Joyful Rescues

These people are awful. I apploed to adopt a dog and didn't hear back from the in the three business days they promised. I emailed the pm to inquire about the status of my application like they said to do if you do t hear back.....still nothing. I called and they said they were getting to know the dog better so they could place it in the right home. More time went by, so I called to see what the status of my application was. I was told the dog had found a home. The dog was still on their page as up for adoption one week after I was told he had found a home, so I called and was told the dog is still available for adoption. Why lie to people and get their hopes up? The lack of communication and untruthfulness of this organization is ridiculous! Don't waste your time trying to adopt an animal from them. I was even told by the SPCA that this rescue is terrible.... they are all about the money and not about the animals.

I filled out the app & was approved the next day.I spoke to Katie to tell her i wanted to get a dog that was housebroke.I decided to go to Petsmart in OP with my wife to see what they had. we fell in love with the dog we originally wanted ( they weren't sure if she was house trained) and proceeded with adoption.I told the lady at Pet smart we were approved and she called katie to check app & she denied us because of my comment on wanting house trained.I called Katie to explain and she wouldn't listen to anything, it was "no no no" ,very rude.There is the GOD complex!! We were dumbfounded,heartbroken,totally baffled!
I emailed Joye when home to explain and of course no reply. my daughter emailed also(who fosters dogs with another rescue) with the same ;no reply! BY no means am i tooting my own horn but if we are not responsible enough to adopt , nobody out there is. .I will never recommend them & i also will stay away from petsmart as long as they are sponsoring JoyLESS rescue!!!

Filled out an application to adopt, emailed several times on different occasions, but never delivered more pictures, video or information about the dog. Emailed back that the dog needed a "playmate", but never listed that information on that particular dog, therefore wasting our time, then emailed us back declining our application. This animal rescue clinic shows signs of dog hoarders, a common issue with some rescue groups, making it almost impossible to adopt.

My husband and I recently adopted a puppy (rescued from a high kill shelter) from Joyful after doing some research. We spent about an hour and a half filling our application- the first step of showing our commitment to permanent dog ownership. We didn't get our hopes up knowing that it is an application and we could be denied. We were delighted when we were accepted!
The volunteers made our "Gotcha Day" a very special one! We would highly recommend adopting a dog or cat from Joyful Rescues!


...And to the person who invested their time, into creating an angry and bitter website geared at slandering Joyful Rescues because your application was denied!? SHAME ON YOU! Your actions may have contributed to the cycle of people purchasing pets from pet stores or backyard breeders rather than from a Rescue. The amount of time you have spent being bitter, angry and resentful could have been used to do something meaningful to help others and do something positive in this world...

I am writing this due to I was denied to adopt a dog. Honestly if I was denied I don't know who they are accepting. I have had rescue dogs in the past and have one rescue dog now. My own veterinarian called them when Joy was trying to reach them to give her a good recommendation. I am not disappointed that I can't get the dog I requested but am very concerned that there are so many dogs available for adoption. It's like they are hoarding them. They really need to be shut down. I feel terrible for the animals and someone needs to investigate.

I was shocked to see negative reviews for this rescue. As someone also involved in animal rescue I was seeing things from that perspective as well as and adopter's viewpoint. My experience was stellar. The Foster Mom was so obviously 100% into her role as nuturer and caretaker of many kitties and also sensitive to my needs as an adopter. I could tell she loved every kitty. I adopted 2...(one actually was not the one we went there to see but he came barreling across the room and into my arms..so he adopted me). Years later now I still send photos of them to Foster Mom and she truly loves the updates. Advice to anyone wanting to adopt...please know that strict guidelines good rescues have ARE for the sake of the animals, as I believe is the case for Joyful Rescue.

We also received an email letting us know our application was denied and they don’t have to tell us why. It says they wish both us and our future pets well.

I don’t want to bash this woman as others have done. The animals seem properly cared for. I don’t know why so many loving and capable people are rejected by her. If she really "wishes our future dog well" (we did get one,) and loves animals as much as she claims to, why on Earth would she NOT want to point out to us what it is that she feels is deficient, so that we can correct it and give a pet the best possible home?

A volunteer of hers said that if she gives her reason, she will receive an argument. It is pretty clear that once she has made a decision, that she will answer no additional e-mails, whether or not she gives a reason, so why not just include that reason in the declination letter?

One last thing, check BBB before donating. They do not meet the standards. Other Rescues do. I wish I had checked before applying.

