I'm so impressed with this animal shelter and how well it is run and loved by the community. We…read morestopped this weekend to drop-off a bit of everything on their wishlist. I was surprised to see so many other cars in the parking lot. There was another family dropping off donations, and a family who was picking-up a new member of their family, a well cared for dog. There were also three teens who were cleaning the cat kennels in a separate room. The main room is open where there is a couch, fireplace, laundry room and office with cat kennels and four large, dog kennels surrounding the room. The animals all looked relaxed - the small to medium size dogs were excited, the kittens were play fighting and adult cats were either sleeping or chilling. There was also another room that housed 8 large dogs, and they all had a nice, cozy place to sleep, plenty of room to walk around and fresh food and water. On each cage, there were notes about the dogs, like "hard toys only", "keep in kennel, jumped over cage", etc. The third room housed more cats. It was small, and the smell was a bit over-powering, but the teens were busy cleaning each cage. The cats looked content and cared for. The entire facility is clean and well maintained. There are also kennels outside with tarps covering the tops to protect the dogs from sun and rain when they are let outside while their kennels are being cleaned. From the extra blankets, netting, fencing and wood boards, the care-givers have gone out of their way to keep the dogs from being able to escape or take nips at each other which I image happens when dogs get bored or playful. They all had several toys in their kennels too, as did all the cats. The volunteers at the shelter are very friendly, the board member present gave us a tour, answered all our questions, allowed us to wander the facility freely, and let us adore the animals at our leisure. I admired their system for organizing the food by expiration dates and mixing them to prevent the dogs from getting used to one and getting sick, if introduced to something different. They also have a system for letting the cats out of their cages to play and enjoy the room either during the day or night. From the amount of good sized kennels, towels, blankets, litter boxes, cat beds, toys and food, the community does its part in chipping in to keep this place going strong. They have a website and facebook profile. The VP on the board who was there that day was very gracious, welcoming, extremely nice and personable and could not thank us enough for our donations. It was also nice to learn that the members of the board are experienced animal rescuers and professionals in the community. We look forwards to working with them in the future.

Hard to give a rating since they didn't do anything at all, so I went with one star. We had our 13…read moreyear old pet pass away and were looking for a pup to replace her as our other dog was in need of a companion. We hoped to get one relatively quickly. We filled out an application for a pup they had and got an email confirmation the application was being sent to Heartland. To be sure they got it, I sent them an email directly with a summary of what we were looking for and attached a copy of the application in case they hadn't received it. For the week after that, we had no response at all from Heartland. Nothing. No acknowledgement by phone, text, nor email. I didn't expect much, but did expect something. The adoption process is way too complicated. We wanted to adopt a rescue or shelter dog as our last pet was, but it is simply too complicated and frustrating, especially when the place with the animals won't participate. We ended up going with a breeder and have the pup at home now. To be fair, Elkhart Humane Society called a day after we submitted an application to keep on file to say we were accepted. Another agency sent an email saying the pup we were interested in had been adopted that day but they would keep the application. Not so for Heartland. They did eventually send an email . . . 3 days after we had our puppy at home. We've had 2 dogs in our home for decades. We prefer going the rescue/humane society route, but they make it much too hard and frustrating to use. Not sure I'll even try using them next time. I'm glad some folks had a good outcome with them, but for us it was nothing but crickets from Heartland.

After an egregious error and subsequent refusal to correct or admit their mistake, South Bend…read moreAnimal Care and Control gave away the dog ("Mya") upon which I had a pending adoption a mere hours before I was to adopt her. She was given to Heartland Small Animal Rescue. I immediately called Mandy from Heartland (twice). She confirmed that they did have Mya. I told her that I would take Mya THAT DAY. I could meet her or whoever had Mya in less than an hour. She told me that she could not adopt out a dog until I had filled out an application and encouraged me to do so. I immediately did. She promised that she would give me a call on Monday. That call never came. I called Mandy again on Friday, October 10th in the afternoon. She did not return that call either. On Saturday, October 11th, I went to PetSmart in South Bend for the adoption event that Heartland holds weekly. I met Mandy, who informed me that Mya had been adopted just last night. I asked why she never called me. These are the "reasons" she gave: 1. She was waiting to hear from South Bend Animal Control to see if they wanted the dog back. She never heard from them. Why then, I asked, did she allow Mya to be adopted by someone, if she was waiting for animal control? I never received an answer to this. 2. She said that my vet references did not check out, but it clearly said on my application that all of my dog's vaccinations and heartworm preventative are from VIP PetCare clinic. I have receipts of this. 3. She said she had been busy. Interestingly, I had called her and left a message on Friday afternoon. Too busy to call me, but still able to take your call. I appreciate that the volunteers at Heartland are just that--volunteers. Ethically, Mandy should have called me at some point in this process. Instead, it seems that she and South Bend Animal Control were simply going to wait for it to blow over. By the power of sheer incompetence on the part of South Bend Animal Care and Control and of lack of ethics on the part of Heartland, I am unable to adopt the dog that I fell in love with. My heart is broken, and I can only hope that this message will save others from the same pain and frustration. Adopt elsewhere.

