats follow up there. Save yourself time, money, and the safety for your animals. You really do get what you pay for read more

This place should send all who work here to class on how to treat people and phone manners. Needed help with stray kitten found outside my house. Very rude and could care less. Truly pathetic on how they operate. read more

We adopted an 11-week-old puppy from a community event. It was unlike any other pet adoption I had done. It was as simple as signing a paper and paying $400. I was told to make an appointment with their vet a month later for her vaccines and microchip implantation. Three days later, a package arrived in the mail from the shelter containing a bottle of medication without explanation. I called to find out what it was for and was told that one of my puppy's littermates tested positive for a parasite and they were all being treated. I had another dog at home and was frustrated that I was not made aware of the infection, or possible risks to my family or dog at the time of adoption. My daughter and I brought the puppy to the vet. The smell was overpowering and the office looked like a hoarder's paradise. Dr. Blease asked me what I was feeding my dogs, and I told him. He went on to ask me if I would like to eat the same thing every day and lectured me about dehydrated dog food and compared it to feeding my dogs McDonalds every day. He told me I should be feeding them my table scraps. I was concerned because the puppy didn't seem to be gaining weight, and she was ravenous. I had even upped the amount she was being fed. When he asked about the heartworm/tick and flea medication I gave my dog at home, he shamed me saying, "It's better than nothing." (The treatment was recommended by my other dog's reputable vet) He also told me and my daughter to puppy-proof our home and make sure our (drug) stashes are high up. We don't have stashes and it was completely inappropriate! He administered the vaccine, gave her a heartworm pill, and flea and tick medication, and we got the hell out of there. I was more than halfway home when I realized they never implanted the microchip. The next morning, my daughter came into the house with our puppy very upset. There were two, six-inch, live white worms in the puppy's stool. I called the vet as soon as they opened. COMMON SENSE DOES NOT TREAT ANIMALS UNTIL THEY HAVE GOTTEN THEIR ADOPTION FEE. My poor baby was STARVING because all of her food was being eaten by those parasites! This would have been easily avoidable if they had given her the treatment when she first arrived at the shelter! And, again, I was concerned about my dog, and my family's exposure to ringworm. I called the vet as soon as they opened, and they told me to come in and they would give me a treatment for my other dog as well. I went in the next morning to have the puppy microchipped and to pick up the pill for my other dog. It was the first appointment of the day and I was there when Dr. Blease came downstairs for the day. I assume he lives upstairs. Following him was an older, smaller dog. The dog came over to greet my daughter and his/her fur was completely matted, and adorned with feces. The dog then walked away from her and peed under one of the benches in the waiting room. This man lectured me about my dog's food, and his dog was not being adequately cared for. Once my puppy was microchipped by the vet tech, I asked about my other dog's heartworm pill, and the receptionist told me that they couldn't give me anything without my dog being seen, or being a patient. I explained my experience so far, including the medication in the mail, worms, and concerns for my other dog to her and the vet tech, who seemed like a nice person. However, neither of them looked at me while I was speaking, instead attending to other things, which I found to be incredibly rude and disrespectful. The vet tech chimed in and said she had spoken to me on the phone the day before and promised the medication, and offered to run it by Dr. Blease while the receptionist snarled. The receptionist was incredibly unpleasant and has no business interacting with people. Once Dr. Blease approved, the receptionist told me I owed money for the medication. Apparently, we have two different interpretations of what "come in and we'll GIVE you a pill for your other dog" means! NEVER AGAIN! I'm so glad I saved my baby from any further time at this horrible place! read more

Very helpful with posting a courtesy post to assist me with rehoming my young dog. The person who was instrumental in helping me was very patient with me throughout this very difficult process. Thank you‼ read more

We adopted our female dog from there. We were assured she was not pregnant and had not been pregnant but needed to be spade. She was pregnant. We adopted her apparently half way through her pregnancy. We found out 2 days before birth..she was pregnant and that was after we insisted she be checked again before given a heart worm injection( we they were going to cover cause she was heartworm positive). When they checked her..sure enough she was pregnant. 2 days later 7 puppies were born. Now, I understand you can't always tell a dog is pregnant til late in the pregnancy..however..the least that could have been done was offered support. We have two dogs..9 dogs in a household is alot for someone who never had puppies. He offered to take our dog back. WHY would we give a dog we grew to love back?! Regardless, we did not give puppies back..and this vet got some angry..he refused to treat our mother which he was contracted to do. The treatment is expensive..but regardless if a vet treats our mother dog this way..how would he treat her pups. Do not go to this place. The owner and vet doesn't care about the animals just the business. We are more appalled on the ultimatum we got then her actual pregnancy. "Give the puppies to me and I will treat your mother, don't give them to me I won't treat her or spay her". Stay away! read more

