Loving Heart Animal Shelter
3.6 from 81 reviews
Address 512 Veterans Memorial Pkwy E, Lafayette, IN 47905
Phone Number +17654130521
Jennifer Delp CHOOCH
Kelly at Loving Heart could not be a more kind,compassionate, and overall wonderful person. She did everything to help us foster Yoshi. We had hoped to adopt, but just was not meant to be. She was gracious enough to not make me feel horrible about bringing him back- which was not a decision made lightly. We hope to definitely adopt from them when we can. The care they give is top notch. The ladies re absolute angels!
Stephanie Wolf
I’m genuinely concerned for the animals in their care. I’ve worked in rescue for years and I’ve never seen a shelter handle themselves so poorly. They set high restrictions for each animal and act as if training isn’t possible for young animals - and in turn they turn away perfectly good homes. I thought the point of rescue was to get the babies into safe, loving homes as soon as possible?! It’s as if they want them to stay in the stressful environment of this shelter. Shame on you all.
J
Loving heart animal shelter? More like bureaucracy and red tape animal shelter. These are animals, not children. They turn away good people for no reason. Probably silently racist or bigoted in some way. FUN FACT: neutering big dogs before 1yr significantly increases risk of hip dysplasia, which these people do! they claim to care about animals but really don't. more $$$ for them.
The Sidewalk Connection
I have been a volunteer at Loving Heart Animal Shelter since late 2015, and I wanted to help make clear some common issues/complaints that people have addressed in the past. Loving Heart is a very small, independent animal shelter located in Lafayette, Indiana. There is only space for about eight dogs and eight cats at the shelter facility. The staff is small, but with the help of volunteers, they do their best to make sure that all the animals are loved and well cared-for. Most days, the shelter staff and volunteers are busy scooping cat litter boxes, cleaning dog kennels, washing pet bowls, running animals to and from the vet, organizing fundraisers, making sure that each animal gets love and attention, etc. - all of that in addition to working their regular jobs and taking care of their own families at home. Adoption Process: Because Loving Heart is small, it nurtures a very caring atmosphere in which staff and volunteers get to know each animal very well, therefore being able to determine which home and family environment the animals would thrive in. Naturally, it also allows special bonds to form between the animals and their caregivers. The adoption process is a little more detailed than that of other shelters because the staff at Loving Heart want to ensure that the animals in their care will be adopted into environments where they will thrive. The staff at Loving Heart have put much time and effort into restoring the animals to their proper health and gaining their trust, and therefore they do not want the animals to return to situations that are similar to the ones they were in before they arrived at the shelter. The staff always have each animal's best interest in mind and will ask a variety of questions (ranging from the number of people in the household to the type of yard someone might have to the health of any other pets in the home) to prospective adopters to determine which home will be the best fit for that animal. Communication: In the recent past there have been some complaints that the shelter staff do not return calls or that communication at Loving Heart could be better. As detailed in the previous paragraphs, Loving Heart has a very small staff and much of their time is devoted to caring for the animals, so phone calls are very often unable to be answered. The best way to contact Loving Heart is to go to to their Facebook page and send a message. I, or another volunteer, am usually very quick to see and respond to the message (usually within hours, or sometimes 1 to 3 days). Visiting the Shelter: Currently, Loving Heart is closed to the public. Anyone interested in meeting an available animal should inquire about the animal by sending a message over Facebook or by filling out an adoption application on the shelter's website. If the adoption application is accepted, the person will be contacted to meet the animal in-person and continue the adoption process. I hope this helps to clarify some of the other responses. If you have any questions about Loving Heart, feel free to send us a message over Facebook to receive a prompt reply.
Nick
My opinion of Loving Heart Animal Shelter is noted by the rating and the last two paragraphs. The rest below is a description of the process that my wife and I personally went through for anyone who is interested. We were looking to adopt our first dog and this shelter was the third shelter in Lafayette we looked at. We went in and were greeted by an employee at the desk. They asked us what we were looking for in a dog. We explained our preferences. They showed us some dogs, all of which looked healthy, that matched the criteria for what we were looking for. The dog we wanted to adopt had just arrived at the shelter that day and we were the first ones to see her. They explained that even though we would be the first ones to fill out an adoption application for the dog, the shelter would wait several days for more applications because they go by "best fit" rather than "first come, first serve." Several days later, we were informed that we seemed to be the best fit and we scheduled a home visit where a Loving Hearts shelter employee would bring the dog to our home and see how she did and do a quick check of the property for any issues. They showed up with the dog, found no issues, answered a bunch of questions I had, and finalized the adoption. They told us if there were any problems, concerns, or more questions, we could stop by the shelter, email, or text them. They gave us a recommendation for a trainer, who we used and were happy with. We took the dog to the vet that the shelter used for spaying and they were great and excited to see the dog again. I believe Loving Heart's "best fit" idea is how it should be done in order to give the best chance of a forever home being successful. I compare this to a different shelter we went to where they told us for $30 dollars and one page of basic paperwork, I could walk out with any dog I wanted with no questions really asked to see if it would even be a good idea. This all happened almost 5 months ago and as I am typing this, my adopted dog is asleep next to me with her head on my wife's lap. My wife and I couldn't be happier.
Michael Cruz
Helped someone fostering some kitties who needed transportation. Very supportive resource in the community.
Accessibility
- Wheelchair accessible entrance
- Wheelchair accessible parking lot
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