Melody and her family were very welcoming and very thorough with the interview process and you can tell that she really does love all of these cats. She communicated to us on what she expected from us and what needed to be done in order to ensure JJ and Noah would have a great and loving home. Thank you so much Melody and thank you A Pawsitive Approach for introducing us to our two little ones ! read more

See all

I reach out to this organization since they're local to my area. I had a mother cat and two kittens that needed to be relocated from my folks property. I'm glad they took the cat family away but I didn't like the fact we have a BIG COMMUNICATION error. I don't like the volunteer Debbie who called me is this a culture thing? That's very rude and disrespectful because I was on a limited time to relocate them. I never own a cat before so I was loaned by my friend cat carrier. I just want the cats to be in a foster care instead of a local animal shelter since the family cats are super friendly with people. read more

Please do no, do not do not adopt from this rescue, they are horrible people that own it. They sell you feral cats. I went in to adopt two cats, and they seemed so eager to adopt them out to me, so I took them in. They were sick for one thing. But I kept them for a bit longer, boy was that a mistake. The whole time I had them, they hid from me and wouldn't come out to me, and they peed all over the house they were supposed to be loving cats. But I signed a contract that stated I had up to two weeks to return them, If I were to return them in that time, I'd get my money back, remember, these are two ugly cats that cost my $275, that alone should have been a warning. I emailed Melody to return the cats (the owner of the rescue) she refused to answer my emails, so I decided to call her instead. She yelled at me and said I couldn't return them, I then reminded her about how the contract stated that I could return them back to her, she got really mad at me again, but relented and said I could return them. Remember, these are supposedly sweet cats... It came time to finally get rid of these abominations called cats, and I had the kennels all ready. They were hiding so I had to find them. I found the one, and he went in the kennel, but here is where the feral cat comes in (I adopted two cats from them). This one was hiding in my bedsprings, my daughter went to get him out, and she got him near the kennel, at that point he hissed at her and gave her a huge gash on her hand, it was bleeding nonstop. The cat ran back under the bedsprings, this time my other daughter tried to get him out, she used a cane and poked around him to try to scare him out, he then ran in the closet. She went in to get him and he hid in a corner, she grabed him and then carried him over to the kennel, he wouldn't go in, so she put him closer to her and tried to put him in, he turned around in her hands and hissed in her face and started clawing at her face. She then threw him away and he ran under the box spring again, we still had to get him to return him, so we took the cane again and poked around him to get him, he turned around, hissed and tried to claw at my daughter again. My husband then decided to come in, we had to take the bed apart and and the cat ran under a dresser this time, we poked him with a can again and he ran in the closet once more. My poor husband! He had to go in the closet with the cat, corner him and try to get him in a kennel, that alone took over 15 minutes and included more pain! I texted the woman to let her know we were on our way, she had no remorse for her cut and said "we are waiting for you ON TIME" o..kay, I would've been there on time if you wouldn't have sold me a feral cat Melody. I get there, and the foster dad ran off and hid in a corner of the store? What? The blonde came up to me and looked at the cats liked I killed them...they came back in perfect health (well, as in perfect health that a sick cat that was sold to me could look like). Turns out, they weren't giving me a refund like promised, no no no no no. I was "getting a check" in two to three weeks. I asked for clarifcation and the dumb blonde yelled at me and said "YOU WON'T GET A CHECK UNTIL TWO TO THREE WEEKS!!!". My contract never stated that I would be getting a check. I then showed the blonde my daughters cut (that was still bleeding at the time) she said "oh well" and the dumb foster dad came up and said, "just put neosporian and a drop of water on it, it's not that big of a deal" I left and Melody (the owner of this rescue) said "Now get the h*ll out". I'm not ever sure what I did wrong here, I returned two cats who didn't fit in with me, when my contract stated I could return the cats no issue. Please don't adopt from melody and her 'A Pawsitive Approach' cat rescue, you will get a unsafe, unfit cat. Please save yourself the trouble. The evil cat https://www.petfinder.com/cat/fredrick-bonded-with-bobterry-41156690/ca/anaheim/a-pawsitive-approach-ca1876/ The weird cat https://www.petfinder.com/cat/bobterry-bonded-with-fredrick-41156618/ca/anaheim/a-pawsitive-approach-ca1876/ The rescue website https://www.apawsitiveapproach.com read more

