I had a wonderful experience adopting my sweet Moon from Rescue House. The application was very straightforward, and that paired with the phone interview shows how deeply they care for the kitties and want to make sure they get the perfect home. I had found Moon, then named Victoria, on AdoptAPet.com, and they had a thorough story about her background and personality, which was one of my favorite parts when looking for my first cat. Once I was ready to set up a meet and greet I was contacted via text (which was very convenient) by Carol, and we found the perfect time. When I got there, I immediately fell in love with Moon and got positive feedback from Carol and another volunteer that she was a good fit. After completing the paperwork she walked me through the store to get the rest of what I needed (mainly the food she was eating and some toys), got Moon the carrier, and off we went. Carol stayed in contact with me answering any questions over text, and I happily provided pictures in return which were forwarded to Moon's foster family (I was informed the organization is entirely volunteer-run, so they just ask for pictures of the kitties happy in their new home). I would 10/10 recommend them as a caring, helpful, and thoughtful rescue agency to adopt your next kitty! read more

See all

We are so happy with our newest family member, Pete! The Rescue House was so helpful in assisting us in finding our little guy and made the transition so easy for all of us. They did a phenomenal job socializing Pete and he's the sweetest boy with our other cats and our pups. Such a great organization! read more

The Rescue House - Pete snuggled up in bed - Pet Adoption Near Me

We're so thankful The Rescue house exists! We met our kitten, Opal, when we were having coffee at Cat & Craft. We decided to submit an application to adopt her and it was such a smooth and seamless process. Everyone at Rescue House is so friendly, responsive, and truly care for the well-being of the animals in their care. Thank you again for letting us bring Opal home to be a part of our family! read more

The Rescue House - Opal, the newest member of our family - Pet Adoption Near Me

The adoption process is quite cold and unwelcoming. We went to meet a kitten at the Cat Cafe in Downtown. The space was a lot smaller than expected and there were a lot of people including kids in the space. We tried our best to bond with the kitten but there were children and adults shoving their hands in the poor baby's face and pushing us out of the way to see her. Our visit ended and as we sat in the cafe contemplating if we wanted to move forward with the adoption. As we sat we watched rounds and rounds of people coming in to the cat room and the cats were so overwhelmed and overstimulated. We put in our application thinking that Rescue House would reach out to coordinate a better intro to the kitten. Wow were so wrong! We were told that if we wanted to come back again and see her that we would have to pay the café visit see and "hope for the best". We explained that this was very hard to see her personality as the space is small and there was so many other people in the room. Tiffany, the kitten's adoption contact, was rude and cold-hearted. I begged to even meet with the kitten before or after hours just to have some one-on-one time to see if she really warms up to me. Tiffany refused and continued to repeat that this is their process. There is even a small office space in the café that I asked to use and was again told no that this is not part of the adoption process. So basically they just throw a kitten at you and hope that it sticks. The kitten never gets a chance to even come up to you to say hello with so much chaos in the cat room with other people. How are you ensuring a good home for the cat if this is how your "process" is? It's like a cat mill just pumping out adoptions and not giving a care at all about cat and owner connection. We decided to just take a chance because the kitten was really cute even though we knew nothing from her personality other than a piece of paper of her bio. I called Tiffany back within 15mins and she told us "yeah I already called the next person, it didn't sound like you would match with our process". I even reached out to the rescue directly and was told they didn't even know who Tiffany was. This rescue seems very disorganized and staff seem stressed and not friendly at all. We ended up adopting a kitten from the Humane Society who really ensured a smooth and sweet meet & greet with the kitten. I got to sit in a quite area with the kitten and play with her for 20 mins one-on-one. The kitten got to come up and brush up against me. This is a forever family member and to see how Rescue House handles it is trule dishearting. read more

Adoption process was quick and I'm so happy to be able to give this little guy a good furrever home. Like other reviewers mentioned, there were some parts of the interview where it seemed like they were trying to bait me into saying the wrong thing. While I know their intentions were coming from genuine care for his wellbeing, it was quite off putting. At any rate, I was willing to overlook this as I felt Butters (fmly Edgar) would be a great fit for my sweet 6 year old, Tormund. It's only been a few weeks and I'm happy to report they're getting along well. read more

