We adopted our pup here in 2014 (one of our happiest days)! I will always remember, "Chester is ready for his fur-ever home" and it was our joy hearing that (name changes shortly after). The process was smooth and staff was friendly. Fast forward to 2024 and we have come back here for vet care due to their support and prices. The previous vet clinic we attended spoke to us like we should know the medical lingo and not the best patience when we had questions. If your family is ready to add some fur love, I'd recommend Maxfund! Other notes: There is plenty of street parking near the shelter and good sidewalks for a before or after appt stroll. Bring your cat in their mobile home and dogs need to be leashed upon entering. Have a PAW-some day! read more

MaxFund - Animal Shelters Near Me - Denver, Colorado

My Experience at MaxFund Veterinary Clinic I've been bringing my 14-year-old Chihuahua, Sadie, to MaxFund for several years, and I've always supported their mission as a no-kill facility. I was genuinely grateful that this recent visit was scheduled quickly, and the two vet techs who handled Sadie were kind, gentle, and patient while clipping her nails, cleaning her ears, and giving her shots. I truly appreciate them. However, my experience with the veterinarian left me disappointed and honestly heartbroken. The vet was in the room for maybe ten seconds. I tried to explain a few concerns--I mentioned a strange swallowing noise Sadie makes in her sleep and that I was worried about a possible ear infection due to the odor and buildup. The vet briefly glanced at her ears and said they "looked good," then left. I never saw her again. When I asked the techs if Sadie might have an ear infection, they told me it would require testing her earwax under a microscope--something I would have gladly approved, but nobody offered or followed up. I left with no answers. Today, Sadie is still shaking her head, and I still don't know if she's in pain. Little things added up. They couldn't find our record at first, even though Sadie has been here multiple times over the years. They had her birth year listed incorrectly. I was also billed $25 for a missed appointment from 2022 that I was never informed about--just added to my receipt without explanation. After reading many other recent reviews from pet owners who felt dismissed, judged, or left without answers, I started to understand I wasn't alone. I love that MaxFund is no-kill, but compassion also means truly listening--especially to someone advocating for an elderly dog who means everything to them. Sadie is not "just at the end of her life." She is my family, my best friend, and she deserves a vet who will check her teeth, test her ears, answer questions, and take a moment to care. I shouldn't leave more worried than when I arrived. I wish I could still trust this clinic, but I can't. I will be taking Sadie elsewhere, even if it costs more--because having our concerns heard is worth it. I sincerely hope MaxFund can improve, because their mission is important, but right now, the follow-through is deeply disappointing. If you are looking to adopt I would look towards the Denver Dumb Friends League who now operates under the name Humane Colorado. Same location and they never changed their goals or bottom line. Just the name. read more

They are very careful with the way they adopt out pets . Background checks and your pet meeting tail to tail to make sure everything is safe and well. I have adopted 2 animals from them. Great organization!!! read more

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We were ready to add a furry friend to our family so we headed to Maxfund after taking a look at the available dogs. We had planned on meeting 3 different dogs and after chatting through our living situation (near park, lots of dogs walking by, near busy street), they counseled that two in our list prob wouldn't be a good fit because of being so reactive to other dogs and suggested we meet someone else. We met Ocho and felt he would fit in well. Fast forward a few weeks and he's part of our family now. He was the perfect choice and we so appreciate their thoughtful suggestions. read more

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I saw a dog I was interested in adopting on their website and was instructed to fill out an online application and received confirmation that my application was successful before visiting the facility on Galapagos St. in Denver. Once I arrived I was told by the lady at the reception desk that someone was looking at the dog I was interested and would probably adopt even though I submitted my application before that person. It was a waste of my time and very misleading. I appreciate they do trying to find homes for the pups. However you shouldn't mislead people into believing that the dog they are interested in is not available after you've followed all the procedures. I wouldn't recommend if you're serious about adoption. read more

This is the third dog I have adopted from Maxfund, and they keep getting better and better. All of the staff, volunteers, front desk, vet and vet techs, have always been so kind and helpful! Liz Dahl- our adoption coordinator has been amazing from the first day of fostering our new family member, through today when we finally got to adopt our new dog, T-Bone! read more