A Pawsitive Approach - A cat scratched my daughter when she touched him - Animal Shelters Near Me

Reading through some of the negative reviews, I'm inclined to think that many of the reviewers have clearly never had to run an organization, especially one operating at a grass-roots level. It's a LOT of time, effort, energy, emotional weight, and money that has to be given. As a small business owner trying to do it all myself, I can recognize that Melody is someone is doing a great job running a rescue, saving lives, putting trust in strangers, and HOPEFULLY managing to fit her own personal life and family in there somewhere, too. Mistakes are made and total control can't always be had, especially when you're inundated with cats that need endless amounts of help and there aren't enough resources to provide them. And I can already hear the comments: "Well, then maybe she shouldn't be doing it all if she can't handle it." To those thinking that way, shame on you and you truly have no idea what it's like to take on what she has and do it alone. You really have no idea and you're letting your ignorance make a negative impact on what should otherwise be a really good thing. Take a moment to think about where your bitterness is coming from and what your feedback here is doing for someone's good cause. Anyway, I came here to leave a different kind of review but had to leave that feedback after reading through the negative ones. Personally, my experience was great. Our family had wanted a cat for a long time, but we had been discouraged by shelters because of our dogs and because my children are young, and because we only wanted one cat instead of a pair. We had a chance visit to PetCo and went to say 'Hi' to the kitties and immediately knew I had found "the one". I completed the application, sent Melody my video, and spoke with her on the phone to go over our respective questions. She had the same concerns that the shelters had, but I was honest about my intentions with their safety and how I would transition a new cat into our household. It's not difficult to demonstrate that you have common sense with regards to their safety and welfare when it comes to taking in rescued animals. I have two rescued dogs (and have owned other dogs in the past), and if you've ever worked with a rescue before, it's obvious that there are some non-negotiables when it comes to being approved for adoption. My friend was turned down by a local rescue when she said that the only time she would consider rehoming a dog is if it mauled her child to death. You'd think that would be acceptable, but when you're dealing with hundreds of adoptions, there can't be time for negotiation. There have to be zero-tolerance policies in place. This is not uncommon for rescues and they rarely stray from their position. It took maybe a day or two at most for me to hear from Melody at times and other times minutes to hours, which was totally reasonable in my opinion, and we communicated for about a week back and forth. In that time, I came back to PetCo with my family multiple times to visit with the cat (Stormy) we had our heart set on. There was an upcoming adoption event on 9/13/21 at the same PetCo, so the whole family came again to visit with Stormy, and Melody was so accommodating and patient with my young children (ages 7, 5, and 2). She let us visit with Stormy, other cats, and take our time. She went into details on how to acclimate a new cat to our household, and soon enough, we were all pretty sure we'd met our soulmate in our cat. The only thing I was unsure about was whether one was enough! To make an already long story short, we came home with two :) Melody walked me around the store and filled my cart with the right essentials and came down to my kids' level and reiterated their jobs in protecting the cat from the outside. It's been two weeks since we've brought our kittens home and we couldn't be happier. They bonded to each other by the third day, they were smitten with my kids by the end of the first week, and we're about 99% there with my two dogs - a chocolate lab and a golden retriever. I don't think we "just got lucky". It's really obvious to me what a great job the fosters have done to raise the kittens into the loving, affectionate, and confident fuzz balls that they are. Also, doing the math on the cost of litter, food, mileage, vaccines, spay/neuter, and other supplies, the adoption fee was less than I expected it to be for an agency that isn't subsidized by local taxes or that operates at a state level. And it was a hell of a lot cheaper than the rescues we got our dogs from. Some of the dog rescues we have applied to charge $50 just to go through their application/interview process. Anyway, thank you so much to everyone at Pawsitive approach. Our babies are doing wonderful in their new home! read more

A Pawsitive Approach - Not from the same litter or foster, but they're a match made in heaven! - Animal Shelters Near Me

I'm writing this review on behalf of my parents, Steve & Karen, who recently adopted two bonded sister calico kittens. Their experience was positive and they are very happy with their new additions. They worked with Melody but mostly with Lisa, who was friendly and quick to respond to any questions they had. The application process is in depth but for good reason - as they are trying to find good homes for hundreds of cats and kittens. We commend the organization and all the fosters who commit their time to this cause. read more

One of the best places ever to get a new fur baby from. Melody is the kindest person ever and will always help you with future needs if your new pet needs it. I will HIGHLY Recommend this place to anyone who's looking for a new kitten to add to the family. I won't go anywhere else when looking for a new friend to get. read more

They are reasonable, efficient and the only groomer where my dog has no anxiety (they let them be free instead of a cage).

