Paws & Whiskers Cat Shelter — Local services in Toledo

Update: Around 10/1/23, Paws & Whiskers cleared out the FeLV+ room, took these sweet cats off their adoption website, and put them back outside. And they admitted this to a previous adopter when asked. They call themselves “compassionate”. Where was it toward these FeLV+ cats when they put them back outside to fend for themselves, and right as winter is coming? They call themselves “no kill”. They just gave these FeLV+ cats a sentence of untreated illness and early death. My husband and I fostered 141 kittens for Paws & Whiskers over 4 years from May 2019 until the board made the decision to replace management in June of this year, and ultimately drive away the rest of an amazing, compassionate staff. Prior to the sudden management change, we had been saving money to help purchase an incubator for the shelter and another generous couple joined us to provide the other half of the funds with the understanding that it was to be used in the shelter to help stabilize critical intakes more efficiently. We finally saved enough and made the donation at their kitten shower in April. The incubator was ordered and delivered in early May. The previous manager and staff were extremely grateful and excited to start using it. Then the manager was replaced by a new director in June and everything changed. We tried to continue fostering, but we quickly started seeing a decline in standard of care, foster support, and treatment of the staff so we stepped away from fostering for them. They also stopped taking in the kittens/cats that need help the most...orphan neonate kittens, special needs cats, and cats with serious health issues, illness, or injuries. That was the whole purpose for the incubator, so it wasn't being used. I requested the return of our donation (while we were still fostering for them) and the request was rejected. I was told that we made a good faith donation to help purchase a "vital piece of medical equipment we use." That "vital piece of medical equipment we use" sat high on top of a bank of kennels for months collecting dust while kitten season was still raging. They never used it. Yesterday, that "vital piece of medical equipment we use" was GIVEN AWAY to the director's friend who is an independent kitten foster. And she also already has an incubator. I had been told by both the board president and the new director that they were "staying true to the mission and helping every kitten/cat they can", but obviously that is not true. They are not helping every kitten/cat they can because they are no longer helping the tough cases that our good faith donation was made for. They even have the Phoebe's Fund that is specifically for the critical cases that they have chosen to no longer help.

We asked for our donation back and got denied, then they turned around and gave it away to someone else without hesitation. This is textbook disrespect toward a donor and misuse of an expensive good faith donation.

Be careful and use caution when choosing shelter organizations to donate to. Watch their actions, ask questions, do your research, and confirm their integrity. Make sure they have the best interest of the animals in need as a priority, they care about their staff, and they respect donations from their donors, especially significant ones. I wouldn't want your good faith donation to be given away to the director's friend instead of being used at the shelter as you intended it to be, like ours did.

If they decided not to use it, we should have been given the option to take it. They know we foster a lot of kittens, and we helped pay for it. It wouldn't have been difficult for them to show some decency and return our investment as we requested. Clearly, they knew they weren't going to use it themselves. No consideration or respect was shown toward us, everything we have done for the organization over the last 4 years, or our donated money. At all.

With the prior manager and staff, the shelter was the most compassionate place in our community for cats and kittens in need. Unfortunately, that is no longer...

Their procedure on treating cats for ringworm is absurd. They will only treat a cat for ringworm if it is visible, which I completely understand. However, if multiple cats come in together & one has visible signs of ringworm, but others don’t, they will only treat the one cat with the visible signs. Ringworm is highly contagious & all cats who have been exposed to it should also be treated.

My daughter recently adopted a cat from there & realized she signed an agreement to adopt the cat “as-is.” She assumed the cat was okay, considering they let her walk out the door with it. Within days of getting the cat home, she had to take her to the vet because she was missing patches of fur & I told her it was ringworm & the cat would need treated. She was put on meds & my daughter isolated her from the other 2 cats in the house. During that week, she noticed one of the other cats now had a missing patch of fur, so she now has to take that cat to the vet.

I did call the shelter earlier today to see if they could help out with more treatment for the other cat, so my daughter didn’t have to spend more money on another cat due to the shelter not treating the cat for ringworm. I was told that wasn’t an option due to the agreement she signed & that the cat wasn’t treated for it because she had no visible signs of it, but the cat turned over with her did have visible signs & was treated. To top this all off, I was giving my 3-year old grandson a bath tonight & noticed 2 ringworm spots on his neck & calf. So not only does my daughter have to spend money on treatments for cats & a toddler, she now has to buy supplies to try removing the ringworm from her entire house. I now will have to do the same at my house.

This is just a warning to anyone who is desperate enough to adopt a cat & do not take the time to read the adoption agreement in its entirety, or to ask the proper questions. Had I known about the shelter’s procedures on multiple cats & the treatment of ringworm, I would have completely dissuaded my daughter from...

I was absolutely overwhelmed with the devotion this shelter shows the animals in it's care. I spent several hours trying to decide which of the wonderful cats that would be a good fit for me and my living situation. Needless to say, it was my new buddy who picked me. From the first moment a black cat named Jake Buddy came down from his perch high on a shelf and jumped up on my lap and began marking me. We sat together for at least half an hour and it was clear that Jake was my cat!!!! The whole adoption process was wonderful. I did have to wait a few days til Jake had a routine dental exam at Sylvania Vet. Since joining me in my small apartment ,Jake and I have had a few problems caused by his very courious nature, but all has worked out with advice from the shelter and Sylvania Vet. I recommend Paws and Whiskers to anyone who would like to give a beautiful forever friend a second chance at a good life. Yes, they try very hard to make sure that not only the cats, but also their prospective humans are a good match. Anyone who thinks their procedures for adoption are to strict, need to remember,they want good homes for their felines with humans who respect the very special personality of cats and sometimes the special needs of each cat. I hope to find the time to volunteer at the shelter in the near future. Thank you!!! Paws and Whiskers for all you have done to help me to find my special friend. Also big Thanks to Sylvania Vet for their...