MaxFund - Animal Shelters Near Me - Denver, Colorado

Similar to Al F, I've had a bad experience with the adoption of my little kitty. In the past I've had no problems with MaxFund but it seems that things have changed. For the worse? Like Al, I was approved to adopt, however I was also told that the entire room that she was in was exposed to an illness and as a result, all cats in that room were quaranteened for 5 days and then she'd need her exit exam. This was on 1/11. I called back for the status on 1/18-- was told that it wasn't an illness but ringworm that was introduced into that room. Even though my kitty was tested negative, one of the cats that had texted positive was brought back into that room. Creating another quaranteen. I was told that someone would call me back on Monday (1/19). No one called. Called today (1/21) and was told that she was still under quaranteen. Maybe will get a call tomorrow. This has now been 10 days and I feel that it was incredibly irresponsible for that positive cat to be put back into that room. Like Al, I have a room all ready for this kitty--was hoping to get her home on days that I'll be home to monitor and keep her company. Now I'm stuck in limbo and am having to make commitments w/o knowing when I can take my cat home. NOT FAIR TO THE KITTY AND NOT FAIR TO ME. Next time will be a different shelter. read more

Hello Maxfund owners! I hope this message finds you well. I would like to share my recent experience with your agency regarding my application process, as I believe it might be helpful for future interactions. Initially, I was informed that my application would not be accepted, and I sensed a lack of engagement in the communication. Consequently, I decided to withdraw my application, especially since I only had one reference available. I was unaware that the agency would reach out to my sole reference, who has a demanding work schedule and was unable to take the call. They tried to call back but that didn't get anywhere. Following this, I received a call this very moment indicating there were difficulties connecting with my reference. Unfortunately, the tone in which this information was conveyed felt condescending and made me feel as though I had done something wrong. It's important to me that policies are adhered to, but I also believe that the treatment I received reflects the values of the organization. I respectfully suggest that if this call was monitored, it would be beneficial for staff to receive additional training on communication and customer service. Representatives must exemplify professionalism and courtesy in their interactions. This is for the sake of the future pets that are waiting for adoption. I have experienced empathy and established meaningful connections in other agencies. My decision to select Maxfund was influenced by the recommendation of a trusted individual who regarded them as the best option. I was at peace getting my application denied since I wasn't meeting their requirements. I tried to adopt but if the policy says I need three references then I wasn't going to argue. I needed understanding, Why would your staff call me to just manipulate me and show their extreme apathy for my situation? To the person who called me, why would you say something so shady? read more

Adopting my cat from MaxFund has been the worst adoption experience I've had. I know they have high standards, all of which I met in order to adopt a cat who has been at the shelter since August (it is now December). I was approved to adopt the cat almost a week ago, after 3-4 days to review my information, and the cat STILL has not received his exit exam. Their managers and vet-techs seem to take the busiest days off while their poor adoption coordinator is sitting at the shelter with her hands tied (Major shout out to Skylar for manning the frontlines and being a human when, in my frustration and disappointment at the lack of movement with my adoption, I cried on the phone). Like any good adopter, I made a plan to introduce the new cat to my home when I was off work, but due to their staff not being available for a week, I am now stuck in limbo with a home that is ready for this cat with no predictable date when that will happen. I have reached out to the executive director of MaxFund via email and voicemail and have heard nothing back. I am very close to giving up on this shelter and going elsewhere. The way they are disrespectful of their client/customers' time (because paying over $100 definitely makes me a customer) and planning has been disheartening and disappointing. I will not be supporting this shelter in any way, shape, or form. If you are a shelter, you have the recourses to adopt out animals, not just hoard them. read more

Everyone did such an amazing job! Our little Boston Terrier (Cupcake) is growing up and she got her little tubes tied! This place was very friendly and very welcoming and very reasonably priced! They did an amazing job and they have shown our little cupcake much love and respect and treated her very well! She is recovering well! read more

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New to this area & friend recommended MaxFund as she's adopted from them. Already have my adopted pup but she needs a new vet and teeth cleaning. Have been there two times now. Very happy with our new Vet! Friendly staff front and back. Knowledgeable Doctor who respects we're on an elderly fixed income now & discussed different options so I can choose what works best for my situation. Place is clean and efficient. Never more than one other dog when checking in or out. Will review again after cleaning in a month, but expect a good experience. Thank you MaxFund for providing affordable medical care for my beloved dog. read more

So I turned a cat into this no kill shelter, the cat was living in our garage! After two weeks it got adopted and I was happy! I returned to adopt a kitten, really! There is a 10 day waiting period so they could check out your reference. They ask for 2 and who your friends are! Am I going to list my enemies, come one and it is $125 bucks, so I told them no thanks. I went to another animal shelter and got a kitten for 50 bucks. This place is good to turn in but not good to adopt! The adoption is for the rich! So I adopted at the Riverdale animal shelter! read more

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Love Maxfund. We're fostering a lovely little muppet named Princeton and they've be en awesome to work with. read more

MaxFund - Our foster dog, Princeton - Animal Shelters Near Me - Denver, Colorado

I found my best friend Pita here and the staff was amazing as well as them being mindful of their medical records after Pita was adopted.