We had found kittens from the community cats and we had time to help foster so we reached out and A Pawsite Approach agreed to help us vet and adopt out the kittens provided we foster and make a donation to help pay for the vetting. We were given a date for a volunteer to come to our home to vaccinate the kittens and then all communication stopped. We got ghosted. It's one thing to tell us you are unable to help but another to lead us along and then leave us. I could've used that time to reach out to other organizations. Highly unprofessional and disrespectful. read more

Very sweet owner of the shop. I went poking to adopt a kitty. She had a handful of kitties that need homes, so I spent some time holding and petting them showing some love . read more

I adopted my cat Aradia from this organization about a year ago now, so this is long overdue! I fell in love with this cat right away! The volunteer I worked with was Melody and she was very helpful and caring. We wanted to make sure everything was a fit ( I have another female cat) . I am very grateful for her taking the time to speak to me about my situation and Aradia's background. After she came home, Melody was able to give me some pointers as to how to create a good environment for introducing Aradia. I still needed some conflict resolution help though and she gave me very helpful info. My girls are both doing great now! Thanks Melody and A Pawsitive Approach! Meow! Sarah, Aradia and Gara read more

I feel bad for the animals taken care by these people. Go to the shelter or a different non-profit rescue where they actually care. I wouldn't even consider this an animal "rescue". I wish someone would shut them down. They have really rude "volunteers" who claim they "don't have time" to answer much of any questions. All I wanted was to ask a few questions and got a rude reply back. Another yelp reviewer below me apparently had the same experience. read more

We adopted a cat in February 2018 from A Pawsitive Approach. He is such a good cat. It took a little bit of time to get him used to our other cats. Now they are best buddies. Rocket (formerly Milo) was an adolescent cat (we don't want kittens) that had lived at the PetCo for several months. The volunteers were always great whenever we would visit him at PetCo, it took a few months for use to decide we wanted a 3rd cat. Adoption was pretty easy. We answered some questions and paid for him. I recently reached out to A Pawsitive Approach to rescue a stray cat and her litter of 5 brand new kittens at my office. Within a week they found a foster home to care for the kittens and mom until they can be adopted. Tamera, a volunteer, came to my office and waited for hours (6pm to 10:30pm) to capture the mom so she could care for her kittens. That is amazing! The dedication this shelter has for saving cats is truly amazing. Thanks again for saving the kitties! read more

Melody and this wonderful organization helped me find my feline best friend during really tough times. When adoptions were 95% virtual interviews, it was so difficult to adopt a cat, because multiple people would be interested in the same pet without ever even meeting them, and nearly every place I contacted only adopted cats in pairs or required that you already had a cat at home, but two cats just weren't an option for us at the time. I am so glad I struggled for a couple months with other shelters, though, because this led to me finding the perfect kitty. It was so obvious that Melody and her whole family adored Fritter, and would have kept her if they could have, but they are all so dedicated to helping as many animals as they can. Fritter had actually been at the shelter for over a year and a half, but they never gave up on her. Melody knew they would find the perfect fit for her one day, and I am so glad that that happened to be me. Melody was very easy to communicate with and was always willing to answer any questions we had while Fritter settled in. Fritter has been absolutely thriving with us and we've really seen her unique personality flourish. A Pawsitive Approach really gets to know the cats they care for and were able to recognize that Fritter would be perfectly happy in a single-cat-household. Even after having Fritter for over six months, Melody was willing to track down some pictures of Fritter as a tiny kitten for us, which absolutely made our day. They really go above and beyond here, and care deeply about not only the animals, but the people adopting. I cannot say thank you enough for this wacky, lovey, clumsy furball; she is an absolute dream. As I was writing this, Fritter squeezed under the couch, which she only ever does when scared, so I was concerned, but then a ping pong ball came rolling out from under it, and she popped back out and skittered after it. So, yeah, she brings me a lot of joy and a lot of laughs. read more

