Walked into Petsmart and immediately felt harassed and unwelcome. The staff at New Beginnings was unkempt and unprofessional in how they addressed me as customer in the store not to mention the dogs they were attempting to foster or adopt out smelled like urine and feces. We will donate and go elsewhere for adoption. Beware read more

The people at New Beginnings For Animals are wonderful to work with. We found the perfect dog for our family through this rescue group. Their rates are very reasonable especially since they care for the animals, give them any necessary shots/chips and nurse them to health if needed until they find their forever home. I worked mostly with Diane and she was always punctual with replying to emails/texts regarding any dogs of interest. She always gave me timely info and answered any and all of my constant questions and concerns. Meeting times were always flexible and there wasn't a pressure to choose a dog with every meeting. They do their homework on finding the right fit for their animals which I appreciate. They have the animals best interest at heart. That means not every family will get what they want if the fit isn't right. It'd be awful to adopt a dog only to rehome/return the dog a few months later due to bad fit. Keep up the good work! read more

I like that they are a no kill shelter and that they are willing to help you in anyway when you take an adoption from them and if it works with both of you, that's wonderful and if not, they are willing to take the dog back. Thank you. read more

This is a wonderful rescue organization. They have a dog side and a cat side. I have actually adopted 4 cats from them on different occasions. Everyone working and volunteering here is very friendly and helpful in giving as much information as they can about the animals. When they take in the rescues, they socialize and observe them so they can find out their personality traits to help to get them to the right homes. All of the animals to my knowledge are neutered, chipped and receive their 1st set of shots before they adopt them out. I couldn't be happier with my 4 fur babies. I adopted two litter mates as kittens in 2007, then just 2 months later adopted another kitty from them and then again in 2012 we adopted our last cat from them after fostering her for a few months. I couldn't love my babies any more than I do. They also have a policy that if for any reason you are unable to keep the animal you adopted they will take them back and re-home them. I've always had a great experience with New Beginnings and definitely always refer anyone who is looking for a furr-ever pet to give them a visit. read more

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I love my Maltipoo Princess. I've had her for about 4 years and she is the best. Diane brought her to me after a saw her on line. Diane is the best too. read more

Our boy Weezer just celebrated his second birthday. We adopted him from NEW BEGINNINGS last year when he was barely a year old. He had quite a few personality issues. But he's wonderful now and we love him so much. He has no idea how spoiled he is. We had a very good experience with our adoption last year. They were very thorough checking us out, making sure we were the right home for Weezer. And it looks like we were. read more

New Beginnings for Animals - Pet Adoption Near Me - Mission Viejo, California

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O.G.'s in his forever home.. some one saw my post/pic.. showed their friend who had just said goodbye to their LOOK ALIKE 11 year old pittie in March. In a two hour whirlwind of emotions, he became the best Mother's Day present ever! To them and to ME. I knew if I did everything I could, God would toss us a miracle. Thanks for your part in it. Judy read more

New Beginnings for Animals - The Gentle Giant O.G. - Pet Adoption Near Me - Mission Viejo, California

I will be forever grateful that I found this AMAZING AND WONDERFUL rescue organization. I am the proud adopted mother of Dougie, a marvelous male chihuahua whom I adopted from them in January 2022. EVERYTHING about the adoption process was beyond excellent. After looking on their website I saw Dougie... and right then I looked at this little guy and fell in love. I filled out preliminary information and upon knowing he was available I completed a questionnaire. The questions asked made me feel confident that their organization was thorough in making sure I would be a good match for him...unlike other organizations that unfortunately just push adoptions. I had a lovely and lengthy phone interview with a representative where we discussed Dougie, his known background and my ability to live and care for him. Then a convenient "meet and greet" took place so Dougie and I could be together. And then I ABSOLUTELY KNEW Dougie needed to be my forever boy and live in his new forever home. I cannot sing the praises of NEW BEGINNINGS enough. The organization is run with love, care and most importantly by qualified representatives doing their "due diligence" in making matches that are right, and lasting. They educated me in so many areas and provided great tips on transitioning. They continued to follow up with me ... THEY ARE FANTASTIC!!!! I could not be happier having Dougie as my own buddy. Thanks to NEW BEGINNINGS it was a perfect match read more

New Beginnings for Animals - DOUGIE - Pet Adoption Near Me - Mission Viejo, California