This place is horrendous all animals are sick, the owner a VET!!!! Do not take care the animals, the place is dirty, animal have eyes infections, diarrhea,infected with fleas.All very easy to treat, but the choose not to...because them you came back, looking for treatment and they will charge you more, Shelter have the responsibility to give the animal the basic care!!!!!! And this people fail to do so....Shelter have!!!!! The responsibility to give healty animals for adoption. I adopt a sweet boy (kitten 5 month all 4 pound) a week ago So sick I have to paid $190 so they release him, he was so sick that a week later I have to put him to sleep...I can't forget this people for what they did to him and me!!! that was so wrong!!!!! read more

This rescue intentionally does not fix many of their cats and dogs so your business can be forwarded to the resident vet. Even with the "coupon" it is costly. It is basically a money making skeem...Furthermore it is dangerous to assume every adopter will in fact spay or neuter their animals. read more

We went there to adopt a puppy after losing our dog of 14 years. The only thing that greeted us as we walked through the door was a God awful smell. No one addressed us. We went looking for a puppy ourselves. We found one we were interested in. The tag stated that she was an American Staffordshire mix. When I asked Andrea about the breed she said "Uh, it's a dog." OK. Can you help me with the breed. As she was walking away from me she stated that she doesn't know anything about the breeds. One woman kept asking us if we realized the work in raising a puppy. She must have asked 3 times. If she thought we were too old to adopt a puppy, they should have never let us adopt her. Seems like their interest was only in the $400.00 adoption fee. They never asked for ID because we did not pay by check. They never asked if we owned a house. Did we have a yard. Have we ever had a puppy before. Do we have a vet. They DID make sure that we knew that once that puppy leaves their door they have no more responsibility for it. When I asked about the food she was eating, Andrea said "Uh, Puppy Chow." OK. What kind of puppy chow. I didn't want to upset her stomach by giving her different food. Andrea pointed to a large pile of newspapers, paper towels and all kinds of animal food. That is what we feed them. OK. No help at all. AFTER signing the papers they did say she needed 3 days of antibiotics because her kennel mate had a runny nose. She does need a third immunization that will be done by our own vet. Our vet will spay her and take care of her . I will never go back there again. There are adult dogs in cages. Not kennels or runs. There was a young man who entered the room and spoke to us. I wish he had been there when we first walked in. Within 30 minutes we walked out with our puppy. Luckily, she seems to be healthy. She is very happy and smart. We did good by getting her out of there. I do feel they should be investigated. read more

I have driven by this place many times and not known there was a shelter here for all sorts of animals. We saw chickens, lizards, as well as dogs and cats when we stopped in for We adopted two kittens from here recently. The staff and volunteers were all friendly and helpful. The kittens are very well adjusted and doing great. As far as animal shelters go, this is one of the nicest ones I've ever seen. You can tell everyone here loves animals and is trying to do the best they can with limited resources. They are always looking for neighbors to drop off supplies or offer a hand. If we lived closer, I'd make it a regular stop to visit some of the animals. Glad we found this place and our family is larger now with two little kittens in the house. read more

We adopted out dog there because I knew the place was terrible and felt I had to rescue the dog from Common Sense for Animals. Because I knew their bad history, the first question I asked was.."Has this dog had a physical from Dr. Blease, the vet here, and is it healthy?" The worker there said, "Yes, of course!". As we were putting the dog into our car, then I was given papers from the South where the dog came from that indicated the dog had heartworm! I questioned them about this and was told that the dog had one shot for heartworm from the shelter in the South and only needs one more shot. In other words, CSA did not treat the dog at all knowing it had heartworm and needed treatment! We immediately took the dog to our own vet who informed us that because they did not treat the. dog with the second shot at all and in the required timeline for it to be effective, we had to start the procedure all over again. So, five months of meds, shots and $2K+ later, our dog, who we love dearly, is finally over the threat of death from the horrible heartworm that the horrible Dr. Blease did not treat!! Please, if you. do go there to adopt a pet and have issues, report this terrible excuse for a shelter to the NJ Veterinary Board and Consumer Fraud Dept! read more