See all

I still remember how judgemental this organization really is. When my husband and I were trying to adopt a dog, they believed my husband and I were pretty much "unworthy" to take care of any pets, even though we had two cats that were well taken care of. Seems like they love hoarding animals they find, are quick to assume the potential adopter is an animal abuser, and overcharge other families with the adoption fees who pass their judgement. You are better off adopting from a shelter than here (just like another reviewer stated). You still save a life, but with cheaper fees and no judgment. read more

We recently adopted two sweet kitties through Pawsitive and the experience was exceptional. Melody was fantastic throughout the process and has continued to provide support and guidance after my two girls have been adopted. She has provided a wealth of information to help keep my girls healthy and safe, even more so in many ways than my vet who I end up paying thousands and thousands dollars to. Thank you, Melody for all the good that you do for the precious kitties in the world. read more

I am writing this review because I really want people to know what they are getting themselves into when applying to foster or adopt through A Pawsitive Approach. I got my foster kittens on June 1st and had to make the extremely hard decision to give them back on October 17th. When I applied to foster kittens, there was a question on the application that asked how long I was looking to foster for. I answered that I was only wanting to foster for the summer. I also was told that all I needed to do was drop them off at a Petco on adoption day and then I would be done. I soon found out that I didn't just need to drop them off on adoption day, but that I was expected to drop my foster kittens off at Petco every Saturday around 11am/12 and pick them back up around 2:30/3. And as the months went on, my anxiety about how and when these kittens would get adopted continued to get worse. We did have one of our four fosters get adopted in July so that made me think maybe the process could work for the other three, so I really tried to stick it out. It was really difficult to find people interested in adopting kittens (which I totally understand, it's a big commitment and there are so many cats/kittens that need homes). But then, when we finally did find people interested, I watched them be turned away for the most ridiculous of reasons. There is a question on the adoption application that asks if the cat will be indoor or outdoor. One of the options"indoors with supervised outside playtime". I watched applicants get denied solely for marking that option. I personally do not allow my cats outside because of all the dangers that come with it, but to deny someone ONLY because they will allow supervised outside time is beyond me. I just don't understand how you can acknowledge that there are thousands of cats that need homes while also being so picky about who you approve to adopt. If someone will provide a cat with everything they need to meet their physical and emotional needs, why not approve them? I brought this up to them and their reasoning was that accidents still happen even with supervised outside time. I think this is ridiculous because my indoor only cat sometimes runs outside when I open my front door, so in their eyes I guess I am also unfit to own cats? It just doesn't make sense. As a last ditch effort, I inquired about adopting all three of them myself because I hated dropping them off at these pointless adoption events (where they would get extremely anxious and cry/hiss) only for the few people interested to get denied. They told me they were going to call my landlord to make sure that I could have that many cats (interesting that they didn't need to contact my landlord about me fostering), that I would need to send them proof that I still owned them every three months for a year, and that if I have didn't, they would take legal action. I was never ONCE thanked for my time or efforts, until it got to the point where I expressed my concerns, and it was incredibly insincere. Something else that really bothered me is that because these kittens stay in foster homes for so long, by the time they are getting adopted they feel like they are being re-homed, which breaks my heart. I only had my kittens for a matter of months and they were so bonded to me. I can't imagine how the kittens who have been in their foster home for over a year feel (yep, over a year). For an agency that shames others for re-homing pets, I find this to be very ironic. Ultimately, I gave my kittens back because I didn't agree with the way I or the kittens were being treated. It was taking a toll on my mental health, I did not agree with their policies, and like I mentioned before-I had only wanted to foster for the summer. I cried for days after I gave them back because I so badly wanted to see them go to loving homes. I think about them every day and hope they finally get the homes they deserve. I truly say all of this because I care so deeply about animals and it has broken my heart to see the way A Pawsitive Approach goes about "rescuing" kittens. I hope they can really take what I am saying to heart and consider a better system going forward. read more

The review by Makenna L? That is sadly the sort of nasty people, if you want to give them credit for being human, these rescues have to deal with quite often. They let their animals get lost, killed, with no remorse or responsibility and are then quick to lay blame and lash out. If you can't care for a pet, why would anyone want to adopt to you?? read more