Most pretentious pet rescue I have ever been to. My daughter recently wanted to adopt a kitten so she went to down MF and found an adorable kitten that she fell in love with. She was the first one to fill out the adoption form and met all the standard requirements. Has a home, apartment allows pets and is financially stable. She went and visited the kitten every day while awaiting the approval process only to find out the kitten was given to another person they thought would be a better match. That is the rub ... what they thought. In the meantime my daughter feels like crap because these pretentious cat people did not think she a good "match" for kitten based on a an application. They informed my daughter that she was welcome to fill out another application. No thanks, she does need that kind of rejection again. Don't waste your time an emotional health with this crap. Plenty of other shelters out there with pets that need a home with the judgement of the staff. read more

Like many of the other reviews, we really liked this adoption center because they were a no-kill shelter and were conveniently located within walking distance to our home. We have an older 11 year old cat and wanted to get a companion for her. Our experience soured early on with how we were treated by one of the older front desk ladies: we were new to the shelter and were unsure of the process and were made to feel stupid when we asked and made to feel like we were wasting their time. Another reviewer here said it aptly: blasé and disinterested. You'd think they'd be a little more warm and inviting for a shelter if the goal is to get pets adopted. By the time we were able to see kittens, we were lead to a room where there were 8+ kittens. We found a kitten there that we wanted to take home, only to be told there were 3 applications ahead of us. It would be nice if we were told ahead of time which of the kittens were available for adoption, rather than having to talk to multiple staff members to figure that out, again made to feel like we were wasting people's time just for asking. We returned a few days later to look again, where there were now 15+ kittens in a tiny room. We settled on one that had no previous applications and did all the necessary paper work. The process itself took a long time from when we applied, it took about two weeks until we could actually take her home. We were told not to call them for updates, and that they would call us ONLY if we were accepted which seems like an odd way to do it. It would be nice to know if you were also rejected... When we took the kitten home, we were shocked to find that she had a diarrhea problem from the get-go. Thinking it could have been an environmental change, we monitored it for a week with diet changes to help solidify her stool. With no improvements, we decided to take her to a vet that WASN'T Maxfund, where they took a stool sample and discovered she had giardia. An excerpt from vcahospitals.com: "A cat becomes infected with Giardia after swallowing the cyst stage of the parasite... Eventually the cat passes infectious cysts in its stool. The time it takes from ingestion of cysts to passage in feces is 5 to 12 days in dogs and 5 to 16 days in cats. These cysts are immediately able to infect another animal... It is more common in kittens and debilitated adult cats and is a common occurrence in densely populated groups of cats, such as in a cattery, pet store, or animal shelter." Maxfund let us adopt an infected kitten without telling us. It's extremely likely our kitten got giardia from the crowded conditions of the shelter. The room that we saw the kittens in both times, barely had enough room for two adults to be in, and there were 15+ in there! It's likely that the majority of those kittens were infected, we have pictures to prove the overcrowded conditions. Let alone that, we could have risked infecting our older cat. We doubt we introduced our kitten to giardia, because our older cat would have had it too if it was from our environment. Our older cat also had the necessary vet visits prior to our adoption which included bloodwork and was deemed perfectly healthy (no signs of diarrhea the entire time from the older cat when we had both either). After many vet visits and medications, we were able to clear our kitten of giardia after taking her back to the vet to confirm with a stool sample. Unfortunately the diarrhea returned a few days later and was now bloody, indicating another potential parasite like coccidiosis, which is also easy to get from an overcrowded shelter. After spending an unexpectedly large amount of money on the vet visits and medications, we had reached the limit of how much time and money we were willing to spend to make it work and had to make the difficult decision to return the kitten after a month. The kitten had to be isolated that entire time because of risk of infection to our other cat. This could have been all avoided if we were just told ahead of time that the kitten was infected. I doubt Maxfund themselves could have known that with how crowded the living conditions for the kittens where. How could they possibly know which kitten was having diarrhea when there's 15+ kittens being kept in a tiny room? Overall the entire experience was terrible compared to the process we went through for our older cat at the Humane Society of Boulder Valley. Find a place that won't make you feel like an idiot for wanting to adopt a pet, and one that takes better care of the animals. I highly suggest looking at the other negative reviews across Yelp and Google for this shelter, our experience is not unique. read more

MaxFund - The room where the kittens were being held in, there were at least 11 that you can see in this picture, and a handful more out of frame - Animal Shelters Near Me - Denver, Colorado

I fostered the sweetest old lady cat named Divinity for 1.5 years. We began fostering her when she was 16 1/2 years old and quickly fell in love with her. We wanted to adopt her, but realized it would be difficult to afford her medical expenses--especially since she needed daily subQ fluids for the last year of her life. I explained this to staff at the Maxfund and they were very supportive of us continuing to foster her. We doted on that cat and she brought us so much joy. When it came time to say goodbye, it was such a sad day, and Dr. Cox, Latasha, and staff showed so much compassion. Thank you, Maxfund, for not giving up on Divinity and for letting us be her forever fosters. read more

