We adopted our little girl dog (18 months old today!) in November 2024 from the West Valley Animal Rescue and we all could not be happier! She's made our lives full and the rescue is doing amazing work! Honestly, it's incredible how much time and effort the family who runs this rescue puts into the dogs they are helping rescue and we appreciate everything that they did in making our house complete. The first picture is Poppy when we adopted her and the second one is current. Thanks again! read more

West Valley Animal Rescue - Current - Animal Shelters Near Me

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I don't typically leave reviews unless I feel it's absolutely necessary to prevent someone else from going through the same experience. I adopted a dog from West Valley Animal Rescue and, during the adoption process, I repeatedly asked whether he had any current symptoms or potential near-future medical needs. I was very clear that I needed full transparency before committing. Within hours of bringing him home, the poor little guy was unable to have a bowel movement. I immediately contacted the rescue and was assured multiple times that he had no issues while in their care. This went on for an entire week until I could get him into a veterinarian. The vet diagnosed him with a perineal hernia and told me there was no way this condition would have gone unnoticed. Meanwhile, I have text messages from the rescue stating he was completely fine in their care (photos attached). When I asked if they would help cover the surgery -- which is estimated at $6,844.07 -- their response was that I could return him for a refund and they would "provide the medical attention he requires." To me, that translates to refunding my adoption fee and taking him back, with no real assurance of what would actually happen next. It's heartbreaking. I will be paying for his surgery myself because there is absolutely no way I'm returning him. He deserves proper care and stability. I'm sharing this so others can make fully informed decisions and ask the right questions before adopting. read more

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Be truthful on how long they have had the animal in foster. Have the correct information for the adoption of the dog. We got our dog from them 8 weeks ago. The profile said he was potty trained, good with other animals, weighed 10lbs, and was 4 years old, and had just been at the vet. When we went to the place for the adoption the paper work had him at 3 months old. When we took him to the vet he weighed 20lbs, had a double ear infection and had to have his ear plucked. The vet stated he was not 4yrars old but more like 1 to 2 yeara old. He and our smallest dog who is 6lbs got into a scuffle and we were concerned about the behavior. Now when looking thru their other animal adoptions you can see they are copying the dogs profiles and just changing a few words. I feel like they are just flipping dogs for money not to help the animals. They also push for you to sign up for the FI app and to monitor your dog like an air tag. You get 6 months free and get charged after the free task. It felt like they get a kickback from the company. I would not recommend them to anyone. Don't be like me, do your research on the rescues before adopting. I understand that rescue dogs take a bit of time to acclimate but I feel like this rescues does a disservice to the animals. read more

These people are extremely rude. We adopted a puppy back in May and I reached out to ask if surrendering the puppy back to them was an option. As you can see in the texts I was nothing but kind and answered all of their questions. They seemed upset that I wanted to give the puppy back and even went as far as to undermine my injuries. At this point I still don't know if they take adopted puppies back because they never even answered my initial question. They also never replied to my email after stating that I MUST bring the dog back to them. The entire interaction was just confusing and rude for no reason. Edit: the pictures aren't posting in order but you get the point. These people are sh!tty read more

