Francisvale Home for Smaller Animals Review

Francisvale is such an incredible shelter! We were looking at a kitten online and after some very kind phone calls & emails we came into the center to meet him. It is very clear that the animals are extremely well cared for and the staff loves them. In particular, Cristina and Dorothy were so kind and helpful throughout the whole process. We adopted our kitten, and they were so excited to see him go to his forever home. A few days after the adoption I was hoping to get some advice regarding making sure he felt completely comfortable and at home and both Cristina and Dorothy were quick on the phone with me with some incredible advice and ways to ensure he became acclimated quickly. They also followed up a few days later to confirm that things were going well. I have never had an experience so comfortable and kind, and it is so clear that this place is not about just getting animals to a home, but pairing animals to the correct family and lifestyle. I could go on and on, but you just have to go in and experience it for yourself. You will not be disappointed.

Just a warning they do not do same day adoptions. Though, any animal lover would know that this is a sign of an extremely reputable shelter, as it gives families the opportunity to consider hard if a pet would fit comfortably into their life. Same day adoptions lead to much higher rates of animals placed back in shelters due to decision making based on emotions.

Lovely people and lovely place. You could tell they really aim to do a great job. They have a Veterinary behaviorist intern that helps them with any pet with behavioral issues which really helps them to be able to place the animals and continue to support those who have adopted from them. I think that really helps them stay no kill. The behaviorist is trained at Penn by one of the best behaviorists in the area (Dr Siracusa) so they really do provide a great service helping pets in all situations. Everyone who has rescued pets know that sometimes their previous lives cause quite a bit of mental anguish that can manifest in chronic behavioral difficulties.
The people here are true animal lovers and I've had the honor of helping them with 2 of their forever pets.

I walked through he overgrown, dilapidated pet cemetery. Stones are toppled over, damaged, or just missing. While I understand the cemetery is on a hill (more or less) , many of the stones at the bottom are covered in weeds and inscriptions are covered up. It's disrespectful to have a large, historic pet cemetery with significant burials, and then treat it as an afterthought.
I pulled weeds away from many stones, just so I could read them. I am sure many of these owners have passed on too, as there are a lot of old markers. But, that doesn't mean you stop maintaining a cemetery. Don't stop caring, just because the cemetery is not a significant source of income.

I saw the dog that stole my heart on their website. I called to inquire and found out there were no applications out on him and they were trying to keep him and another dog together, which I would have done. I hadn't heard back in over a reach and called and sent 1 email following-up and got a very short and rude reply from a Dorothy. She said the the dog I wanted had several applications out on him and they were trying to find the perfect fit. Understandable, but how can you determine a perfect fit without seeing all of the candidates who are interested?? I didn't get to meet the dog, or the facility in person. Very very discouraging. I felt like a never had a chance and I believe there is some sort of favoritism involved. I wouldn't bother get your hopes up with this place.

After seeing my review, Dorothy had the nerve to send me a long email insulting me and defending herself and her "professionalism". The fact that she couldn't bother to correspond with me during several weeks during the process, but miraculously had the time to send this email a day or 2 after I posted it says all you need to know about this place. As I replied to her email, she shot back several emails hurling more insults. So, this is the character of the person approving these applications. It was poorly handled on all accounts. Not everyone is considered fairly. Also, I had stated I would be interested in learning more about taking both dogs together. In her last email she stated I did not mention that. I re-sent the email stating that I was interested. She shot back " learning more is not the same is being interested". Instead of asking me what I wanted to know about taking them both! I was told the dogs came from a bad hoarding situation and 2 of the dogs and a few cats had to be put down due to health reasons because of the hoarding. I wanted to know if Babs or Rhett would need special care or had health issues. This is a responsible and reasonable thing someone would want to know! And it was responsible to ask this question. But, not only was I not given a chance, but now I am being harassed!! DO NOT DEAL WITH THIS WOMAN!!!! Maybe, there is someone there more suitable to handle the applications and correspondence. The staff seemed nice and animals are always amazing.

I arrived during the posted open hours of operation on their website. When I asked to see the cat of interest they told me I could not. They said I needed to fill out an adoption form first, and only then they would schedule an appointment for me to meet the cat of interest. Why would I apply for an animal I can't even meet in person? This was a total waste of my day.

Kind, detailed, and patient through every step of the adoption process!

I have nothing bad to say about this facility in terms of its mission, especially since my daughter adopted a dog from these individuals and really appreciated the dog training and support that she received. However, when she and her husband tried to volunteer with them, even so far as to try to undergo the dog and cat training, the communication, leadership, and basic guidelines of the training were extremely poor. There were no reminders sent out, there wasn't anyone at the door when they arrived; they had to wander and look for people during the training sessions. Afterwards they said that they're glad they adopted through them since some of the animals can be there forever, but they would most likely not volunteer with the organization as it seems very poorly run from an administrative standpoint and the staff do not appear friendly or invested in retaining supporters. We love the dog and have welcomed him into our lives, but I don't think we'll have much to do with the facility itself as the people seem to be quite insufferable - odd for the Mainline since it's a close-knit community. Not sure where the break downs in communication are or how how it could be resolved, but since they are a non-profit I would encourage them to consider restructuring their volunteer program and re-train their staff. Having people in the community support you is extremely important and a big part of that is public relations. I wish them luck and hope things change for them for the sake of their animals - absolutely!