We tried to adopt a cat from this rescue. We met the cats the first day, I brought my kids (1.5 years, and 4 years old). The visit went well but my 1.5 year old was excited and tried to pick up the kittens. I told her I wanted to come back the next day to view the cats without my 1.5 year old so I can narrow down the selection and view their personalities. She didn't seem uncomfortable at all and said we could adopted two of the cats if we wanted. She said anytime after 4:30pm. I came back the next day, my husband who is an attorney took time off work to join me and no one answered the door or responded to any of my emails. The lady, whose name is Stacey Anderson completely ghosted us. Why she thought a half hour of our time was insignificant, is beyond me. I'm pretty sure she was home but just hiding from us. A simple email stating she didn't feel comfortable giving us the cats would have sufficed. We went home and hoped for the best, but we still haven't heard back. This rescue is unprofessional and completely waisted my time. We have two adult cats at home and we love them to death. It's a shame they are not using good judgment in the placement of these animals. I can't imagine how many animals miss out on good homes. Just because someone has young kids, doesn't mean they can't handle animals. Highly efficient families can do it. Please don't make this foolish mistake again. Take yourself out of the box and visit the home and see how things are run. read more

I had a wonderful experience with New Beginnings! They are absolutely wonderful to work with. I was a first time foster and they walked me through the process and answered all of my questions (I had quite a few). Most importantly they made sure my home was ready for a dog, especially an older one. You can tell that they love and care about their animals and are determined to find them the best fit forever home. I ended up adopting and they were just as helpful through that process as well. I continue to recommend them to anyone looking to foster/adopt any chance I get! read more

New Beginnings for Animals - Pet Adoption Near Me - Mission Viejo, California

I adopted an amazing Cat. Rusty was at the Aliso Viejo Petsmart. The Adoption process was very smooth. I sent photographs of my Atrium, they wanted to make sure he could not escape. Rusty and I bonded very quickly. I keep in touch with Hana, sending pictures every few months. I will be donating to New Beginning so they can continue their great work. Bea Autry read more

We adopted our cat Simon through A New Beginning and had a fantastic experience working with everyone involved! Hannah and Lori responded quickly after we applied and they were so kind and helpful throughout the process (which was actually really fast and easy!) They helped to make sure we were a good match for little Simon (and that he was a good match for us and our other kitty), and even helped us with questions regarding vet visits for our other kitten too. The day before Simon was supposed to be dropped off with us he was a little sneezy so they went to the vet and got him a precautionary medication and offered to keep him until he was feeling better so we wouldn't have to worry about any additional vet trips or expenses. It was so thoughtful of them to make sure Simon would not pass the cold to our other cat! Overall it was a great experience and I definitely recommend adopting through them!! read more

I saw the cutest little dog on their website who was also special needs (he's blind, poor baby). I submitted an application and received no contact from them. Since the absolute "first step" in their adoption process is the application, I was afraid that it hadn't been received and so submitted it again. After several days I left a voice mail message that I wanted to meet Harold, please let me know if you haven't received my application. No reply so I sent an email. No reply. I left a second voice mail message. No reply. I wrote another email. Finally, a few days after that, Diane leaves a voice mail for claiming that "since you want a dog to take to the beach, it's not a good fit. And I replied to all your emails (which is a lie. I was combing my email for days looking for a reply). I left a voice mail again stating that I never said I wanted a dog to take to the beach, I said that walks on the beach was one of the things I listed in answer to the application question "what activities will you do with the dog?" I texted her a few days later and nothing. She ghosted me. Now who in a rescue group turns down a good home for one of the dogs? His many people does she think want a blind dog? And to this day, he's still on the website as available. What is wrong with these people? Why did Diane brazenly lie to me? Is this really a rescue or is it 2 or 3 psychos with separation issues? A fake website? Are they scamming donations for a fake rescue? Whatever the reason for the insanity, my heart aches for that poor doggie who was and, most likely, will be denied a forever home. This is the cruelest thing I've seen happen to shelter animals. Of course it's 100% guaranteed that she does this with the other animals who are 'available' - if they actually exist. AVOID this place. You'll never get past the crazy and the lies. read more

I adopted my best buddy (my cat!) from New Beginnings about 4 years ago. I was impressed by their thorough application process-- it was very apparent they weren't going to adopt their animals to just anyone. They go the extra mile to ensure their animals are going to a responsible owner in a safe home. Before adopting my cat, I visited him every day for a week and the staff were always so welcoming and supportive. I highly recommend New Beginnings to anyone looking to adopt! read more