We adopted our dog Reggie from this shelter 11 years ago. He is turning 14 this month. They were wonderful to work with. It's an animal shelter people, the alternative is euthanasia. Do you really think they do this for the money? I have heard running an animal shelter is a real cash cow! Give me a break. These people are providing a service for animals where the alternative is death. Anyway, we love our dog and have nothing but positive things to say about our experience with this NO KILL shelter. read more

I just cannot say enough about this amazing place. The length that Dr Blease will go to for an animal with no home is extraordinary. That even the not so perfect animals in this world have a safe haven until their perfect home comes along. Makes me sleep a bit easier at night knowing someone is ou there doing this work. Almost all of my animals have come from CSA. read more

I gotten my dog from common sense for dogs!! She is a great dog. When I got home I found medical problems with her. I took ro there Vet. I told them the problems with her they did nothing for her!!!! It was a week after I got her I took her to that!! Something about that shelter!!! read more

I'm a veterinary technician and I've excused ridiculous things involving this shelter and clinic for years, but today is where it ends. One of my dogs had gotten out of our fenced in yard a few hours ago. I though she was with my boyfriend who had run out to the store, he thought she was inside with me... We realize around 5:15pm what happened and noticed the spot in the fence she'd gotten through. We spend 20-30 minutes walking the fields and roads calling for her, neighbors jumping in to help. Finally, I come across one neighbor who shouted over his own dogs barking that "someone had taken her over to Common Sense a little bit ago." Excellent! I run my chubby butt up the road and across Route 57 and meet my boyfriend at the shelter. Dr. Blease and 2 staff members were outside as we arrived and explained that one of our dogs got out a little bit ago, described what she looked like, and thatthe neighbor said someone brought her over here. Dr. Blease and one of the other staff members denied any dog being brought in the past few hours. So we went back to looking. It didn't sit right with my boyfriend, so went back to the neighbor to get more information. He clarified that HE PERSONALLY took her to Common Sense around 3:30pm, they scanned her for a microchip, and told him the microchip wasn't registered. My boyfriend and I then went BACK to Common Sense, and admittedly I'm angry, and I begin pounding on doors. Finally Dr. Blease comes out. I reiterate the neighbor himself brought her over here around 3:30pm and show him I have her microchip number and we want to see the dogs they have inside. He smirks at us and says, "well your story didn't jive with the timeline." Low and behold, they had her THE WHOLE TIME! I just called HomeAgain to find out why her microchip was no longer "registered" to find out that it indeed IS REGISTERED and they gave all of my information (which was current and correct) to a "Lauren" at Common Sense Animal Shelter, under Dr. Blease, blah blah blah. Dr. Blease straight up LIED TO OUR FACES about having our dog. Never once said "we did get a dog like that in, do you have proof of ownership?" On top of that, he had the nerve to try to give me a job saying he "thought I was coming back for a job application." Not in a million years. I work for honest people who practice solid medicine. I'm not sure what his end game was in lying to us about having our dog except that he could make a buck off of adopting out a beautiful, sweet dog. I'm infuriated, to say the least. read more

I love to visit common sense and spend time with the cats and dogs to socialize them. The last time I was there an older man (who I believe is the owner or the vet there) was INSANELY rude to me. Practically barked at me for just walking in to the place. I'm used to coming in there and going into whatever animal room the public is allowed to go into. He yelled at me for not stating which room I was going into before going. So I apologized and said I'd never had to do that before and told him I was going into the dog room. I assume he thought I was out of earshot when he started saying to another women there "I'm not gonna stand for that kind of f******* disrespect in here" etc etc. he continued to talk about me and my boyfriend very nastily until we left. Haven't gone back there ever since. It's a shame that people who supposedly care for animals are treating people this terrible. Be nice to people and maybe they'll want to adopt the poor animals from you. read more

We've adopted multiple dogs from this place. I do not understand the harsh reviews. While the fee is expensive, we wouldn't trade Waldo or Max for the world. Very great staff, very friendly. read more