MaxFund - Divinity (aka Mrs. Winifred B. Pumpkin Pants) - Animal Shelters Near Me - Denver, Colorado

They wouldn't let me adopt because I didn't have enough references. Loners can be good cat parents too. I had two cats I adopted as adults and I have been a good responsible owner to them for the past 11-12 years. I have been with them through sickness and health and took them to the vet regularly. I paid for a cat sitter to come 2x a day when I went on short trips. The litterboxes were scooped 3-4 times a day. My kitties were my comfort and they kept me company. However, they both passed, one to cancer and one to kidney disease. Maxfund says I need to have 3 friends who will vouch for me who are not related to me in order to adopt. I asked if that was negotiable and they said no. I could only think of one person and a family member who I could call. I understand they need to screen out bad pet parents, but just because someone has a lot of friends, it doesn't mean they're better pet parents. They should offer another way to check someone's pet ownership history that doesn't involve popularity. "Ask a neighbor or coworker, someone who has seen you with you pet!" - OK, none of my coworkers have seen me with my pets, They're CATS. I don't walk them around on a leash and take them to work with me. And none of my neighbors are people I would even talk to, let alone ask them to be my reference. It's really unfortunate, I could have given two of their cats a nice, safe home with someone who cared about them, but Maxfund thought I wasn't good enough. read more

I am glad other pet owners have had a similar experience. We, like many people, fell in love with a kitten. Maxfund unfortunately has a consistently amazing selection of kittens. If it takes two weeks to comb through every 'candidate' who applies, you do not want to find animals a home. I ironically have a security clearance for work, and this was slightly worse. I was at least able to provide documentation and proof for work... not here. They couldn't reach one reference, and somehow they found fault with everything. I will never go here again. I have many happy fur and feather babies, and I will never jump through Maxfund's hoops. They care more about being a hair-splitting gatekeeper than finding pets a good home. I will keep all the sweet Maxfund animals in my thoughts who may never get adopted due to the incompetence by this place. I adopt barn cats now and go to DDFL. They empower me to give my animals the best life possible. read more

My 2nd adoption, Chow/Golden, 7-yrs old at the time, now 13-yrs old (my 5th dog in 40-yrs). He's been PERFECT from the moment I adopted him. All dogs are good, by Rayleigh's the BEST !! read more

MaxFund - Rayleigh & I (July2021) - Animal Shelters Near Me - Denver, Colorado

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We adopted an 7 year old American Bulldog from Maxfund about a year ago with a great experience. A new Maxfund shelter building was under construction in January 2013. This No-Kill shelter was founded in 1988 and the original founder is still the current director. They depend on donations without public funding with a volunteer work force that may not provide the best customer service. Maxfund saves injured animals that other shelters will not take. The location is in the Lincoln Park neighborhood so keep an eye on your brand new car just like in other high crime areas in Denver. The website is not always accurate so call and make sure your interested animal is there. The background application can take couple weeks and they have to call 3 references and I'm glad it's a through process to find the right adopters. The adoption fee is $125 similar to DDFL and other animal shelters. Good luck saving a furry friend. Woof! read more

Back in 1996, I adopted a kitten from Maxfund, and it was a positive experience. I first heard of Maxfund when responding to a classified ad about kittens being available for adoption through there. The adoption process was quick and easy and I would recommend Maxfund to anyone looking to add a furry addition to the family. read more

People who complain about the wait need to realize this shelter takes applications and references very seriously to ensure the best placement of these pets because they are important. If you seriously want a certain pet, you will be patient. As for the cost, it is important to know this shelter relies on donations only and gets little funding other than that. So adoption fees go towards sustaining the lives of homeless pets. To keep it no kill, that means the shelter needs money for surgeries, medicine, food and so much more. You contribute to the no kill cause when you adopt from this shelter rather than the traditional state funded shelter's costs including needles to euthanize. Which do you prefer to contribute to? read more

Had to surrender my dog and still waiting weeks to hear back from anyone I understand shelters are busy and are full but it's not hard to email/call people back read more

