spcaLA P.D. Pitchford Companion Animal Village and Education Center — Local services in Long Beach

If I could give negative stars I would! We applied to adopt a dog , we filled out the application and passed with flying colors. The final step was bringing our own dog in to conduct a meet and greet. It was very strange we were not allowed to participate in the meeting they took our dog and we weren’t even able to observe the interaction. Our dog came from another local rescue and she was used as the intro dog to test incoming rescues for temperament because our dog is so easy going and non reactive to any animal. We figured the intro would go effortlessly, but we’re we wrong! The “Trainer” came in and said unfortunately we don’t think the dog you picked was a a good fit, your dog doesn’t seem interested in the new dog and the new dog is fixated on her. I respond : “Ok the new dog is a pup and has been penned up for who knows how long, of course she’s excited.” The trainer then tells me “well you’re not being denied but if that was my dog I wouldn’t want to her to have to deal with a puppy I’m just saying” I tell him thanks for the input but I have access to top of the line private training and it’s juts a behavior issue that can be resolved. I then asked if we could do anther introduction and have my trainer see what’s going on since she happened to be at the shelter. The trainer stated “ it didn’t go bad so we wouldn’t do another intro” so if it didn’t go bad why wouldn’t we be able to adopt? I let them know I appreciate their recommendation but I know my family will still be a good fit and would like to move forward with the adoption. As I’m filling out the final paperwork another staff person asks me if I understood what the trainer told me. I said yes but we have a training plan in place and the house is big enough to separate the dogs while they get used to each other no problem. This woman nods and goes to the back, seconds later she returns and tells me the “trainer” just doesn’t think it’s a good fit and we will now be denied. But don’t worry the dog you picked with be adopted quickly because she’s so good. I could not believe this dog had be in the shelter for at least the last 4 days not being adopted and there was a family willing to put in the work and do the proper training to be denied based on a 30 second greeting that nobody witnessed. I have never felt so judged like a second class citizen. The “trainer” probably had a friend that wanted this pup but despite their shady ways we were able to adopt this pup. She is a wonderful addition to the family and is absolutely not fixated on our other dog! It’s a shame this organization is supposed to help home animals not keep them on baseless information. Most of the staff that helped show the dogs and process the initial paperwork were wonderful but the “trainer” and “supervisor” were awful. I will never work with them or donate to them again. I’ll stick with the local rescues that actually care. I would post pictures of our well blended dog family but out of fear or retaliation I unfortunately can not share.

I have read your response and I believe you have us mixed up with another family. Shameful that you can’t keep up with...

This is my second adoption from this Shelter. 13 years ago I adopted one of the best dogs I've ever had from here. The experience I had then was wonderful and I am happy to report that this time around the experience was just as positive.

The facility is clean. The staff is helpful in a way that their process shows they care about the animals and making sure they go to a good home but they are very understanding and accommodating. This time we adopted a cat for my son. My original intention was just to take him to some shelters to see about adopting cats. He ended up liking a cat Name Violet who has since be re-named Pumpkin. The staff explained any historical notes and medical history the cat had. Thank fully none. We filled out an application answered some follow up questions. The only inconvenient thing was that we had to bring in all the household members to meet the cat first before she could go home with us. Luckily it was early saturday and I dont live too far so I went home scooped everyone up and brought them back to meet the Cat and 45 mins later we were the happy new adoptive owners of a great cat named Pumpkin we couldnt be happier.

So a couple of helpful hints for adopting from here.... Bring all household members with you. Or understand that if your just shopping and you do fall in love with a dog or cat that you'll have to come back with them to meet the animal. Just part of their due diligence.

if you have a dog are going to be adopting another dog, try to bring it with you. Or you'll be asked to come back. And don't worry they're not looking for instant compatibility just making sure they aren't completely incompatible.

Outside of that, awesome place to rescue a puppers...

The SPCALA is super clean and the animals are well cared for. The money goes to the right place and many of the workers are kind and allow us to see and play with whatever animal would we’re thinking of adopting. I know the money goes to the right place and my friend and I were buying a cat for her grandmother. We brought the grandfather to the shelter to pick out which cat and to fill out the information regarding the adoption. After we filled it out however, the main adoption lady asked us a few questions treating us like dummies and like we knew nothing about cats. It was near closing time and it just seemed like the lady didn’t want to deal with giving out an adoption. So when the grandfather said that the cat would mostly be indoor and after it was used to the backyard, it would stay there for a few hours while they went on normal errands like going to the store. However, she declined our request saying that she would give us a list of other shelters. After the grandfather said that they could make the cat an indoor cat, the lady said that they only followed the first saying and that it was procedure. Shouldn’t the employees be focused on actually getting the animals adopted instead of going to their houses? You signed up for the nonprofit organization so shouldn’t you really be selling these animals. But, many of the other employees were very kind it was just that one lady. I have heard of the same thing happening and wondering if it is the same lady every time. This is a great shelter but they need either a new procedure or a new adoption lady. 🙃...