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After seeing a photo of a beautiful, fluffy puppy and reading a very positive bio, I filled out a brief online application. I was contacted within minutes and asked if I would like to meet the puppy at PetSmart the following day. At the time, this seemed efficient. I have since learned that reputable rescues that truly care typically have a much more thorough vetting process for potential adopters. The online bio described the puppy as a three-month-old Pomeranian. I understood this was only a guess and he did not really resemble a Pom to me. Breed was not especially important to us; however, we did need a dog that would remain on the smaller side. I definitely thought he would be that. When I arrived at PetSmart, I was told the puppy was actually eight weeks old, which surprised me. In retrospect, based on several factors, I believe he may have been even younger. It is common knowledge that puppies should remain with their mother until at least eight weeks of age, so I asked if that was the case. The gentleman representing the rescue said very firmly that he did not know. I found this odd, as he worked for the rescue, not PetSmart. I then asked how long the puppy had been in their care. Again, I was told he had no information. I asked whether the puppy had been surrendered or was a stray. Once more, I was told he did not know. These were clear red flags, but at the time I was naïve. I believed that whatever difficult start this little puppy had experienced, stability and a loving home would be enough to help him heal. He seemed fragile as soon as I got him, very quiet, but he was so young and experiencing so much change I thought it was normal. The next day the puppy had multiple episodes of abnormal stools and then vomited four times within two hours. We took him to the emergency vet, who told us that Lobo was in generally poor condition. He was malnourished, had parasites, and showed signs of intestinal inflammation. While waiting for test results, I contacted WVAR to inform them of what was happening and asked whether he had been exposed to any other sick dogs. I was told no. I fully expected some follow-up or concern for how he was doing. There was none. As Lobo's physical health improved, his behavior deteriorated. Despite consistent care, routine, marrow bones and sniffy walks his behavior became increasingly severe. He exhibited persistent, relentless snapping far beyond normal land shark puppy behaviour. Our veterinarian stated it was the worst she had ever seen. We enrolled him in puppy classes, which were totally inadequate for his/our needs. He developed additional really worrying OCD type behaviours. We then contacted an experienced trainer who came to our home. Despite his extensive experience, including decades of work, teaching classes in shelters, and prior service as an animal cruelty investigator he told us that Lobo required an extraordinary level of support. When I explained that I felt Lobo needed training every other day and we could not afford that he only half jokingly remarked that what Lobo truly needed was for him to move in next door. After Lobo bit me, it became clear that we could not safely keep him. At our trainer's recommendation, I contacted WVAR to ask whether they could help find an experienced adopter. They said no stating that due to the bite, their liability insurance would not allow them to take him back. Our trainer was very upset by this and said that this is not standard or responsible rescue protocol. A rescue should assist in rehoming the dog with an appropriate experienced adopter. While WVAR could not have known what the full extent of Lobo's problems would become they should have anticipated there would be some. Both our trainer and the staff of another reputable rescue have since told me that a very young puppy with an unknown background should never have been placed so quickly. Such puppies require extended foster care to stabilize physically and emotionally, and if placed early, should only go to homes with an experienced owner and a well-regulated adult dog who they can learn bite inhibition and self regulation from, in a way a puppy can never learn from a human. I did not know how essential these things are. A caring rescue should know. These requirements were never disclosed and should have been clearly stated in his bio. The odds were stacked against Lobo. Those three months with him were incredibly stressful and sad, but what really upsets me is the knowledge that a very young, medically fragile puppy with an unknown and likely traumatic history was placed without appropriate care by the rescue. We did not just have bad luck with Lobo or something. He was placed with us after complete failure of responsible rescue practices. As a sidenote DNA results revealed Husky, Chow Chow, Pit Bull. read more

West Valley Animal Rescue is run by kind people who do a lot for dogs. A bit over a year ago I drove out to buckeye to meet a chihuahua mix that they had been posting about. They said he was the sweetest dog and that he just wanted a lap to curl up on for about 14 hours a day. Immediately we became best friends and have spent every day since then together. I really appreciate the care they gave my best friend when he was found in the desert heat underweight and with damage to some of his teeth. Not only did West Valley Animal Rescue give him a warm place to stay until we met, they neutered him, gave him his microchip, and fixed up his teeth (extractions are expensive! We have done 3 extractions for chihuahuas in our household over the years and it sucked every time) I wholeheartedly recommend West Valley Animal Rescue and will attach my dog's Christmas photo below for your appreciation read more

West Valley Animal Rescue - Christmas photoshoot before his annual tooth cleaning - Animal Shelters Near Me

Highly recommended. I reached out and received a response within minutes. They are truly amazing people. A few weeks ago I recused one of their dogs that they had rescued from a kill shelter. The process was seamless and everyone was a pleasure to work through this with. My new dog came potty trained and is an angel. I absolutely recommend this rescue. They have followed up multiple times showing they truly care about each and every dog. read more

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I adopted a puppy from this rescue on 4/12/25. Thankfully, she seems to be doing well, and I'm not having any of the horror stories I've been reading about in these reviews! However, when we adopted her, they told us in person that she was already 10 weeks old. We did not get the paperwork until we had paid for her, and I didn't think to look at it until I went to schedule her for her rabies shot and that's when they pointed out to me that she was not 12 weeks old like I had originally believed but is only 10 weeks old at the time I'm posting this. The vet told me that her being spayed at 7 weeks old was too early, and that the vaccines and deworming medicine they gave ideally would have been around 8-10 weeks. While I am super thankful and blessed, I haven't had the same experiences as some others, I am extremely disappointed and upset that I gave my money to a rescue that doesn't put their pets' safety and health first. *update* On 4/28/25 at 6:35pm I got these after posting my review. read more