The Rescue House - Butters (formerly Edgar) - Pet Adoption Near Me

Terrible! Thanks for breaking my son's heart! We went through an entire application process for a cat my son met at the cat cafe, phone interview, everything, for them to tell us NO because a kid can't be trusted to make sure a cat doesn't run out the door. We have two cats and he's 11 and very responsible. Why even let us apply?? Why go through all the hassle just to break my son's heart?? You just want homeless cats?? You want to euthanize them?? We have a 4 bedroom house with a giant enclosed catio in the backyard, accessible through a doggy door, a cat HEAVEN, and these morons said NO. Literally, I hate you. I hope you have the day you deserve!!!!! read more

0 Stars. The adoption process/ interview was probably the worst interaction I've ever had. Catherine called to interview me and every question, even when i answered with the "correct" answer was followed by 3 minutes of her literally going off on me. I am good and distinguishing the difference in bluntness and condescension, no exaggeration if her volume was any louder I would have considered her yelling at me. she would try to lead me into answering a certain way and even when I answered correctly still she went off on me. I grew up with cats so my family and I are experience of their needs and ways they act. Yet she spent most the call telling me why I should've raised my cats a different way and that they probably got eaten by a coyote since we allowed them to go outside, which wasn't true because even the vet said they didn't have much time. They were also very good at coming in and out of the house when they needed to. The interview seemed like she was trying to deter me away from adopting this cat based on how she was talking to me. Here's how the interview went summarized. Within the first 5 minutes the first question she asked me she said she woudl deny my application because I said I would let her outside with supervision once she was familiar with her environment. She asked me calmly to confirm that I would let her outside then immediatley went off on me about how this cat was an inside only cat and could "absolutley never ever go outside". Then immediately denied my application becuase I wasnt a good fit. it was not specified that she was an inside only cat but i told her it wouldnt be a problem to have her as an inside cat and that i didnt know because that wasnt on her profile at all. she was skeptical that i would be okay having her as an indoor cat but I persisted that it really wasnt a big deal and if she's indoors than shes indoors. Then she asked what my cats ate and for the brand, I told her dry food and that my cats literally would not touch wet food and they did not like it at all. She then went off on me about how cats need wet and dry foods and how this cat needs high quality of both and was again not convinced that I would be willing to provide that. I told her that if she needs specified food i will get that but i was just mentioning that my cats genuinely did not like any wet food we tried to give them. Her next question was about how i would react if the cats were scratching furniture, to which i replied correctly, and she continued to ask if i would declaw a cat. I wrote on my application "No" and i told her we would never declaw a cat and never considered declawing any of my cats. She then asked the reason i wouldn't, to which I said its not healthy for them and causes complications, she asked me to name specific complications. I said I haven't researched the exact issues I just know its not good for them. She then goes off on me again about the reasons no one should ever declaw a cat for about 5 minutes. She then started going off on me about the cats history ( exactly what was on her profile) and mentioning this cat was all black and how people react to the fear against black cats and how I HAD to keep her inside because of that. Once she was done I finally had the chance to mentioned that my cat before was all black. We also dont live in a populated area so it wouldn't really be a concern, which she didnt know because she didnt care to find out. She didnt ask about if the dogs get along with cats or anything in the house that would actually affect the cats quality of life. Yet she went off on my for every question she asked even when I had already answred correctly or agreed to do/not to do whatever she was going on about. She also made me give to phone to my dad, I live with my parents as I just graduated from college last year, and talked to my dad as if i was a child doing this behind their backs. Her whole call she acted like i didnt know anything and like i was a child with no experience with cats. She then ended the call saying she would need to talk to my mom as well. My family and I are convinced that this lady that is running these interviews are changing her name when she calls other adopters because there's several other reviews exactly like this with other names. After reading the other reviews it is clear that this organization is not focused on finding cats good homes and only using them to make money at their cafes. That they are trying to keep people from adopting and not focused on their cats well being at all. We are going to another adoption place and I wish I could give them 0 stars. They should not have this organization. read more

recommend any other adoption place, ive been wanting a cat and have a lot of experience with them so i sent in an application and got a phone call back, the phone call felt very passive aggressive and made me feel like I'd be a bad owner because I answered that id let my cat outside only if I was with them and for a very short time ( I don't let my cats outside at all I simply put that answer bc sometimes we keep the balcony door open and they show interest but even then we have netting up to prevent any of them from jumping and we block off the door so they can look out it but not go outside ) they immediately declined me even though all my other answers showed id be a good candidate. I wouldn't have mind the rejection if I were given a serious concern or knew that I said something that was wrong for owning cats but the comments that were made along with it felt very degrading and seeing other reviews it seems they reject anyone for any little thing. They don't seem to have any communication skills and after seeing that the cat I wanted MONTHS ago is still on their page along with many others im starting to think they'd rather have them for their little cat cafe rather than give them a loving home. To deny someone who has experience and time bc of one theoretical answer on patios is insane considering that now this cat is in a cafe where it's being overwhelmed by customers coming in everyday and being kept in a confined space as opposed to a home (some how this aligns with their philosophy),to this rescues house I guess treating cats as cash grabs is better than adopting them out read more