I had applied to adopt a dog through joyful rescues in March of last year named Zeke. I met him a few times in pets mart and fell in love and so did he. He sat in my lap, licked my face and even guarded me from another dog that started growling because he was "unsocialized". So I applied for him. I have had 2 chocolate labs, a silver lab, a bassett hound, a beagle and a golden retriever through my life on top of volunteering at a dog kennel for 12 years as well working at one for 2 years. After spending 3 hours pouring over this application, I received a denial letter 20 minutes later. Never checked any of my references, nothing. I just assumed someone else must have applied for him that was somehow a better fit. Then I look on their website today and sure enough A YEAR LATER this poor dog is still sitting in this shelter. Shelters are meant to be temporary, what she's doing to these dogs by hoarding them is hurting them more than I think she realizes.

I adopted a dog from Joyful Rescues a month ago. I had heard negatives from several friends who had been rejected by JR. However, I was encouraged to adopt from them by other friends. I looked at the dogs on the website and went to a pet expo where the dog I was interested in was showing. I really liked her and filled out an application the next day. It is a lengthy one. I received a call saying I was approved but warning me that the dog nipped when frightened. They wanted to make sure I was aware of this and assured me I could return her if there was a problem. I went to meet her again at Petsmart and decided to adopt her. At both the expo and Petsmart the volunteers were wonderful. I brought her home and she did nip. The poor little girl was frightened and did not know me. I found she was housebroken and very well trained. During the week I received several emails from JR. checking on how she was doing. She was doing beautifully! She is an adorable, loving, funny little dog (no more nipping). Without Joyful Rescues she could easily have been euthanized in the high kill shelter from which she was rescued. Obviously my experience with Joyful Rescues was very good--excellent website, wonderful volunteers, individuals who care about what happens to animals in charge. Several people who just love my little Ivy want to adopt a dog and I have highly recommended Joyful Rescues.

I wanted to share a very positive adoption experience from Joyful Rescues. We have actually adopted several pets over the past ten years from them. They always treated us very professionally, and we are impressed with how thorough their adoption process is. Every dog we adopted had been evaluated by their veterinarian and we were provided with very complete health records. The dogs were not only current on shots, spayed/neutered, dewormed and de-flea'd, but they were all microchipped and Joyful paid for a lifetime registration on the chip. Every time we adopted they contacted us by phone or email within a few days of adoption to see how everything was going and to remind us that they commit to the animal for the LIFE of the animal, not just until adopted, so if we EVER had any questions or concerns to just call or email them. We've recommended them to several friends, too. Their annual newsletter said that over the past 13 years they have adopted out almost 10,000 animals! Amazing job. Amazing volunteers. Amazing staff. Highly recommend!

Adopted two dogs from Joyful Rescues and it is was very positive. They go above and beyond to try and find the right homes. I am a working professional and had no problems with the adoption process. One other thing is that Joyful Rescues takes in many senior dogs and special needs dogs- saves them and finds them loving homes to live out the rest of their lives. That is just awesome. Thank you Joyful for my two best friends!

I, too, was denied after spending 2 hours pouring over their inane application process only to receive an impersonal, pre-generated denial. These people are immoral and disgusting and shouldn't be allowed anywhere near animals. I've been a volunteer for 13 years at an animal shelter near me (they only do cats) and I'M not fit for their adoption? Hilarious. If only it was illegal to be insipid and callous I'd have my attorney so far up their business they wouldn't know where he stopped and they began.

I felt like I needed to share this with anyone looking to adopt a loving new family member. I personally never heard of this "business". I have 2 loving dogs myself and a cat!! My best friend lost her companion a few months ago of old age, after some time of grief she felt like it was time to bring a new baby into her family. After finding a beautiful little baby boy at this Joyful Rescues place she felt this was the right one!!! After spending 2 hours filling out the application with hopes up, she was denied from EVER adopting from them ever again!!!! Not just maybe this little guy wasn't the right fit but don't ever try adopting from them again!!!! She told me this in tears and felt like she was a terrible human being!!! I've known this girl my whole life and never ever would I feel like she should be denyed adopting any kind of animal or human!!!! I was DISGUSTED and had to let everyone looking at this place how terrible these people are... It's heartbreaking that these poor little animals are being denyed beautiful humans looking to take them into they're hearts!!!! You should be ashamed of yourselves Joyful Rescues!!!! Shame on you!!!!