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This organization does an amazing job at giving pets a second chance at finding their forever home . They really care that the match is a good one , facilitating a successful adoption . If you are thinking of adopting or donating to this worthy organization , I highly recommend! read more

Saturday 8/30/25 we adopted our terrier mix puppy at the PetSmart on Cotton and Yuma. They named her 'Dora' but we named her Lily. By Monday night we noticed the signs on Parvo. Tuesday morning we took her to the vet. We couldn't afford the hospital route so we spent $1600 on the at home medicine but there is no cure for parvo. My family is heart broken. She passed 9/6/25, a week from when we got her. Based on the comments on Yelp we didn't bother reaching out to West Valley Animal Rescue. Instead we went to PetSmart and they absolutely did not care that they are allowing these people to continue to do this. In the moment we didn't think to research the "animal rescue." It wasn't until we noticed the signed that a friend suggested we should do so. Shame on you guys! You know you've had a parvo out break for a long time now. I only wish that I had researched you guys before and I had put her down so she didn't have to suffer. Animal lovers BEWARE DO NOT adopt from these people!! read more

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Flew into adopt 7/1. During adoption interview that evening my new baby dry hacked, had mats from head to toe, and his week old neuter site was oddly very swollen. I knew i had to get him out. That night I gave him a bath, took out some matts and he hacked a few times but not a lot. July 2nd I made an appointment with my vet (7/5 was soonest because of holiday) and we flew home. 7/3 he was about the same. I was hopeful he was not too sick but that night he got worse and 7/4 he definitely has an upper respiratory infection. I'll add information after vet appointment. Findings: Kennel cough, underweight, and now coccidia. Kennel cough Coccidia Underweight It only took cheap antibiotics, some parasite meds, a bath, shaving his hair and good groceries. He gained almost a pound in 10 days. We love him so much. read more

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Adopted a chihuahua mix, Ava. Got her home and immediately she was holding up her paw. Reached out the following to West Valley animal rescue and they denied she ever limped or held up paw. I had X-rays and orthopedic surgeon review and was informed by the vet that she had a fracture long before that and was never treated. There are no options for treatment and she cannot be operated on because of the way the leg formed after the fracture occurred a long time ago according to the surgeon. The only solution according to the orthopedic surgeon is amputation. I have pictures, videos and documentation from the animal orthopedic surgeon and vet to back my claims. Do not adopt from West Valley Animal Rescue! They are dishonest and unwilling help. My dogs are my family and I care deeply for them. read more

Met with Sky at her house to look at a puppy. My husband and I fell in love with him. As we were getting ready to bring him home Green snot came out of his nose. I showed Sky and she said we can't take him home today and she would start him on antibiotics and we can get him in a week. I texted her that night and no response. I called a few times and no answer. Here are a few of his pictures. I'm so frustrated that after she saw me crying and so in love with him she just ghosted me. How is she still in business and a so called rescue. STAY AWAY!!! Her dogs are sick and she doesn't care! RUN! read more

West Valley Animal Rescue - Animal Shelters Near Me

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I adopted a 1 year old Yorkie/mix on September 26,2025. Within a couple weeks he became lethargic and not doing well. I took him to my vet in Scottsdale and she drew blood samples including a valley fever titer. Tested him for parvo as well. She called me the next day with results of the blood work and said he was "a very sick dog and his prognosis was guarded." 2 days later his valley fever titer came back 1:8, which is high. We started him on fluconozole and chicken and rice diet. He was also given an antibiotic for 5days. He was having bloody diarrhea and vomiting. I took him back to the vet and he was given anti nausea medication. He continued to get worse, not able to urinate and very lethargic. Once again a few days later back to the vet where they did more bloodwork and discovered he had complete kidney failure. He was euthanized that day December 15, 2025. I called west valley rescue 4 times left voice mails and text messages and no one returned any of my calls. I paid $600.00 adoption fee and spent over $1600.00 dollars trying to save his life. I became in contact with another rescue person who thought my situation with this poor dog was horrible. She gave me the vets name and number who had treated him prior. I called her and she advised me to call west valley rescue ( which I had already done and talk to Skye who was in charge of the rescue. She was unsympathetic and since I had signed an adoption agreement that there were no guarantees or refunds I was dismissed. I would NOT recommend this rescue service for anyone! read more