Went in to volunteer and was met by an extremely rude older man, and an equally rude woman. He was yelling and not at all friendly too people interested in helping save a life. He acted as though we had just walked into his house rather than an animal shelter! Will definitely not be returning, and STRONGLY encourage other to look elsewhere. read more

I went here multiple times before I decided on a pet to adopt. I thought I would do a good deed and make my girlfriend happy at the same time (her birthday present). After these few visits we picked out a cat, who we both love dearly at this point. But he's been with us for over a month, and has had a myriad of issues. When he came to our new house he was the only pet, and he adjusted very well. We changed his diet to a very high end natural cat food (much better than the crap they get fed I'm sure), and since he has come home he has been diagnosed with parasite in his butt, causing bleeding and constipation, and now he throws up once a day (maybe from the medication) either way I don't think they fully screen their pets before they adopt them. Be wary. read more

Really wanted to adopt a kitten from here but after reading all the reviews about sick animals coming from there, extravagant vet bills these new owners are incurring, forget it. Yes I can see where maybe ONE animal MIGHT slip out the door with something. But review after review says people have adopted animals with all kinds of things. And the people that run this shelter sound down right frightening. Cant believe with these reviews, and so many sick animals, that someone cant shut down this facility. It is animal abuse with animals picking up diseases because of unclean and contaminated living conditions. Can't understand how this place is still open. Reviews that are bad far outweigh the good. Hope someone can get this place closed! read more

The only reason why I have given one star is because the pets I've gotten from there filled my heart with so much love, but let me tell you that is it! Shame on me for having gone there 4 times to get pets, yes, 4 times! Each time I got a pet with what was reported something very minimal wrong with them, then to get to my vet and the problem is MUCH bigger. I would NEVER bring a pet back to a shelter, especially that shelter. I have worked in a shelter before and understand that money is tight, but the doctors and staff still need to be competent and professional. This place has none. Staff are rude and Dr. Blease is the most rude, arrogant, condescending and incompetent vet I have ever communicated with. My daughter adopted a one eyed cat that she thought was two years old and was being treated for worms, otherwise he was healthy. After more than $500 of vet bills, this cat's worm issues were not cleared up. He has a skin condition and joint problems and he is 10 YEARS OLD!!!! She is beside herself. Her vet says he has arthritis and and knee conditions that usually would require surgery, but since the cat is old and does not want to operate. I called Dr. Blease and all I got was unconcerned, rude and condescending responses and he took no ownership in his inaccurate diagnostic description of this cat. Now, I am mad at this organization, but more mad at me for going back 4 times and always having an issue. My daughter will not return this cat, she loves him, but it is truly heart breaking that she may not have this cat for very long if he continues to be in pain. Shame on Common Sense and shame on Dr. Blease. I am thinking of reporting him to the state board. read more

I had to move and couldn't take my dog with me I I took my dog there because it was a no kill shelter the people are rude who run it and told me I could not leave my dogs there and less I pay them $200 I understand the need to donations but I felt like they were extorting money from me I told them all I had was $100 that was not good enough I had to borrow moneyThat I really couldn't afford being a single mother and have a minimum wage paying job read more

Got a cat in March , 2015. We went and adopted a cat. We have had the cat for about 4 months now. The cat is sick and it could be fatal. Waiting on biopsy now. We payed 150.00 and 170. 00 to have it declawed per the landlord. My husband is disabled and I don't know he will deal with all this. We have al ready paid 1,800.00 dollars to see what's wrong. It's not the money, it's the emotional thing. The cat is only 5 years old. They should screen these cats and keep them separate from cats people have to give up and strays that come in. Today July 24,2015 our cat had to be put to sleep. He had FIP which is transmitted threw litter boxes or to many cats using the same bowls. Their is 2 types. They call wet and dry. They are fatal. Yes I don't think the screen their cats good enough and put two many together. read more

In my eyes, the caregivers at this facility are saints for all of their dedication and time they put into maintaining the shelter and for the betterment of all types of animals. They sacrifice a lot of time that most of us do not have or want to do. The animals at Common Sense for Animals are well cared for while they are waiting for their fur-ever (yes, intentionally spelled wrong) homes. I personally rescued a dog 5 years ago and he is truly "wo"man's best friend! Did he have health issues when I adopted him? Yes! But the health issues he had were the result of puppy mill breeding and NOT the care from the shelter. I was aware of his issues and well informed by the shelter of expenses which could be incurred long before I brought my dog home. I personally accepted the care and responsibility of raising my dog no matter what issues arose (and, sometimes still do). I wouldn't trade what I did for anything in the world! Keep up the good work Dr. Blease and everyone at Common Sense for Animals. read more