I was hesitant to write this review, but when I saw I was still charged for an adopted cat I had to return, I was highly upset. I adopted a cat 7/31/2022. After 3 days, the cat proved to be a very ill fit for our family. The cat was quite destructive and scratched up pretty much everything in our place. Plus it would scratch me and my kids during the night. Neither I nor my children could sleep. The whole situation greatly upset my kids. We have a cat currently we adopted last year and she never acted like this. I immediately reached out to the organization to let them know this and that we had to return the cat. I got the cat Sunday, they picked her up the following Wednesday. I had paid by check. There was a disclaimer that adopted pets that are returned can't be refunded. I get this if the person simply changed their mind or it had been a good while they had the pet or they lost the pet. But I felt my situation was not our fault, the cat proved to be a poor fit which traumatized my kids. I told New Beginnings this and noticed they didn't cash my check so I assumed they weren't going to charge me for this. BUT today, almost a month later they ended up cashing my check. So I have to pay $150 for a cat I don't have, only had for a few days and was destructive destroying some of my property and scratching us. I had numerous scratches on my stomach that bled a great deal. Why do I have to pay for this? And why did they wait so long to cash the check? Maybe counting on that I wouldn't notice it. This a horrible way to do business. read more

When I began conversations with workers from New Beginnings for Animals, my hopes were high. They were kind, knowledgeable, and seemed to be the exact opposite of other rescues. We submitted our application, I had 2 separate phone interviews (one with the dog's foster and the other with the owner/head lady), and then we were approved to meet the dog (Penny) at the Aliso Viejo PetSmart. We were very specific in our needs and Penny seemed perfect on paper. More specifically, we have 2 kids and finding a rescue who doesn't look down on us for wanting to adopt a dog despite having a 4-year-old and 6-year-old was difficult. Penny, however, came from a family with 5 kids! She was good with kids, good with strangers, good with other dogs (we live in a lake community with a high dog-walking population), and, she was good with noise. We drove over an hour to meet her. When we arrived, the volunteers (who were very kind), removed Penny from the sectioned off area and brought all of us out to the front of the store. Long story short - our 1 hour meeting with Penny was on the sidewalk of the parking lot where every stranger who walked by stopped to reach down and pet her or ask if she was up for adoption; where every other person who walked by had a dog of their own; and, where there were cars galore. For the 1st half of the meeting, Penny was at attention on the parking lot. She was focused on the cars, people, and other dogs - but we were encouraged by her reactions. She did not react. She was OK with people petting her. She was nonreactive to dogs passing. She was mostly focused on the cars. Once she warmed up to the parking lot, she paid attention to us. By the end of the meeting we had gotten to walk her, she was sitting on my lap nudging and licking my face, and she laid between my 2 kids with her face on one of their laps. We fell in love with Penny, and we wanted her. The volunteer told us it went well. He basically said that she was ours, that we just needed to call Karen to set up the home inspection (which is also the dog drop-off day). This is where it all falls apart. When I called Karen, she told me that she, "had concerns." She said that because Penny wasn't 100% focused on us, because she was focused on the parking lot, that we, "weren't the right family for her." SERIOUSLY?!?!? She tried to tell me that we "need" a family that is going to be 100% happy to see the kids when they come home from school, hyper and happy and with a wagging tail, wanting to play, etc. Long story short - she refused to give Penny to us claiming, "we weren't the right family." We do not want a hyper dog. We want a dog exactly like Penny. We want Penny. I contacted her the next day offering a couple of options (1) we could we meet her again with Karen present so she could see how Penny was with us instead of hearing it 2nd hand, and (2) a dog can not expected to be 100% comfortable with new situations and new people (especially in those circumstances), so we could we set up a certain number of meetings where we go every weekend for "x" number of weekends to meet Penny and, if by whatever week they choose Penny isn't waiting to see us show up, happy & loving that we're there, then fine - we're not the right family. But, if she quickly becomes comfortable with us and anticipates our arrival, then we are. We were denied. They simply stated that after considering everything, they do not feel we are the right family for Penny. And the funny part is, Penny is still listed as available for adoption on the website when she could have her forever home RIGHT NOW! We still don't have a dog & we compare all to her. My kids cried for 2 days, & when we go look at other dogs, they STILL ask me why we can't just have Penny (even though we met Penny a month ago). My husband is convinced the lady fostering her wants to keep her and they just won't say it. Probably. Be honest with people. You know, we have feelings, too. My kids have feelings. Penny would be an AMAZING addition to our family. She is the only dog so far that ALL FOUR members of our family have agreed on (my husband has been hard to please). You claim to want to find loving forever homes and rescue places throw fits about people buying puppies off of craigslist or from "puppy mills." I wonder why? Could it be that unreasonable rescues won't give a dog the PERFECT forever home that's staring it in the face? Ridiculous. For the record, I know someone who runs a rescue in my area and I told her what this place said and she was flabbergasted! She said she has NEVER heard this reason for not giving a dog to a family. She said, "do you think the dog was that open and welcoming to them the first day she met them?" I said, "I know! That was my thought but I couldn't say that!" Well . . . I guess I can now because I have nothing to lose. I'm not a vindictive person, I just I had to say something. Otherwise, puppy mills will win. Sorry Penny, we wish we could have welcomed you to the family. read more