I adopted a year-old terrier mix - Biscuit - from this organization. The adoption process was very smooth and professional. Someone responded to my text inquiry about the dog within an hour after I sent it. I received the same timely response to my adoption application. The foster setting created a smooth transition for Biscuit from the rescue organization to my home. I have adopted dogs from other rescue organizations - often with incomplete records and vaccinations. This organization delivered a complete medical history and a wonderful new member of my family. I love Biscuit and the organization that brought us together. read more

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If I could give 10 stars, I would. We adopted our dog Mia from West Valley Animal Rescue this past April and she has been the most wonderful addition to our family. The team at West Valley Animal Rescue was nothing short of amazing, from communication to adoption process. They even microchipped our pup onsite before we took her home. Cannot recommend this rescue more!! read more

I was very disappointed by adopting a sick dog and having to euthanize after having her for less than 3 weeks and attempting to save her with over $7800 in medical bills. This rescue could have offered to assist with my medical bills or at the very least offer a refund after i shared the sad news. But no, they didn't even own the fact that they adopted out a sick dog. Good luck to all other adopters using this rescue. read more

We adopted in May, and they just reached out to check on our little guy. I don't know if they do that with all their adoptions, but it just proves how much they care about the pups they help. read more

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Wonderful people to work with. Sky and her family are so caring and loving of all the dogs. They work so hard to get dogs into safe and loving families. I highly recommend adopting a dog through West Valley Animal Rescue. We love our little rescue Jax. read more

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We have gotten two of our babies from this rescue and have had a great experience each time. Getting a rescue dog is different than getting from a breeder or store. These babies have history and as much as they try and find out, you can't find out everything. We love both our babies and wouldn't trade them for the world. They make our hearts full. Thank you for connecting us with our babies and taking care of them until we found them read more

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We got a dog from them recently. The adoption process was easy and fast! Our new addition is awesome!

I am a groomer of 20 years and have been looking for a small poodle to be able to do fun cuts with and west valley anomal rescue helped us find the perfect fit for my grooming and family needs! he's the sweetest boy! He came chipped, neutered and up to date on all shots! great rescue. Find your forever pup today! read more

West Valley Animal Rescue - This is our Alfie boy! He won 1st place for a Halloween contest! - Animal Shelters Near Me

If I could give them zero stars I would. I'll also keep this short and to the point in hopes of saving others from the heart break and financial obligations we have endured. I wish that we would have checked Yelp before we trusted them. We adopted a puppy from West Valley Animal Rescue who sadly passed away shortly after. Our biggest concern was the lack of transparency. We were told she'd been seen and spayed by a vet, who later confirmed they don't work with this rescue. It took repeated requests to get basic info, and we were never given full records for our vet. At adoption they claimed to be just the foster, but were actually the rescue. They said if someone tried to return a dog, "the rescue" would do everything in their power to make them keep it, something that felt off and worse in hindsight. Looking back, we strongly suspect they knew she was ill and rushed to adopt her out. That, combined with misrepresentation, blatant lies, and evasive responses, raises major concerns. Having never rescued before, we missed the red flags. Do your research and do NOT trust West Valley Animal Rescue. They're out for the money not to save the animals they "rescue." Thankfully, there are more ethical rescues out there. read more

I highly recommend this rescue, they really care about the animals in their care. They take on animals that some rescues won't and they will make sure the new member of your family is ready to go home with you, with their first shots and they will be fixed and they also are chipped. read more

Would give a zero rating if I could. I adopted a dog from her on 12/26 at 2 pm and by 12/27 I had to call the vet and get her hospitalized because she had parvo. I texted her several times to let her know because she had more puppies in her care and received no response until she called me back to say it wasn't her fault after I asked for my adoption fee back and then hung up on me after she accused me of harassing her. This place is extremely unprofessional and now I am questioning everything she told me. read more

Skye and Nathan do a wonderful job finding homes for pets needing them. We adopted and are in love with Cabbage !

So thankful for this rescue. I had the opportunity to meet my dog Frankie through this organization and I'm forever grateful. Frankie is healthy and well and couldn't made a better decision to use this organization. They made it easy to meet her and very responsive. I was able to make an appointment the same day I reached out. read more

Excellent rescue with over 20 years worth of saving animals. All of their animals are vetted, health checked and vaccinated and spayed/neutered. All of the animals are healthy when they leave the rescue and Skye and Nathan run an excellent rescue! I can't wait to adopt another dog! read more