I wasn't going to write a review, but I figure why not... If you are going to try to fill out an application for Joyful Rescue, I hate to say it, but it would almost be better to lie. I can't for the life of me figure out what they want. I was rejected to adopt from them with no explanation. I spent 2 hrs filling out the application and was hesitant to do so because of all the negative reviews. Now I get it. My application included the following: I had a dog who I adopted from the SPCA 10 yrs ago. She went through 2 surgeries for cruciate tears (normal for her breeding),she was up date on all vaccinations, she was recently diagnosed with bone cancer and there was nothing that could be done, so she was on medications to make her comfortable. She was 11-1/2 yrs old. We have no kids (which could be a problem for them??), we have 7 acres of land that is only fenced with invisible fence (which might be their problem), but there is a runner set up for 1/2 acre, there is a dog house, we live in the country, there was no circumstance that would make us give the dog back, the dog would only be alone approximately 4hrs a day only 3 days a wk, the rest of the time, she wouldn't be alone, we are financially secure, my other dog was a special needs dog with a few issues that we worked through and I never gave her up... Oddly enough, I was watching Joyful Rescue's facebook page for a while and watched them adopt out a young Great Pyrenees dog to a couple that looked to be in their 60's If you know anything about that breed of dog, that is not a good match. So, yes, other reviewers are correct. They seem to be willy nilly in whom they approve for adoption. A dog adopted to us would have been a very lucky dog, with no expense spared to make sure she was healthy and happy and safe. My family and friends wanted to write reviews on my behalf because they couldn't believe i was declined. Oh, and they never did call my references..........

What a heartless application process. Put some time into the application to know how much I love dogs and would/have been a responsible owner. Did get a timely response one day later to tell me "you bad, go elsewhere". Geez, maybe a little feedback why you find me unsuitable may help. Won't waste my time further with this site after reading the reviews. Seems the "owners" are extremely close minded and short-sighted.

If possible this would be a -10 rating. Horrible experience in trying to adopt a dog. Applied online after meeting dog in store over the weekend. Waited the 3 business days that they claim it takes to process applications. Heard nothing, none of my references were checked neither were any of my other contacts. Called and was told they couldn't find my application and they would call me back. Never got a return call. Called back and again they couldn't find my application but was told I would be given an answer within an hour. So unprofessional and trying disheartening for these dogs that are being left for these individuals to decide their fate. Disgusting and will never allow anyone I know go through them for any sort of pet.

Ok, here's my story- Was APPROVED, was told to pick out the puppy I was interested in by looks only (no description of personality given, had to ask), was told when my Petsmart! 'meet and greet' would be and then TOLD that I would need to decide and take him that day of the 'meet and greet'! I was like 'Ok, you got this, a gut feeling is all you need and that usually comes right away, Right?' Well, two days passed and I was feeling a little anxietal, so I decided to call to see if I could come out there prior, AT THEIR CONVENIENCE, to see the puppy before I adopt. I was met with such resistance and attitude, you would've thought I was questioning their business practices!! I asked for even just 15 minutes of their time, and was told that the foster mom is very busy-works a lot! (Isn't that what people get denied for). By the end of the conversation I was told by the woman on the phone that now I made THEM uneasy about the adoption and that I am no longer able to adopt from them-I would have to look elsewhere! Why? Because I was trying to be a responsible adopter by wanting to see if his personality was going to a good fit for me and my 10 year old ADOPTED dog!? Of my own, I have adopted 2 cats as kittens-1 just passed away last Nov at 15, and the other is still with me at 16, and my dog, Bella, who is going to be 11 that I rescued through Pet Connection, Inc. I have also been involved (either with a parent or a significant other) with other pet adoption processes and NEVER have they gone as poorly as this! If you are approved here, better not deviate from THEIR plan of how they want the adoption to take place! Even if it's for ALL THE RIGHT REASONS and not just to be a thorn in their side!

Terrible. After one of our dogs died we were looking for another pet. We have had 3 dogs & fostered dogs for Greyhound Rescue. The dog we chose became very aggressive with our other dog and with our daughter. We called Joyful Rescue for guidance and they said we should bring the dog back to them. So we did, reluctantly. A week later we called about another dog and they said we were not allowed to get another dog from them because of the first dog being returned. It was Joyful Rescue that told us to return the dog. We called for advice. They also kept our $300 as well.

We have adopted 2 dogs from Joyful Rescue. Both were very positive experiences. Yes they are very careful when approving people but any body who is willing to keep and care for these pets for their life if they can't be sure it's the right home really must care. I'm sure they are wrong in some instances as most humans do make some mistakes but in my opinion better wrong than sending a pet to the wrong home. I would go back to them with no hesitation because they care about the pets. This isn't about the people. They are advocates for the dogs and cats.

They are very discriminating with whom they "sell" their dogs to. It seems if you are not a stay at home parent or a family (not a single person) you will not be allowed to buy a dog from them. They have over 130 dogs currently but they won't give them up to single people who work during the day.