My family adopted a dog from this shelter and it was a total disaster. First, the entire staff are extremely judgmental and picky about where they let their dogs go. It takes weeks to adopt a dog, which is rather ridiculous when you see the very poor conditions at the shelter. I get that they are doing the best they can with limited resources, but placing animals in loving homes that may not meet heir ideas of perfection would be far better for the animals than spending additional weeks and months on a cold cement floor in wire kennels with a TON of noise. They denied us for our first choice dog based on a breed stereotype - because he was half chow and "chows aren't good with kids." Nevermind that the 2nd breed was St. Bernard, which is known to be excellent with kids. But, never fear, they approved us for our 2nd choice, a "shepherd mix" that almost certain was part pit. Apparently breed stereotyping only applies to some breeds here? This dog was pulled from a shelter in New Mexico and his info was included with his adoption papers, although they were not reviewed with us. When we got him home we saw written in black and white and this dog had been abused by small children. This was quickly confirmed when he immediately tried to attack my then four year old son. He likely would have ended up severely injured, hospitalized, maybe killed, if the dog had not been on a leash at the time. I am not exaggerating. This dog had an extremely violent and aggressive reaction to all kids he ever encountered while in our care, and had to wear a basket muzzle or be crated all the time to keep our family and the community safe. When I called the shelter and told them the situaiton they had placed him in an inappropriate situation I expected they would take the dog back so he could be placed with an adopter without small kids, and let us adopt a different dog. Instead they told me it was my responsibility to work with the dog and let me know we would be denied from ever adopting from them again if we returned the dog. Kind of shocking considering how picky they were about vetting us and trying to find the "perfect" home for each dog. No worries, we definitely won't ever adopt from them again, but we also had no confidence in their ability to place the dog appropriately and safely, so we did take responsibility for the situation, and it involved hard decisions. It would have been much better for the dog and our family if he had been placed with a family with no children, but we were blamed by Maxfund for this entire situation. In the end we were denied a dog on a hypothetical possibility that he may have issues with kids, and given a dog that was known to have been abused by kids and was aggressive toward them. Please do not adopt here. You will be judged and lied to. I tried to post a review about this years ago when it happened, but it was taken down multiple times. I don't know why, but I still feel horror and anger about this, so I'm trying again. read more

This shelter is where I adopted my sweet baby angel 3 years ago. Every day I have so much gratitude for the loving presence that Pablo PiCATsso brings to my life. At this shelter, the cats are separated into rooms based on their needs. My kitter cat is social with other cats and was in a room that is surprisingly specious for a shelter. Unlike some shelters, MaxFund welcomes people to pet and interact with the cats, because it is therapeutic and helps to socialize the cats. There's a room for kittens, overweight cats, feral cats and cats with FIV. They also have a foster kitten program. When you donate to the shelter, it sighs you up for the Paw prints newsletter, or if you insist on saving paper you can opt out. This shelter took care of my baby boy until the universe brought him into my life. Please consider this shelter when thinking about adding a pet to your family. They also have a dog shelter which is on a separate building, across the street I believe. read more

My experience adopting a senior pet through Maxfund was nothing but positive. I adopted my female chihuahua mix 5 years ago and MF was very clear from the start that she had behavioral issues. She had been in a "foster home" of one of their volunteers for over 2 years prior to my adopting her so I understood that MF had considerable time and effort invested in providing a stable environment for what many would consider an "unadoptable" older dog. Several reviewers state that they were treated rudely by the staff but I am guessing it's nothing personal. They see case after case of pets being turned over to shelters because the owners rushed into acquisition of a pet that did not work out. read more

MaxFund - Sophie 5 years after I adopted her from Maxfund - Animal Shelters Near Me - Denver, Colorado

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I love my dog who I adopted at this shelter, but some of the staff here needs some serious competency training when it comes to treating people with dignity and respect. I will never donate to this shelter and will never engage with the staff again. I would rather pay for outside training then talk to or work with the staff here. Two weeks after adoption and our dog has had potty training and eating issues. We were told he was potty trained when we adopted, which also prompted concern. Our dog is skittish and shy by nature, so we also wanted some ideas on how to socialize him so that he could be the happiest he could be. After we took him to the vet and were assured he was in good health, it was suggested that we go back to the adoption center and inquire about a behaviorist/trainer. The staff at the adoption center provided information, but as we were leaving we were followed by a staff member that said the whole staff was talking about us and someone said my boyfriend was cussing at our dog. She asked us if it was true. We were completely blindsided by this and had no idea what she was talking about. She insisted that someone reported we were yelling at my dog. We looked at her in disbelief. And then we stood there and literally defended ourselves against random and ludicrous accusations that had nothing to do with us or how we treat our dog. It felt terrible. We left feeling disgusting and incredibly confused. We have no idea where or how this came about, our prior conversation with them was about how we are struggling with boundaries and crating because it feels like "dog jail"! How in the world could someone say they saw us being mean to our dog? Then the staff member made a comment about us getting angry because he is struggling with potty training. The entire "conversation" was so accusatory and we are still sitting in our living room hours after this happened in disbelief. If this is how the staff treats information seekers who are trying to ensure the wellbeing and success of their dog, steer clear of the nightmare staff at this place. We got out of this interaction promising ourselves we will never be back, and agreed we would rather pay for a professional to assist us with potty training and socialization instead of ever interacting with the staff here again. We are absolutely disgusted and still in awe how this even came about. Stay away if you enjoy your sanity. read more