This rescue adopts out very sick animals. Since posting a complaint on Facebook, 2.others have also commented about adopting sick dogs from this rescue. The puppy we adopted was severely underweight. After we got him home he was noticeably ill with fever and diarrhea. We took him to the vet and found out he had parasites, probably for quite awhile. Cryptosporidium and Giardia both. He scarfed down 3 bowls of food, started 2 antibiotics and started doing better. He gained 3 lbs in the first week. It took 2 more rounds of antibiotics to get rid of the parasites but in the meantime it infected our other animals and 3 members of our family. We are still recovering from that. He possibly has valley fever as well. The other two ladies that adopted puppies from this rescue, both had parvo and one died. We have involved the humane society rescue supervisor and encourage anyone else that has adopted sick dogs from this rescue to reach out to her, Kay Smuden, 602-997-7585 ext 1107. Rescues like this should not be in business. All you need is a business license to open a rescue, many aren't qualified or prepared to handle it, and they're in it for the money over rescuing these poor animals. Adopt from the humane society or other well known rescues that take care of their animals. read more

We adopted a small dog from West Valley Animal Rescue and are very happy and delighted with such a darling dog She was very well prepped and cared for at the Rescue before we got her. I would recommend adopting from this group. read more

I work in rescue so I understand how hectic life can get - and how people can feel like they are being unheard when rescues don't communicate back right away. But with that being said - west valley animal rescue does amazing work !! They pull dogs who literally have hours left to live at certain shelters / pounds / owner surrenders - get them all the medical they need and find the perfect home for them ! They are 100% transparent with their adopters about their dogs and how the adoption works. They truly do care for all the animals that come through their care and I hope to see them continue to save lives ! They have definitely helped me plentiful of times and they are my favorite rescue around ! Thank you west valley ! If you're looking for a smooth adoption I highly recommend going through them , or even if you're looking for a certain breed ... they tend to have the cutest ones in town. read more

Sky lied to us several times. They will not communicate if there is a problem but will answer in a second if she thinks she can get a dog. No facility and no address posted. It is all about the money. We rescued two Biewer Terriers off the street January 1st and took care of them till January 19. Male and female. Buddy and Brandy. We gave them antibiotics for diarrhea and urinary infections. Pills for flees. Ear drops for Brandies draining ear and took a week to remove their Matt's a little at a time. Sky assured us they would be adopted together as they were very close. So we surrendered them at Vets for Vets on January 19th. On Feb 3 the owner contacted me and the dogs are 4 yr old, no relationship and have supported each other for four yrs. But in two days Sky knew the didn't like each other and had to be separated. BS. With in 24 hrs we knew we had made a mistake so I called Sky and left a message we want to come get the dogs back and I would make a donation. No response. I text three more time in the next two days. No response. Final she texts we can't have them back and they had done all this stuff and she had to separated them and I could apply to adopt one of them because they Don't like each other. A week later Buddy shows up on the Petfinder site not on west valleys site. All his hair is shaved off and he has a new name. Sonny. He must be cold. I text her and ask if she changed Buddy's name to Sonny. No response. Asking 750 dollars. I put in to adopted him 5 times. No response. Then he disappeared. But he isn't on the dogs saved in 2024 list like all the other adopted dogs. Nothing on Brandy since she was surrendered. We notified Pinal and Maricopa human society only to be told West Valley Rescue has been investigated before. I had appointments for spay,neuter, shots,chips,nails and grooming all scheduled and she knew that. Sky is scum and money hungry. We are still working on getting them back. I m trying to live with making a big mistake with a deceptive person. I pray the dogs are in a good spot. She needs to have her 501 rescinded. read more

I would rate this rescue a 0 rating for transparency, communication and legitimate business practice. We found 2 toy terriers January 2 that we rescued, groomed, bathed, provided antibiotics for UTI, ear infection drops and scheduled appts for vaccines and rabies when they were in better health. We additionally scheduled spay and neuter appts. Skye was called to determine what this rescue could offer if we could not keep the dogs. She guaranteed they would not be separated, do not spend any money, the dogs are only put in vetted homes. At the VA hospital in the middle of a function, Skye arrived in 15 minutes with a quick phone email to sign and whisks the dogs. It all happened so fast under duress and stress and misinformation. Then we saw the site with all the complaints. We immediately tried to text, call and email to return the dogs and we would pay any cost incurred. Silence and a big game. The maricopa humane society indicated this rescue was under investigation and took my complaint as well. The Goodyear Police would not get involved as property theft. The female is missing and never posted and the male was posted, site changed and the pulled off. Stay away from them-- they want cash and the 501 C3 status should be investigated as tax exempt. read more