We were able to adopt our sweet Raisin! Process was prompt upon submitting the application and we received a lot of helpful information throughout. read more

The Rescue House - Raisin - Pet Adoption Near Me

my partner and i adopted two cats recently and are absolutely in love with them! we did the process to get approved beforehand and it was generally pretty easy and quick, and the day of were able to take our cats home within a few hours of meeting them. some of the questions during the interview did almost seem like they were intended to trick us into saying the wrong thing as other reviews say, like "would you ever declaw them? that would help with scratching, right?" but they would then be elaborated on, explaining why that is actually inhumane. i do think it would be better to just be open in the beginning about these things rather than testing us, but i understand how it could be used to sift through potential adoptees. overall a very good experience and would adopt from them again! read more

It breaks my heart to know that this organization is unwilling to give cats a forever home because the home is outside of san diego county. An organization that claims to want to find loving homes for all of its cats deny applicants that live an hour away from san diego county. If you don't live in San Diego, DO NOT WASTE YOUR TIME WITH THESE PEOPLE. Genuinely they were not kind. Very abrasive. I know they are all volunteers, but they treated both my partner and I with very little respect. Bonding with a cat is a beautiful experience, and to be denied adoption for a bonded pair because we live an hour away...crazy. Seriously, use a better adoption organization. "Just find another cat" Yeah thanks that makes me feel better. "Other cats have it worse, you can bond with them". Embarrassing. It's even better that NO WHERE on the website or one of their adoption centers is it mentioned that you have to live in San Diego County. Shout out Tiffany, she was short with us and not happy that we are passionate about adoption. read more

I respect volunteers but the adoption process was very poorly handled. Cancelled appointments twice. Third time I waited by the phone at my appointment time nearly a week later and eventually trainee called with her supervisor. Asked me multiple questions, which was expected, but before I could even finish with my information I was abruptly denied the adoption. If they had been honest and upfront from the beginning I would have accepted their decision but this was not the case. Conversation was very monotone and seemed "rehearsed". I felt like a guinea pig for the trainee. If only they had been upfront with their decision from the beginning. It was obvious that they knew before we even began our conversation. The process was very poorly handled. Will not use this organization again. I have not written a negative review before and I really do respect volunteers. This is an example of how strongly I feel and want others to have a heads up. I do appreciate the fact I am able to give my feedback and hopefully this will help potential adopters with their decisions among various agencies and organizations. read more

RescueHouse is a wonderful organization full of kind and caring individuals who work day and night to help pets in need of homes. We recently adopted a senior kitty who now goes by the name of "Tom" (inspired by the old cartoon Tom & Jerry). Tom needed a forever-home, and we thought it would be nice to try and adopt one of the older cats, and we couldn't be happier with the decision. What we appreciated about RescueHouse is that they take great care in selecting the homes for each pet. They want to ensure every animal is provided a home where they will be well taken care of. The process to adopt is reasonable but thorough, and I would encourage you to ignore the negative reviews. Animal rescue organizations must be selective for the safety and welfare of the animals. RescueHouse's staff are very well trained, all volunteers, and incredibly knowledgeable in the care and treatment of every animal they offer for adoption. During the adoption process, we were provided an abundance of useful information on how to best transition Tom and make sure he would be healthy and happy. We can't thank everyone over at RescueHouse enough! Tom is such a fun and affectionate kitty, and we're happy he came home with us. Thank you for all the hard work your team does. read more

See all

I served as a foster for a few years for Rescue House. I was so impressed with their program. They really care for the kitties. They are a voice for these voiceless animals who have suffered and struggled. One of my fosters had terrible periodontal disease, and had to have ALL his teeth pulled. Then he was on a very expensive medication for a very long time. He was the sweetest cat, and Rescue House truly saved his life. I ended up adopting him. I moved out of the area, but I miss helping Rescue House. read more