Would give zero stars if possible…read more Rude staff who does not know what they are doing. Policies that actively prevent pets from finding home. Stinks like giardia feces on the inside. Don't waste your time. They would rather take in donations and waste time than actually help animals.

They do everything to save and protect the animals. Awesome organization! Please adopt before you…read morebuy. You can find any breed or cat or dog there.

We just adopted a dog from here yesterday. The experience was great. After we applied, we heard…read moreback in a day and arranged to go and meet the dog. We drove from MI to the facility in Elkhart, IN. The facility was impressive as they are building a large shelter. The dogs were all kept in large pens and seemed well cared for. We were able to spend as much time as we needed and have our son meet him to ensure he was a right fit. After signing the paperwork and adopting him, they even provided a going home kit with treats and a sample of food. So far, the dog has been great and is already part of our family with our kids. Adopt don't shop :)

FIVE (5) unreplied emails asking to view a specific dog. I got the distinct impression from the…read moretotal lack of response that they are not interested in finding good homes for their animals.

This seems to be a decent agency but they do not offer transport for those of us who may need it in…read moreorder to adopt. There was a feeling of being judged when asking to drive there twice from a long way. I see some other negative comments on here so I am unsure if adoption rate is good due to all of this.

I inquired about a dog that was on the website, was told to come down to do a meet and greet and…read morefill out the application. Got down there and they wouldn't even let me meet the doggie. They brought out a different dog and tried to get me to adopt it. They said the dog I was interested in wasnt "good with people". Which makes no sense because why would you say she was up for adoption?! They refused to even let me set up a time because "she's not friendly ". How would the dog ever get used to others if she is not allowed to even meet with possible adoptees? The ladies there, obviously volunteers that dont care; were dismissive since I dont want the dog THEY wanted me to take. Pet Refuge sucks and you need staff in there that actually WANT to be there and actually care for the animals. There were kittens running all over the place. I feel sorry for those animals.

Awesome staff, I decided to foster a Long term resident after losing 2 of my 3 Dogs in 14 months…read more They are a great bunch of People & I would recommend them to anyone looking for a Furry Friend.

This review is not written lightly, and it's not about being "upset" -- it's about accountability…read more We adopted a cat from this Humane Society after being told the cat was healthy. Within weeks, the cat showed worms, blood-related health issues, and ongoing medical problems that were clearly present before adoption. That alone is unacceptable. What made this experience truly awful was how it was handled afterward. We contacted the Humane Society multiple times asking for help. We were told we would receive a call back -- we never did. We called again. Still no real help, no solutions, no follow-up. Just silence. When we pushed for answers, instead of support or responsibility, we were blamed. We were told we "should have gone to a specialist" and then informed that we are banned from adopting from this Humane Society ever again. That response is shocking, especially considering this situation exists because we were given a sick animal under the claim of being healthy. We are now being forced to return a cat we became emotionally attached to because we cannot afford hundreds of dollars in vet bills for conditions that should have been addressed prior to adoption or at least disclosed honestly. This review is directed not just at staff, but at management, board members, donors, and the community: * Why are sick animals being adopted out as "healthy"? * Why are adopters ignored when they ask for help? * Why are adopters punished instead of supported? Adoption should be about the well-being of animals and the people opening their homes to them -- not deflection, silence, and blame. I strongly encourage leadership to respond publicly and explain how situations like this are handled, because based on our experience, there is a serious lack of transparency and compassion here. Then to finish it all up when the cat was dropped of they said nothing , took the cat , the paperwork , and gave the carrier back.

The animal shelter does such a good job providing this much needed service to our community. Thanks…read more you Shanna and Matt