I received very thorough and complete vet care. I had been a long time patient of planned Pethood and due to the fact that it's nearly impossible to get through to them on the phone I decided to switch to Max fun and am very pleased. The vet tech and veterinarian took ample time with both of my dogs and I'm happy to have switched. read more

I love the Maxfund! So does my dog! I had thought about getting a dog for awhile and was just browsing their site online one day almost six years ago (my how time flies!) Saw a picture of a black lab mix whose brown eyes were pleading at the camera and I read his story which was written from his point of view and completely amazing! Immediately I had to call to see if this fur man was still available! To my excitement, he was! I ran down to the shelter to meet him and I was allowed to sit with him in a supply room for quite awhile as he was very scared. I fell in love as his little heart was beating so quickly while laying on my legs on the floor. Sure, the application is lengthy, but I am actually really glad they have it, as they do not want to risk having a dog or cat go to someone who cannot take care of it properly. Plus, even though this is a no-kill shelter, the animals are primarily animals who have no known homes, and have been abused or injured prior to arriving at the Maxfund. I have been back many times to thank them, and still see a few of the same people who were there when I got my dog! I will always recommend and continue to adopt from Maxfund!! now...if only someone could invent a pill to make our best friends live forever!! read more

This review is actually 2 years old; somehow I guess I never actually submitted it back in 2019 when I wrote this: We recently lost our 8-year old female GSD, Libby. It was very sudden and unexpected -- our vet suspects she may have had a heart based tumor. Our GSD puppy (11 month old, Weber) is really lonely without Libby. We had not planned to get another dog for awhile, but we started looking at rescues over the weekend and thought we had found the perfect fit for us at MaxFund. He is a 6-yr old Rhodesian Ridgeback with Addison's Disease! He was surrendered to the Max Fund in May 2019 and nobody has adopted him (probably because he has Addison's, right?). We filled out all of their crazy paperwork and went to meet him yesterday and took Weber with us. When we walked into their lobby, our vocal Weber greeted every dog in there with a friendly bark (nothing even remotely aggressive) and then quietly laid down next to my husband while I got us checked in. I talked for a few minutes with the front desk person and explained how Libby had Addison's and lived a very normal life with it for over 6 years. I told her that we're already very familiar with the disease and have 2 great vets who will help us with Django. We had to provide them with 3 references who are familiar with our pets, so we listed our vets (Dr. A from Louisville, Dr. O from Brighton) and a close friend of ours. The staff person seemed really happy that we were interested in one of their "special needs" pups. The staff person took my drivers license, went to get Django (A-dog) to meet us, and then came out and said "Sorry, but your family is not right for Django." WTH??? Everything in his profile (likes dogs, likes children, likes cats, crate trained, etc.) sounded perfect for us. I asked if we could just meet him, and she said "no, the staff has determined that your family is not the right fit for him". Crazy, right?? (Django has been there since May -- you'd think they'd be thrilled to have us take him!??) So we left and went to Adams County Animal Shelter, and we found a beautiful 6-yr old female boxer named Sturgis (who we renamed "Stella"). I wrote a letter to complain to the Board of Directors at Max Fund regarding how rudely and disrespectfully we were treated. Crickets. Must be a problem from the top down. I highly recommend that you look for a rescue somewhere other than MaxFund. read more

Who doesn't love puppies? Stopped in recently to donate my pups two boujee and cute dog beds for another pup to enjoy, as my sweet girl passed from cancer on 9/11. The experience was easy, down to the point and the place was clean! Staff was helpful and I even got to love on some pups in the lobby! Win/win in my books! read more

I adopted Brandy from MaxFund in 2015 at the age of 5 as a special need dog, weighing in at 110lbs with a large non-cancerous hip tumor that had just been operated on but wasn't removed fully so would continue to grow, and she was riddled with arthritis, a torn and repairing CCL (a dogs back leg ACL) and chronic ear infections. I was warned by MaxFund that due to her breed being a 5-8 year breed, her size and her previous lack of treatment for her health issues, that she was in her senior years and that I should understand she may only live another year or 2. Well in 2020, almost 5 years later shes still going strong at 105lbs and not slowing down much anytime soon. As you can see she lives it up. She has survived a serious foot injury, another serious back leg injury, has had 2 cancer surgeries and survived having 5 cancerous masses removed, hasn't had an ear infection in years and is walking and moving better than she was when I adopted her. She has lived it up thanks to the care I gave her, but also the care MaxFund gave her by taking her in and housing/feeding her, operating on her, preparing her for re-adoption to a forever loving home, and supplying me with the resources, knowledge, and care to make sure Brandy got back to a healthy state. So for that I will forever be grateful for MaxFunds help and they deserve the 5 stars they got for helping to give this beautiful big girl the life and extra time she deserved. read more