The Rescue House is an incredible organization. We adopted two kitties Russell and Snickerdoodle (now Bodhi and Luna) in August from the Encinitas Petsmart location. The entire process of adopting from searching, to applying, to the interview, to finally picking our kitties was wonderful. I appreciated the thorough application process and their commitment to matching us with the best cats for us. They allowed us to go back and meet Russell and Luna a few times before taking them home which helped ease our nerves about them getting along. The team at the Encinitas location was so helpful in reassuring us, answering questions, and walking us through adoption day. Bodhi and Luna are the best thing that has happened to us in a long time. We are so grateful to Rescue House for all they do for cats and for truly changing our lives :) read more

I've been volunteering at the PSE location for The Rescue House a little over a year and am really proud and happy to be part of a team that care for cats so much they volunteer their time to make sure the cats are fed, clean, and cuddled. read more

Our time as fosters for this organization ends today as we were also victims of Diane and this organizations inane philosophies on giving a cat a home with respect to cats being outside. The other reviews state it again and again so there is no need to beat a dead horse; the cats aren't the problem and don't deserve the medieval viewpoints in terms of who can and cannot adopt. I'm simply amazed we were allowed to foster, but when it came down to adoption, we weren't the right fit. Never again. Avoid at all costs and still help cats elsewhere thanks. read more

DO NOT deal with this organization. They are liars and frauds. They do not care about the health of the cats they adopt out/are happy to simply collect their adoption fees and move on. I adopted a young kitten from The Rescue House early June. The process went smoothly until I returned home with my new kitten and noticed he had a foggy left eye that had yellow discharge and severe redness around the eyelids. I immediately called The Rescue House to try to understand what was happening with his eye, and they informed me that he had a "healed" corneal ulcer, and had been treated for an infection in his eye, but that everything was resolved and I had nothing to worry about. Being that I trusted these people to be honest with me, I assumed the eye would get better with some time, but still wanted a second opinion as I found it a bit sketchy that they would adopt me a kitten without disclosing any of his health problems to me until after I had paid the adoption fees and signed the adoption papers. None of the 3+ women I spoke to during the adoption process, or while picking him up from Pet Smart disclosed any issues about his eye or mentioned any ulcer or infections. So, I brought the kitten to a new vet, where they confirmed that he had a corneal ulcer and were unsure about what was causing redness in his eye and causing him to be unable to open the eye. The vet recommended I get the kitten checked by an Optometrist as soon as possible as they would be able to diagnose and hopefully resolve any underlying issues. From here, I reached back out to The Rescue House, because the kittens eye issues continued to worsen, and I was hoping they would take care of the kittens treatment considering they had ignored the problems before adopting the kitten to me and had neglected proper treatment, allowing the issue to worsen. Considering how much they seemed to care for the health and safety of the cat during the interview process, I anticipated this would be no problem. After calling them again, a lady named Margie got back to me, where she further expanded on the issues with my cats eye. She had told me that it was very likely that he has Feline Herpes Virus, and that the redness and squinting may be a lifelong issue for my kitten (all while knowing that I already had a resident cat in my home, who would now be exposed to this virus and be at risk of catching the virus as well). Margie sent me to a new Vet, the Mission Valley Pet Clinic, and said that they would cover all exam fees and medication necessary to address the kittens eye problem. The clinic gave him an ointment intended to treat bacterial infections, intended to be used for a week. After arriving home with my kitten, I notice he is covered in fleas after spending the day at the vet. Now, both my cats and house have fleas, leading to hundreds of dollars in flea treatment for the cats and the home. I scheduled a follow up appointment for the following week as the ointment treatment was not showing any success on the eye, and reached out to Margie to share my frustration with not only The Rescue House not properly treating and resolving the kittens eye issue before adopting him to me, but also for sending me to the vet where my cats would be exposed to fleas. I also shared that I would greatly appreciate any tips for resolving the flea issue, and for being reimbursed for the vet/flea treatment as well, as these would never have been necessary had the issue been resolved in a timely manner, months before it continued to worsen. The next two weeks, I texted and called Margie about a dozen times as she had never answered my initial message, and she continued to ignore me daily, despite clearly reading my messages, as her read receipts for text messages were on. I returned to the vet to get the kitten checked again, and see about getting my other cat looked at, as she how has redness in both eyes with a yellow/green discharge and trouble opening her eyes fully. She is also losing some of the short hairs around her eye as a result of this, which makes it clear to me that she has contracted whatever infection/virus the kitten from the rescue house came into my home with. The second visit resulted in the vet doing a stain on his eye and finding that the corneal ulcer was not in fact healed as stated in the health records of the kitten, and a recommendation to have the kitten seen by an optometrist as soon as possible. The said he may lose his eye if not treated ASAP and prescribed different medication which has yet to work, and referred me to an optometrist as I had initially requested. I finally get in touch with Margie after two weeks, where she passive aggressively refuses to help any further to resolve the issues and threatens taking the cat back if I am not happy, with zero assurance that he would be properly treated if I was to do so. Now I am stuck with 2 sick cats and presumptive surgery for one with zero care from TRH. STAY AWAY FROM THESE PEOPLE!! read more