I have never written a review before, until my awful experience with the Starke County Humane…read moreSociety, and their management. After cooperating with this shelter extensively to claim a stray dog, we were left in the dark and denied information on how to adopt formally. Furthermore, the shelter has repeatedly lied to appease us and exacerbated this situation to the point where we need external assistance to ensure the correct process and well-being of stray dogs is being followed by this shelter. On Friday, July 25th, a group of friends and I stayed at an Airbnb property at 500 S Knox when a small white dog (pictured) approached us outside. After several hours, it became apparent that the dog, while responsive to commands, was not collared or owned by anyone on nearby properties. To attempt to find the owner, we canvased local properties, and although we met with residents, they unfortunately did not recognize the dog. In addition, we searched via social media by posting on Facebook to the local community page and got assistance from the Airbnb host. We attempted to take the dog to Pulaski Animal Center, but we were turned away as they were at capacity. They scanned the dog for a microchip, but no chip was detected. After calling other local shelters and getting no response or rejections due to capacity, we looked after the dog for the rest of our stay (outside the property to respect the Airbnb host's no pets policy), and took her back with us to Chicago to pursue next steps. At this point, we had become attached to the dog and decided we'd like to pursue the route to claiming her fully should no owner be found. The next day, we received a call from the previously unresponsive Starke County Humane Society, which demanded that we return to them with the dog as we had violated state law, despite their unresponsiveness and our situation as non-local residents. We diligently obliged, however, and drove over 2 hours back to the humane society to deliver the dog. We made it very clear that we would be willing to adopt the dog if no owner was found, and we were told that we would be able to claim her on August 5th if no owner came forward. Since then, we have been misinformed, misled, and are outright concerned for the shelter's management. We were asked by the shelter to check in daily to get an update on whether an owner had come forward, yet the phone was often not picked up, and our voicemails were ignored. We had initially been told that the dog had to only stay with the shelter for 5 business days before we could claim her, only to be told later that state law (which they never seemed to have a straight answer on) was that she only be released after being spayed on August 11th. Despite the misleading date changes, we persevered and were ready to claim the dog at the appropriate time and relieve pressure on the (widely reported) saturated shelter. To claim ownership I was informed by the shelter that my background check was submitted on August 5th. After 8 days, I was curious what was causing a delay, and upon driving 2 hours to the shelter the manager Shanna berated me as "mean" and was very reluctant to provide a number for the background check, would not provide an update on the dog, and denied us access to even see the dog. Distressed, I contacted the (background check group) via the number provided by the manager, who informed me that they do not in fact do background checks, and I realized that Starke County shelter had actually lied to me once again about this process. The final straw occurred on August 20th: after providing all necessary vet documentation for the background checks, we were informed by the shelter that the old owner had come forward... despite previously being told that we would be able to claim her after 5 business days.They stated several times, if the owner does not reclaim the dog in 5 days, they waive their rights to the dog. At this point, we do not have any reason to believe that this shelter is telling the truth, and if there is any such previous owner. We are angered and aggrieved that we had our time and effort wasted getting ready to make a home for a dog that would never arrive. In conclusion, I've written this letter at the distress of losing a dog whom I had rescued and grown attached to, only to give her up to the shelter to follow the law. I was then lied to and misled by the shelter, and was told considerable lies that make me question if the management of Starke County Humane Society should remain. I understand the voluntary and humanitarian nature of their roles - I should know I work for a nonprofit myself - but outright lies and manipulation are not an acceptable way of handling a well-meaning adopter, and as I've now had to make peace that Starke County Humane Society have effectively robbed us of our chance to own a dog we became attached to. I have no choice but to ensure there is wider awareness of the unsavory and morally repellent conduct

We adopted a dog from Lakeshore Paws and I'm so pleased with how it went. Admittedly I had a…read morenot-so-great experience with them 5 years ago when we were first looking to adopt, but I think they've made a lot of changes and I'm really glad we gave them another chance when searching for a second pup. When we arrived they gave us a tour of their dogs - their facility is very large and all the dogs housed there had decently-sized spaces. We originally just went to take a look, but we saw a dog we liked and ended up playing with him a bit in a separate location while supervised, we filled out an application at a computer they had there, and made plans to bring our other dog in the next day so they could meet. After the dogs met in isolated locations both outside and inside, they let us take the dog home for a foster-to-adopt situation where we could basically do a week-long trial run. We ended up extending that for a second week which was extremely helpful before finalizing the adoption. Everyone we interacted with was very friendly and helpful, down-to-earth and you could tell just trying to do their best for the dogs there. We did have an emergency with the dog (swallowed something he shouldn't have!) where we reached out, and Lakeshore Paws was quick to answer and give us directions (head to the ER!). Overall they made the adoption process easy and also thoughtful (the foster-to-adopt was really such a good idea) and were very helpful throughout. I would definitely recommend starting with them if you are looking to adopt a new family member.

We went to lakeshore paws on Aug 29,2026 and was treated horribly by the front desk girl. she was…read morevery rude and not friendly at all. when asked if we had an application on file we said yes. she proceeded to say that our application was not approved because they couldn't get a hold of our vet and landlord. no one ever called us to let us know they had an issue. when we told them we already spoke to our vet she wouldn't even listen. we asked if we could see some puppies that we seen on their website she very rudely said they already have appointments. we have never treated so rudely. if this place doesn't need people to adopt their dogs then we will find another shelter to adopt from.