Angels With Paws — Local services in Lakewood

This organization is amazing. Thank you so much for taking the sweet girl that was living outside my house. I recently moved here and found this cutie baby was living outside my house. The first time I saw her, she was using a pile of trash as a bed to keep warm. Despite that, she was very clean and sociable (just shy at first. Simple kitty talk and food had her coming right up to me to play) so I figured maybe she was someone’s house pet they let out. Unfortunately, the nights started growing colder and she began pawing at my front door and meowing like crazy to come inside. I have a suspicion that the previous owners used to let her in on cold nights or she was their cat that they abandoned (seriously, how do people do that?). She was quite familiar with the house and walked right up to the door and pawed it each night to try to get in. I wanted to let her in, but I am quite allergic to cats and I have two dogs who have never been around cats/ would be difficult to train with a cat in a small rental house. One of my dogs also started to get incredibly distraught over the cat living on our porch. She wouldn’t sleep much at all. She stated out the window or at the closed blinds constantly. Whined often, would barked aggressively at the cat when she saw it, and began hyperventilating for hours on end. I started to spend my nights bouncing between comforting my dog and sitting on the porch with this little girl who just wanted attention and love.

Long story short, I agonized over what to do. This girl is not like other strays I’ve encountered. She is very social. When I’m out front doing yard work, she would come rub on me, meow, and purr. I of course started breaking out and having horrible allergic reactions (eyes swollen and red, hives, etc.) , but it was worth it to see how happy she got. I just knew there had to be more for her out there. I spent all last week calling and texting anyone I knew who could take in a cat. Unfortunately, since she’d been living outside, no one wanted to take her in with their other pets. I was heartbroken. I know what other shelters do to cats and I couldn’t bear catching her and sending her to her death. You guys. Seriously, I cried for nights over this girl while she was meowing outside my house.

I did make her a bed out of several containers stacked with straw in-between and inside for installation and a little hole to get in. I also got a couple pet heating packs that warm up in the microwave and stays hot for 6-8 hours once heated. It was one specially made for cats and dogs so it was safe to use! She would lay on that on top of the makeshift bed most nights, but would go inside on really cold nights. I also made a feeding schedule for her. If we lived in Austin Texas or somewhere warm, this might have been enough. But it was getting too cold, and not only that, she WANTED to come inside. She also WANTED human attention. She loves kitty talk. It felt cruel keeping her outside knowing the dangers of being an outdoor cat. Especially since she was saying she wanted to come in. We only knew each other for a couple weeks (really only one) so I know it wasn’t me personally. I was just the nice food lady. But I could tell this kitty (cat?-unsure of age), wanted love and a home. I knew I couldn’t give it to her, but I made it my mission to find what she was looking for.

I started calling around and I got a tip from many vets in the area that this is by far the best shelter around. This place took this girl in without a second thought.

Thank you for changing her life! This girl deserves more then she was given. I don’t know her past or her future, but she changed my mindset on so much. I didn’t know I could love something I barely knew that much.

I plan to keep updated on her progress and donate whatever I can to make sure she, and all her new housemates, are taken care of.

Thank you for helping when I needed it most. I am so grateful.

Also, if anyone needs a cat, please...

I'll start off by listing the positives- this was our second time in, and the first time was a good experience. They have big rooms (not cages), tons of toys, and they always have multiple cats per room so they get tons of social interaction. Our first time here we didn't quite find what we were looking for- earlier this morning, we saw that they had a female kitten so we made sure to be there 15 minutes before opening to be able to come visit with her. We have been looking for a kitten for nearly a month, we already have two girls and are looking for another playmate for them.

My husband and myself go in at 1pm, and are immediately taken to the room the kitten we were interested in was. They had caretakers in there playing with them, which was a great sight to see. The one we were interested in was fast asleep in one of the huts- they stated she had been stepped on by the receptionist last night, but was "fine this morning." They left, and we were in there alone with her. I gently picked her up from her hut, and she cried. I set her in my lap, she was purring, and buried her head in my legs to go back to sleep. They stated another one in there was being a bully to her, so my husband distracted the other one while I held her. I offered a couple toys she had zero interest in. I gently picked her up again and put her about a foot from me to see her move- she barreled back into my lap on 3 legs. She was completely non-weight bearing on her front left leg. I ran my fingers up it, it felt wrong and even visibly swollen. My husband and myself were like... she's perfect, but she's clearly injured badly. Introducing an injured baby to our other girls would be less than ideal. So he left and asked some questions, if she had been x-rayed, etc. We made it clear we'd love to have her when she's okay. The receptionist, who said she had been the one to step on her, said she felt terrible- I get it, we have cats already and they love to get underneath you. But things took a turn, the receptionist got lippy (not good), and they swooped her out to medical hold (which was good!) We asked if we could apply for her, hold her, and were suddenly told she had 2 more applications on her. We asked if we could be notified when she's cleared medically, they told us no. They also said she seemed sick (she was in with 2 other kittens, she did sneeze a couple times) and so here comes the hand sanitizer because we have two other girls at home. What the heck? It seemed like after we raised the red flag, we were no longer considered an option. I understand how horrible it feels after stepping on a kitty, but the receptionist got rude with us, brought up information we weren't told about well ahead of time, and it felt like we'd been black listed for basically whistle blowing, LOL. This kitten was HURT- bad. She cried every time you picked her up gently, not even touching her leg.

We won't be going back here as we treated everyone with kindness and respect, and weren't treated the same in return due to raising the flag on an injured baby. We also have two horses, and I've never seen a three legged lame (if you know the term, you know) kitten up for adoption- sick, being bullied on three legs, and the staff gets all hot and bothered on you. I'd like to make it clear, everyone but the receptionist was polite. I hope the kitten gets the help she needs and isn't adopted out sick with a broken leg, and I hope another potentional adopter doesn't have to be the one to advocate for the...

I discovered this place online when I got the OK from my landlord that I could have a cat. I found one kitty in particular that I went in expecting to meet and take home. I got there and there were way more cats than what I saw online. Unfortunately, the kitty I expected to take home wasn’t as social or personable as I was looking for, but still very sweet. However, this other kitten was fighting for my attention and he was the sweetest thing imaginable. I ended up adopting him and I could not be ANY happier. They were cash only at the time and after I signed the papers, they were kind enough to hold him for me while I went to the bank to get the cash for his deposit and a few things I needed at Petsmart (down the street). The cats all seemed happy, healthy, and cared for. They made sure to give me all the paperwork including records of his shots and neuter. They also make sure they are microchipped. They give you plenty of options of recommendable vets, and then cover a free exam and up to $250 for your first post-adoption follow up at the location you choose. I chose Goodheart animal hospital on south Broadway and they were WONDERFUL. The staff were friendly, professional, and seemed very dedicated to what they do. Thank you so much for my new best friend and I look forward to donating to Angels...