very bad experience. we went to the adoption event at PetSmart the other day and fell in love with a kitten close to when they were about to close down for the day. multiple volunteers and other workers saw how interested we were in him and told us to put in an application right away and were excited for us. but unfortunately, whoever the representative was that called me back for my application 1. was extremely passive aggressive & talked to me like she thought i was unintelligent and 2. has no idea what she is talking about. i am VERY experienced with animals and have never gotten rejected on any adoption application whatsoever. i explained my situation--that i have 2 cats & 2 ESA dogs--and the apartment rules (which by the way were stated on my application). she proceeded to tell me that the limit in california for ESA's is one which is completely false. there is no limit on ESA's in california. i 100% recommend just going to the San Diego humane society and adopting a kitten/cat there. they are much nicer & treat you like a competent human being & not like you are a bad person/pet owner. so so disappointed and upset. read more

Update for my review on 4/25/2023 - Decided to check out the Oceanside Humane Society for an available kitten. What an amazing positive experience unlike what I experienced at the Rescue House which was nothing short of terrible. We were able to adopt a lovely 8 week old kitten which has become a wonderful addition to our family. If you do decide to check out the Oceanside Humane Society be sure to ask for Taylor. Friendly & personable and made the adoption process seamless. read more

The Rescue House - Pet Adoption Near Me

Absolutely loved our experience adopting our kitty from Rescue House. The adoption coordinators were very thorough and ensured that the new kitty and our resident cat were the perfect match. We loved that they really cared that we were the right family for our new kitty! Very strongly recommend! read more

We adopted Copper and Smalls (now Mason and Dixon) from The Rescue House in Encinitas and we could not have had a better experience and wanted to show our thanks for the assistance of all their wonderful volunteers. Yes there is a thorough application process as they want to make sure that you will be the right fit.Thank you in particular to Neil who assisted us read more

The Rescue House - Copper and Smalls - Pet Adoption Near Me

Huge shout out to the kind volunteers! I adopted 2 bonded brothers when they were about 4.5 months old at PetSmart Aero and the cats are so sweet and you can tell they were loved and well taken care of. I really appreciate how The Rescue House has such a thoughtful adoption process, and not to mention they send you home with a big packet full of information - how much / when to feed, how to introduce to other animal companions at home, and their full vet history in a nice booklet! They take care of the kitties (and you) so thoughtfully! This is an absolutely SUPERB cat adoption organization! read more

What a great organization!! They truly love the kitties and ask all the right questions to make sure you are a fit to be a forever home. The adoption fee is minimal and let's be real if you can't pay the 125-150 fee then you probably should re-think having an animal as they are going to need food and vet visits etc. I adopted from Helen Woodward 16 yrs ago and it was over 300. I know not everyone is approved and I saw some of the reviews but they have to screen and I don't believe they trick anyone the questions are the same ones on the form that is filled out. Leaving a bad review because you were not approved is crazy to me! If you don't get a job you interview for are you going to leave a bad review for the company? Not right. Anyhow give this place a try if you are looking to adopt, you won't regret it they truly do care. read more