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Hello, just wanted to share my experience with Maxfund and the lady who does home visits. We were going to foster a cat who has been returned to the facility twice. Went through the the whole process, received a call, a text and e-mail saying everything looks great! The lady came to do the home visit and made it sound like everything was fine but low and behold a day or two later. I'm sorry we can't place the cat in your home because there is a smoker in the home. HAHA! My thing is, I can respect that but absolutely DO NOT HYPE A GENUINE CARING PERSON UP and not say anything until days later. BE UPFRONT with the whole process if you all are that particular. The homing of the animals aren't the best at the facility and yet you keep a loving family from giving a wonderful animal a forever home, all because you all seem to be kind of weird and particular about certain things when arrangements can be made. I am very disappointed with how they process and handle things at this facility. read more

Do not engage or support MaxFund. They are super judgmental, elite-ist, age-ist and a pain in the ass to work with. We applied for a puppy they were offering that fit the profile we were looking for after our last dog died - a midsized energetic dog that could keep up with us in an outdoor lifestyle. My wife and I are very active, we walk daily, regularly hike in open space, state parks and wilderness areas (as well as national parks and monuments). I also play soccer 2 to 5 times a week, often against players 1/3 my age. We ski and snowshoe in the winter. Unfortunately, Max fund determined that as an older couple in our 60's, we couldn't handle a dog like that. I've had pets (dogs and cats) since I was 3 years old and am very capable of understanding the needs and challenges of pet ownership. They were rude and short with our references who had a feeling a decision had already been made. When the max fund rep called to tell us our application had been rejected, they offered to help us find a "small less energetic animal" that would be better fit. Additionally, they tried to dissuade us from pursuing our application by using our other pet as leverage. We have a cat that we have had for over 16 years (the same age as the dog we just lost). There were several things they considered wrong; the medical history and vaccinations weren't as up to date as they wanted and we would have to find the original paperwork of the adoption to prove the cat was neutered. We were able to find the paperwork and spend $200 on vet services to satisfy their requirements, which I couldn't believe they had the balls to claim jurisdiction over. And even though we went so far out of our way to remediate their defined shortcomings in a short 2 days, they shut us out. It's simple, these people are enamored with their own self-importance as arbiters of who gets and who doesn't who will look to make you grovel. Their application itself is amateurish and poorly designed and fails provide any kind actual picture of you or your abilities. Almost solely asking for references and veterinary resources - nothing about lifestyle and experience. We thought that eventually they would interview us to get that, but the decision was already made and no discussion was ever undertaken. read more

Only incredible things to say about this no kill shelter/Animal facilities Staff is extraordinary! read more

Wow -- disappointed at how blasé and disinterested the older front desk worker was. For being the first impression a potential adopter will encounter, her attitude is a poor reflection on what is otherwise supposed to be a great organization. A little work on positivity and friendliness could go a long way! Hooray for no-kill, boo for unfriendly and unhelpful front desk staff! (BTW, many, if not most, shelters in Denver are no-kill, so MaxFund isn't the only place you should check out.) UPDATE: Addtional background information follows, as I want to be clear that we weren't some whacky wierdos, inept, ignorant or sketchy or all of the above showing up to MaxFund to adopt some random animals on a whim. While I'm sure they have to deal with some oddballs now and then, I can assure you that we were polite, friendly and simply curious to meet (and potentially adopt) one of the dogs we saw in their Instagram feed. 1) We have volunteered with four different pet rescues in two different cities since 2013, having fostered over 15 cats and dogs during that time. 2) We adopted one of the foster dogs, and he is nothing less than part of our little family. He is loved and cared for as such. 3) My partner is a member of a rescue organization board in her free time. We are, therefore, relatively experienced and educated in the processes, proceedures and guidelines surrounding animal rescue and fostering. I wrote the review above the "UPDATE" section literally standing outside of MaxFund. Now, at my desk, I had a chance to read through some other negative reviews. I have to start with with a (fictitious) quote from Mutt Romney... "...I went to a number of animal rescue groups and said, 'Can you help us find a dog?' and MaxFund brought us whole binders full of dogs." Yelp Readers, take note of the negative reviews of MaxFund online: the reoccurring theme is that the way the process at MaxFund works is cold and impersonal. You approach the front desk, you (likely) get a cold/dismissive "can I help you?" and when you mention that you saw a dog online that you'd like to meet, you get directed (with an air of frustration) to go look at binders. Yes. Binders full of dogs! Forget the usual experience you may have had at other rescues/shelters. You get to look at ratty folders that may or may not be up-to-date and, at best, have a few photos of Fido. Key here is that the front desk person acts like you are an imposition and that you should, apparently, *know better* about how their process works. I can only assume that after you find a candidate (or candidates) that you get to approach the grouch at the front desk to ask if you can meet the animal in question. I have no idea how that would go, but I can imagine it being less than pleasant given her demeanor. In our case, we discovered that the dog we were interested had a few applications in process and, we were *dismissively* informed, that we could not meet the dog because of this. The older front desk lady (I am being specific here in case MaxFund actually reads reviews) acted the whole time like she had better things to do (you'd think, because she works at an Animal Rescue that she'd WANT to create an environment that was supportive and friendly toward potential adopters!). We were disappointed and felt weird after having our hopes up and then encountering the personality we did. So, we left. Here's another takeaway for MaxFund management: people are *excited* to meet the animal they saw online. They are excited to bring the animal into their home and their family. They are already thinking about the camping trips, the cuddles, the loving times they will share with their new family member. And.... They walk in and get treated like an ignorant inconvenience. Ouch. That's poor service. That's poor people skills. And, it is bad business. Non-profits are still "in business," mind you, and I'm going to avoid MaxFund going forward while suggesting others do the same. On that note, may I suggest folks reading this review check out PawsCo?!?! They rock. read more