Terrible experience with melody. She is awful at communicating. After a week and no reply i keep following up with her and nothing all because i have a porch. I was looking forward to getting 2 kittens who are brother a sister. Now i have to tell my son that we aren't getting a cat. And i could have been a great loving home. And the kittens will probably be separated now. It's a shame. I can't even get her to say that she denied me. Waste of time. Very sad. read more

If it allowed me to put zero stars I would, saturday I went to a petco event in Costa Mesa in hopes of bringing home my new baby, I did the video tour of my house to show it was safe and filled out the app. Once everything was sent in Melody Invited me to the event to meet remi (my kitty of interest) so I texted can I make my way over to petco , (on their page it says they Invite you to a visit once your application and video are approved) we were very excited to bring Remi home, he was supposed to be my birthday gift and also my 5 year old was through the roof excited to have a new kitten, we got everything ready for our new arrival before I made my way to Costa Mesa, when I walked in I let one of the ladies know that I was there to meet remi,that I was invited by melody and that I had already done all necessary steps and was just wanting to see how our personalities would be together before bringing him home... now this is where things should have been handled differently!! They put me in an area to bond with remi before re-reviewing my application, that was their first mistake, I sat in that little area bonding with that sweet boy for almost an hour and there was an immediate connection, I have never had such a strong connection to an animal, being a trauma survivor it's hard for me to make connections like that, remi was comfortable with me, it was like I had known him my whole life. Melody asked for my application which I had already emailed and assumed It was a go since I was already at the meet and greet step (you don't get to the meet and greet step unless you are approved) so she comes back and asks for clarification on a question I honestly answered on my app, mistake number two for me was dont be honest... I'm honest to a T, the question was will your cat be strictly indoors, outdoors or have supervised visits outdoors, I check supervised visits outdoors even though in the 2 years i have had my cats they have only gone out supervised on our patio at most 1 time a month if that...I'm thinking well sometimes even though it's rare I'll just say supervised outdoor visit.... this is why I got denied, and I get that but you don't let a person bond with a cat and then take that poor angel away , he cried so hard when she took him away, I cried immediately because he was crying and anyone could tell he was heartbroken to not go home with me and be put back in a cage I'm a human I can heal in time although this has really made it hard for me to move on.... but what they do to these animals is wrong and it's cruel, don't adopt from them, these people dont care read more

Excellent rescue group. They really care for and love the animals. They do a tremendous amount to fix, heal, and home animals. Class act.

Currently fostering several kittens for A Pawsitive Approach. Everyone has been helpful and kind.

I wanted to adopt little kitten for the last two weeks and they denied my application for some reason. I would be the best caregiver for the kitten that I was interested in in adopting. I already have one cat that I love so much. He is spoiled with lots of love and attention. I call him "my baby". After reading those reviews, I realized that I was dealing with people who don't really care. I feel bad for those beautiful kittens and adult cats. I hope they will find good homes with people who will take care of them and love them. As long as the application for adoption will be approved and they can be rescued . read more

Melody is simply amazing! She is an angel doing what she does. We have two of the most amazing cats we could have ever asked for. She is such a caring person who truly loves what she does. She has rescued over 1400 cats to be in their forever homes!! I don't know how she does it. And to all the people writing negative reviews about her, just stop. If she doesn't believe a pet should be left unsupervised outside that is her right to believe so. Go somewhere else and quit bashing her. She has done more good in this world than most people I know. She works tirelessly to help all of these cats in need of a home. We have another stray cat that got sick and she even helped us with her! She gave us medication and told us where to take her. She gave me better advice than any of the vets I took her too. She really helped in making our Stinky all better. And we now have the best vet because of her! We are so grateful to have found her and I will forever get my cats from her until the day I die. Thank you Melody for giving us the the best experience possible when adopting our little fur babies! And thank you for all your continued help and advice! You're the best! read more

Horrible people ask you to Foster cats then leave them behind stiffed me with an $800 vet bill for their kittens probably any other Foster would be better read more

If I could I would give this organization zero stars. I've noticed some of the "volunteers" of this organization prey upon lost animals found within the community of Facebook. These animals are often acquired for free yet they charge a very expensive price for adoption. Also when my wife and I tried to adopt a dog from this organization a year ago, we were denied. The worker told us we wouldn't be able to give the dog a good home. This was said without even giving us a chance. It was rude. Instead we ended up going to a shelter to adopt a cat which was given generously for free by ASPCA. We still love our cat. Don't waste your time with this nasty adoption "organization." read more