I wish there was an option for zero stars. We have spoken to a couple different attorneys about this company and something is definitely going to be done. They are exploiting these poor cats. Told me you could adopt the same day over the phone but that was a lie. Told me the cat that we were specifically coming to see was available but once arriving an hour later was told that was a lie and it had already been adopted by other people. They charge $18 a person to come in so don't bring your family because after that they charge $150 a cat even though they get the cats for $75 from a Humane Society. They put the excuse on microchips and being spade/neutered. Paid for the hour and was not able to start until the woman finally allowed me in a quarter after and would not allow my 5 year old daughter to come in to the room to visit the cats. You are greeted by a coffee shop that claims to not know the answers to questions however they are your checkin counter and the exact same people you pay before the cat lady comes out to get you. Absolutely horrific communication. Cannot get ahold of anyone at their company. Leave messages that are never returned. Send emails that are responded to over a week later and continue to remind you how busy they are finding homes for these cats. When they go through the adoption process with you, it is literally like you were adopting a child, and we loved that at first until it started becoming very evident that they are exploiting these cats to make money off of them at cat and craft instead of just finding them good homes to go to. We were ready to adopt our cat right away and bring him into a loving home, but they almost sway you . They take what should be a very fun and exciting time for you and your children and they turn it into something that is stressful and uncertain. Instead of getting these cats, the homes that they deserve they will stall the process just so they can have cats available for random people to come play with why they are enjoying their coffee. My family and I own a 10 acre ranch in Fallbrook where we work and live. We have an actual sun/plant/cat room. We are very successful and professional. After going through two different phone interviews and having the volunteer come to our home and do a walk-through we were told we would be a great fit. A couple days later we were told the cats had gotten sick at the Cat & Craft place where they are exploiting these poor guys... we told them that it was fine, and we would patiently wait to be able to get the cat we loved. We were also willing to adopt another cat that he had bonded with. After a week of excuses, they finally told us that they could not allow us to adopt the cat and would give me no reason. They tried to make the excuse that one of our cats was not neutered, but that was untrue. Our vet had come to our house days after she visited and neutered a cat that we had just adopted off the street. We had proof of all of his vaccinations as well as neutering but again, we were given the cold shoulder and have never been responded to since. It blows my mind that a business like this exists. I'm sure we are not the only ones. I really hope people start to stand up and speak out because Cat & Draft as well as The Circus that is The Rescue has needs to be shut down or under very investigation because something very shady is going on. read more

Wish I could've had a better experience with this organization. I wanted to welcome a third cat into the home because he had been dumped by his owner of 5 years and was timid so unlikely to be adopted soon. But the interview process to adopt him was over the top and the woman who interviewed me was condescending. She told me it was a "deal breaker" for her that I allowed my cats to walk around our fenced in back yard while under my supervision a couple times of a month for 10 minutes. Then she told me all the ways a coyote could scale my fence and abduct my cat while I'm standing next to her. And that my cats were going to get into cat fights because if one of them goes outside for 10 minutes "they smell like a completely different cat." Lol what? I've had cats my entire life. They've never fought. Maybe something else is causing her cats to be stressed out. She ended that bit by giving me a bunch of unprompted tips to give MY cats better lives. She also pressured me into getting a 4th cat when I said no. (No it was not bonded with the cat I wanted to adopt). I understand these processes should be rigorous to weed out bad cat owners. But these ridiculous standards and condescending interview methods are deterring the good ones. My cats have insurance, enrichment, a great diet and a lot of love. Now that third cat at the rescue house is going to sit in a cage for longer if not forever. What a shame. And rescue house, please don't bother replying to this telling me you're sorry I feel the way that I do. I don't need an explanation of your philosophy and mission statement. Overall I'm glad agencies like these exist, I simply want to express my dissatisfaction with the interview process and over-the-top standards read more

This adoption organization is just not it. Not only was the adoption counselor rude to me, they also denied me for a cat because, "the cat wasn't the right fit for me." The adoption counselor treated me like I was some kid, and was acting like she knew it all. This organization doesn't seem to want to give the animals homes since now I see more reviews about how other people got denied as well. The cat I wanted is still up for adoption, and is sitting behind a glass cage, and was almost about to be in a great home, but can't no more all because the adoption counselor thought the kitten "wasn't a good match" for me... geez WOW! But it is okay though, because I finally got such a sweet girl from a adoption organization called LYFF!! The adoption counselor from LYFF was super nice and sweet, it was only just a 10 minute interview, got approve, and the next day I went to go pick up my kitten and her name is Stella. Moral of the story, don't adopt from this organization, they are rude and just wastes your time. I feel so bad for the cats/kittens through this organization, they are in the hands of people who turn down their forever homes all because of their own ridiculous opinions. DO BETTER! read more

Such a great organization! I know it seems a lot to pay for a cat until you factor in ALL that they do so you can get your perfect wonderful healthy fur baby! I fell in love with a cat on their Instagram and even during an pandemic they went above and beyond to bring us together read more