I have adopted five animals from here, two dogs and three cats, and they are all so great. I adopted the two cats in 2006 and they are still alive and well. I fostered one cat because it was old and very nice. We ended up adopting it until it died a few years ago. The one dog we adopted a little while after she gave birth. So when we got two other dogs that were younger than her she treated them like her pups and it was so sweet. She recently died from cancer in her ear. The other dog we adopted from here is still alive and healthy, although she is a little over weight but that's kind of my fault. I volunteer here every now and then so I know that all the animals are treated great and get feed great food and are regularly held and played with. I am very satisfied with Common Sense for Animals and I hope to be for a very long time. read more

First off I would like to say I understand the contract I made with CSA but it says in the contract that anything that the animal gets or catches whether it be a cold or eye infection (those are just examples) we are responsible for their care after adopting. When we adopted our kitten from CSA our kitten had RINGWORM It was already existing when we adopted her. We notice when we got home that she had a patch of hair missing on her neck that was dry and flaky. We called CSA to ask them what to do and what they thought it was and the person on the phone thought we wanted to bring our kitten back to them so they hung up on us. We were just calling to get their opinion on what they thought it could be. So after rudely getting hung up on we went straight to CSA. When we got there the vet took a black light to the kitten and said it was ringworm. He gave us a small bottle of shampoo and told us to give our kitten two baths a week with the medicated shampoo and that it "SHOULD" take care of it. He made it seem like it was no big deal. Our kitten is one of three kittens that were in the same litter and if it wasn't for us bringing in our kitten to CSA they wouldn't have known that the other two kittens had ringworm as well. So CSA would have gave two other families a kitten with ringworm if it wasn't for us. Ringworm is curable but is by no means easy to get rid of. So we did what the vet said and gave our kitten a bath two times a week with the shampoo and it was not getting any better. (We are neat freaks and have been cleaning the room we have our kitten in) Mind you we have another cat in our household that could or still can catch it so as a precaution we are give her one bath a week as well. So it wasn't getting any better so we decided to bring our kitten to our own vet. Our vet told us that we were using the shampoo wrong but CSA's vet didn't tell us how to use it properly. Our vet also has given us a oral medication to give our kitten which we have been giving to our kitten and has helped her ringworm Tremendously. Mind you the bill for our vet was $120 for the visit and oral medication but it was well worth it to get our fur baby better. We have the cat and the kitten in separate rooms so my one cat does not catch it from the kitten. I also have ringworm as well now because I play with the kitten and interacted with her because I'm not going to stop playing with her and keep her by herself in a room because she has ringworm. I want her to feel loved. So I went to the doctors to see if the lesions on my legs we're ringworm or not and the doctor said they were. That visit was $40. We had to go back to common sense for animals to get our kitten her shots. After the appointment we were charge $80 for the appointment and the shots. But in the contract it says for 30 days after adopting the office visits are free. $80 is not free! We are still dealing with ringworm as of today and probably will be dealing with it for the next three weeks. I don't think it's right that they can give out animals that have highly Pre-existing contagious condition that can spread not only to humans but other animals in our house. They should be tested for ringworm before they can be adopted out. I know animals are a big responsibility and can be costly but this could have been all prevented if they checked for ringworm before the kittens were adopted. I have gone to many of common sense for animals fun raisers and donated a lot of money to common sense for animals. To be treated like this is unacceptable. Ok end rant. I'm all for animals getting adopted but they need to pay more attention to the animals heath. read more

I have adopted a few pets from Common Sense, and have never had any problems. I love this place! The folks who work there are dedicated and helpful. For you negative posters - first, thank and bless you for adopting! Unfortunately, abandoned or stray pets often experience minor health issues, like worms or digestive problems - these things are easily fixed with a little medication and some patience. For the negative poster who complained about the woman who answered the phone - really? Shame there is no "asshole" option at the bottom of your post. Jackass. read more