I found a pair of kittens in my shed in the backyard and wanted to find a safe and loving place for them and a woman named Melody was very kind and quick to respond back. I was not able to give her the kittens for I was working, but she immediately helped me out by sending someone to my house to get them. I hope those kittens stay safe with them in their foster home and find a nice place to live eventually! I sent an email on their website and got a quick call and was in constant communication. read more

Thos place is very unprofessional. I waslooking to adopt a kitten and give a good home. I left a message that i was interested in adopting titania they replied back and told me it would be a 200 dollar fee and i needed to fill out an application. I was talking with melody thru text. She told me to fill out and sent back so i did. Then the normal questions so i thought before u know it i guess she did not like one of my answers because after that last text I got no response nothing back I sent her some text and another email back on how the application was going and nothing back so I hope that poor kitten finds a home because I was ready to give her a good one read more

After a long time looking for what I thought would be the perfect dog for me, I found her at a PAWSITIVE APPROACH...........I have had her for 2 years now and she has been a blessing to many of the foreign students here...........she gives lonely people sweet kisses and the opportunity to love when they are far from home.........another thing I liked is that the fee that they charge is 100% deductible from your taxes. I have kept contact with one of the owners over the past years as well...........This is a good place to find the perfect pet for you. read more

We adopted Marga from them last week and it was a wonderful experience. Melody was so nice and helpful in finding the perfect cat for my daughter. She was very prompt about sending me suggested cats and their information. The first cat we met was a perfect cat for my daughter and she fell in love with her immediately. Marga has adapted very well to my daughter and her husband. They are so excited about the new addition to their family. I would recommend this group for anyone looking to adopt. read more

We adopted 2 Maine Coon mix kittens from A Pawsitive Approach in November 2017. The volunteers were extremely helpful & accommodating. Any questions I had after adoption were followed up on quickly & we have two incredible additions to our family. We could not be happier with our experience. We do recommend A Pawsitive Approach to our friends & family. The screening, application & adoption fees are on par with other rescues I've dealt with & when you consider all that is included, shots, neuter/spay & care to get them ready for adoption/the fee is very reasonable & tax deductible! read more

A friend of mine tried to adopt a dog from this place but was deemed not a good candidate. Even though she had another dog. It was almost implied that she wasn't good enough for this dog. Save the trouble and go adopt from a shelter. You'll still save a life. The shelters also do occasional promotions where they pay for everything thanks to ASPCA. At least they trust you enough to know that you'll give the pet a good home. Note: The first reviewer here is not a customer of this organization. She's the owner or some employee of this rescue. read more

All we wanted was to give our current cat a friend/ someone he can play with, we found him outside our apartment and took him in just in case someone claimed but he's been ours for 5 months now and came across this rescue place, they took us as horrible people made us feel like we treated our cat as the worst animal, first cat we've ever owned and were still learning not the best at but I can say we LOVE him very much... they asked us questions to see if we were "fit" after they asked if we would allow out new kitten to go out I said no because we tried to leash train our current cat and it didn't work as we thought it would... ( he never pushed or pulled just didn't like it) ... they might as well kicked us out.. they told us they were concerned told us to leave... well... not a pleasant visit at all!! Even after I explained were learning .. they just said to look somewhere else to put it in nice word.. I would of loved to been placed on hold or denied application but nope they looked at me with shame as we left ... bad people read more

Very recently had a "helpful" neighbor take our cat from our complex. she didn't look around and ask around to see if anyone claimed the cat. This cat though didn't live in our actual apartment we did care for this cat. we had given her a flea collar and fed her regularly. we were very shortly going to get her a tag because someone in our neighborhood had lost a cat that looked very similar but when our "helpful" neighbor called that number instead of returning and doing any work to see if anyone knew anything about the cat she took her to A pawsitive Approach. We did some research and tracked her down. They refused to work with us on returning the cat even after promising to bring her into our home and adopt her appropriately instead were rude and not helpful. I feel like if we're willing to go through so much why would we neglect her. They had the opportunity to do the right thing but they chose to break our hearts and well never see this cat again. Deoesnt sound very pawsitive to me. read more