The Rescue House - Cat - Pet Adoption Near Me

See all

We adopted Nelson (the lovable furball pictured below) in May 2021 after suddenly losing our senior kitty in February. We had a wonderful adoption experience and so appreciated how the volunteers were so kind went above and beyond to help us get our new best friend into his forever home. And extra special thanks to Ellen, who fostered Nelson for a few weeks while we were away from home. He is all of the love and fun promised in his profile, and we appreciated the support and guidance of The Rescue House! 12/10 recommend read more

See all

Our experience with The Rescue House was great. Everyone was very nice and thoughtful, they gave advice willingly and were very supportive. The interview asked us normal and reasonable questions. It is clear that they care deeply about the cats and want them to live a happy life. They go to great lengths even though all of their work is on a volunteer basis. Throughout the process, everyone we spoke to was very helpful. Debbi has checked in with us multiple times and gave us very helpful advice. It is clear she (and the entire team) truly care about our new cat and want her to be healthy and happy. Especially considering the fact that everyone at the Rescue House is a volunteer, we are so happy and thankful. The descriptions of the cat we got was very accurate (and cute) as well. We are now happy cat owners and with the advice of The Rescue House we hope to keep our cat happy and healthy. I feel like it is important to address a lot of negative reviews that I have read about the Rescue house. It appears that almost all of them come from people who are upset after being denied a cat for various reasons and about the adoption process. The Rescue House's main purpose is to advocate for their cats, so I feel that it is not unreasonable to expect potential adopters to agree with their philosophy regarding cat care. Overall, this has been a very good experience! read more

The Rescue House - Domino :) - Pet Adoption Near Me

Looking at the other reviews this organization is not interested in adopting out cats and I should have checked the reviews before putting in my application. Spoke with someone named Dianne about adopting a cat. Honestly felt like she was looking for a reason to reject me the whole time and asked leading questions and was generally condescending. Asked for the legal names of all my roommates which I felt was very invasive and unnecessary when you have my legal name and the homeowners legal name that is all you need to know besides how many people are living with me. She asked if my current cat was indoors or outdoors. And I told her he was strictly indoors and that he has only ever been outside on harness a few times. For that she rejected me saying that I cannot be trusted and very snidely said to "try humane society" Please read the other reviews and look at how many bad reviews they paid yelp to remove. 19 just for Diane! read more

We attempted to adopt a Rescue House cat through Cat & Craft cafe; The Rescue House is not interested in adopting out their cats, they are interested in imposing their arbitrary viewpoints on potential adopters and flexing their "power" instead of finding long-term, loving homes for animals. The Rescue House hides behind their "philosophies" which are nowhere to be found online and only revealed to potential adopters after they have found a cat they bonded with and submitted an application to take them home. This is an incredibly devastating approach for the people hoping to take a new loved one home, and the cats that are denied their forever homes. I would encourage The Rescue House to post their "philosophies" online for adopters to review before going through the emotional turmoil of bonding with, and then being denied, a cat. My husband and I applied for a cat that we immediately bonded with during our visit to Cat & Craft, an adoption site for The Rescue House. He was from an outdoor colony that was being killed by a coyote but he was the sweetest little boy. We have been longtime (10+ year) cat owners and spare no expense for their happiness. Our "interview" call took place the next day with Diane and Tiffany and the questions we were asked did not focus on our ability to care for the cat, our history of cat ownership, or how we would provide the cat with a healthy, happy life. If they had, we surely would have the adorable cat with us now. Instead, they disqualified us from EVER adopting a cat from them because we take our cat on walks (with a harness). Rather than focusing on finding a good home for the cat, they seem more interested in flexing their own power and preaching their own "philosophy" of cat care. We take our cat on walks because it's something she loves to do and brings joy into her life every day. They told us point blank that this meant we could never adopt any cat from them. Why? Because according to them, all of "their cats" are indoor only for their entire life, but refused to give any rationale; that's just their "philosophy." Who gave them that kind of authority to dictate what a cat does for its entire life? We give our cat medicine to protect her from fleas and ticks and supervise her the entire time she is outdoors. They were not interested in any of that. These people are on a power trip, plain and simple. Cats have unique needs and circumstances and applying a blanket, arbitrary "philosophy" not only hurts the animal's chances of being adopted, but attempts to box in what it means to be a good cat owner. This mentality is over the top and keeps animals in shelters far longer than they need to be. Even before that we were effectively disqualified from adopting the cat we liked because we are moving in 2 weeks. I have moved many times with cats (about 6-7 times) and know how to acclimate a cat to a new environment. But they were unrelenting that it is their "philosophy" that the cat cannot be moved soon after being adopted. I also attempted to explore options for us to complete the adoption process before we moved but not take the cat home until we'd settled, but this fell on deaf ears and they simply said they would not allow us to be considered until we'd moved. They said that if the cat we wanted was gone within 10 days they "were sure we'd find another cat we liked." Any cat owner knows that a bond between humans and animals is paramount and cats are not simply interchangeable. Finding a pet you bond with and can care for should be the most important factor in the adoption process, not making sure that arbitrary rules are followed while being inflexible on ways to collaborate and make the adoption work. This was one of the most disappointing, frustrating, and frankly asinine conversations we've ever had with a rescue. They made no attempt to get to know us as owners, but rather looked for ways to disqualify us based on a nonsensical set of requirements, that, frankly, people could just lie about anyway. The reason is pretty clear - they're more interested in upholding their "philosophies" and exerting power over potential adopters than finding long-term, loving homes for cats. read more