I have been a supporter of Maxfund for years. I donate because they have a rule to never put down any healthy animal. But I have never actually been inside the place. That was until I got a dog and took him in for treatment. The staff is rude to people and uncaring towards the animals. Made an appointment for my dog to be neutered. I was told it would be $65. When we arrived for the surgery, the staff member asked if we wanted intravenous solution for the dog. We i asked if that was part of the surgery she said no, but if we wanted our dog to survive the surgery, it was necessary. Being an idiot, i agreed to go through with the surgery and pay for the add ons. When my spouse picked up our dog later that day and asked for assistance to put on the cone collar (another upcharge, which was just tossed across the counter), no staff member would help. When asked for assistance to get the dog in the car, in a snow storm, again, no help. Do your pet a favor and never, ever take them to this place. read more

I've adopted two cats from maxfund and both died from diseases they picked up there within months of bringing them home. I am watching my seven month old kitten diying right now in front of me as I write this review. Unsanitary conditions, too many cats together are likely blame. The vet bills and the emotional toll this has taken on my family have been too much to express. Stay away from this place unless want your heart broken. This no kill shelter may have good intentions, but they are killing animals anyway. read more

Like many other reviewers/visitors, I very much wanted to support this no-kill shelter and rescue an animal. I've wanted to adopt a dog for a long time and have been looking on MaxFund's website. I wanted to adopt an older dog and give him or her amazing last years that did not involve life in a shelter but a happy, 2 story home with a big yard, lots of attention and care. When I went down to MaxFund last Friday morning, I had my heart set on a 7 year old Akita who had been at the shelter for 6 months according to the website. I understand the shelter is undergoing some rather big changes including an expansion of the building which is great but does not explain the complete and utter disorganization and dismissive "We don't care if you want to rescue an animal" attitude that occurred to me on my visit. I walked up to the temporary trailer office and was immediately met by a man who asked what I needed help with. There was only 1 other visitor in the room. I inquired about the Akita and was told that though it did not say on the website, the dog had to be adopted as a pair. Here I thought Akitas were independent dogs. When I brought up my thought, the man told me the website was not up to date, did not include that important piece of information and that he did not know anything about any of the dogs, did not have any records for any of the dogs, and none of them were available for visitation. I asked about another dog I was interested in who was 6 years old. I was told he did not know anything but that the dog was next door at the clinic and suggested I go next door and ask to visit the dog. I went next door and the woman at the front desk was on the phone for over 8 minutes. I sat there waiting patiently for an opportunity to inquire about the dog's situation and if it was possible he would be up for a visit. I planned to go back to the office to inquire about a 10 year old dog but after the combination of "don't know, don't care, please go away, we don't know anything here" at the office and the 8 minutes of watching the clerk at the clinic sit on the phone, I left. The worst lingering feeling I still have about my visit is a sadness and sympathy for the animals, especially the older ones, waiting to be adopted at the shelter, not knowing that friends with loving homes have come and gone trying to rescue them. I read prior to my visit that there are no same-day adoptions and I completely respect their process as it seems it is in the best interest of the animals. I was prepared for that and also had their application I'd printed and completed the day before ready to go. I walked away disappointed and bewildered. My impression? It wouldn't surprise me if MaxFund were a front for some other shady business, because it is certainly not adoption-focused or information-friendly. read more