We adopted a kitty a week ago and The Rescue House was great! Adoption process was very thorough, filling out questionnaire and then having a verbal interview. We went to meet her, play with her to see how we all got along. She was JUST as described, everyone was so helpful and nice. She has been home now 1 week and she's healthy, relaxed, happy has tons of toys and is a JOY to have around. THANK YOU for taking such good care of her & for being so conscientious with who these fur babies end up with. Our house is now a home because we have a kitty to make it so!! read more

The Rescue House - Pet Adoption Near Me

I think the cats here are wonderful and I appreciate the efforts of the volunteers--however, I believe that their adoption process is positively medieval. There is only one woman, Diane, who can review your application and if she decides that for whatever ridiculous reason (for example admitting you've never owned a cat before or that you think in dire medical cases that declawing is a viable option) you "do not match the group's philosophy", then any request to have your application reviewed by another "adoption counselor" goes ignored. And to add insult to injury, their message of consolation is a recommendation to go to a shelter, as there are plenty of "kitties" there that need a good home. Despite their delusions of grandeur, their role of patron saint of cats clearly only applies to Rescue House cats. Also, I believe Diane is actually Laura from previous reviews. read more

Had a great experience rescuing a cat here. The volunteer staff was friendly and helpful, and our new addition to the family came already fixed and vaccinated. We love him and could not be happier with our adoption experience. 10/10 would recommend The Rescue House read more

The Rescue House - Pet Adoption Near Me

Rescue house has the most amazing rescues! They foster them, take them to the vet, also spay and neuter. Each of my 3 kittens were from here and I would recommend this organization highly! Thank you fosters for taking in kitties and helping rehome them. read more

I was just made aware of a post by a Gerald N. from a couple years ago stating he called Rescue House for advice on the 3 kittens he adopted . Actually he emailed stating that he hated them, wanted to leave the door open and hoped they got run over. I get the rescue email and have never received anything so vitriolic . After receiving an email like that, of course the organization wants the cats returned for their safety! He did not just want advice! He wanted them out of his house immediately. read more

These folks love cats, and put them as top priority. All of the volunteers seem to go above and beyond and that's how you can tell their hearts are in the right place!. read more

We adopted two kitties from The Rescue House and could not love them more! This was the best pet adoption we have ever experienced. We got to know the kitties over several visits to Cat & Craft in Vista. This was great because we were able to get a sense of the chemistry between us. The kitties were well taken care of which is standard for all cats in The Rescue House. They were litter box trained and already had all essential veterinary care, including spay, vaccinations, flea and worm treatments. This allowed us to focus on enjoying them after we brought them home. We appreciate the vetting process that occurred and the follow up to check on how we, and the kitties, are doing. We have adopted pets through many means in the past and highly recommend The Rescue House. read more

The Rescue House - Adopting our two sweet kitties via The Rescue House at Cat & Craft in Vista - Pet Adoption Near Me

I had the most amazing experience adopting my kitty from rescue house. All the volunteers were wonderful! Special shout out to Mindy for being so helpful with the adoption process and being so kind about answering all my questions. As a first time cat owner I had quite a few questions! Thank you rescue house for helping me find my furry friend, Flan - he is the absolute best kitty and a little cuddle bug. Grateful for places like this that help kittens find safe and loving homes read more

The Rescue House - Flan loves to lounge on my rug :) - Pet Adoption Near Me