I was so excited to visit during their highly touted "open viewing" day because I just retired and have been looking for a small dog now that I will be home all day. Unfortunately, "open viewing" meant looking at these poor animals inside their small cages, which did not even have water, a blanket, or a toy for comfort. Every single dog was stressed and laying on a hard metal floor. Scared dogs were next to ones who barked nonstop. I asked the worker if but they ever got out of those small cages, and she said it depended on how many volunteers they had. It was heartbreaking to see the animals like that without even a towel to lay on or bowl of water. Two siblings had arrived together but were separated and kept on opposite sides of the room so they couldn't even see each other! There is no excuse for that. The worker could not answer even basic questions about ANYA of the dogs, and would not let me meet the dog I was interested in or even let her sniff my fingers to see how she reacted. She refused to have the dog cat- tested unless I had an approved application on file. Why would I spend 2 hours filling out a long, detailed application, attach documents and photos, and bother my references before I even knew whether the dog would be okay with my cats? She told me they didn't want to waste their time if people weren't serious about adopting. I guess it's ok to waste my time filling out a lengthy application for a dog I haven't even met yet. This is NOT the way to find animals loving homes! read more

Recently came here after hearing about this place from an event website promoting a sale, so I came here with my family to check this store out and even visit the dogs for adoption. There's only one person working here and it was really busy for that one person to handle. She was really friendly and really knows the dogs and her passion shows. The store itself has a great selection of great products for sale that go right back to funding the operation. We purchased some pictures and other home decor items that were perfect for our home. Great place worth checking out! read more

Wags to Wishes Rescue My wife has Multiple Sclerosis and she was looking for place to volunteer with animals. Wags to Wishes was only few miles from the house and since our grandson moved out of state and the 4 rescued animals passed on the rainbow bridge in the last few years. We had one dog with a bad heart she got worse as she got older and my sister-in-law passed away, and we took on the responsibility of her 2 dogs. We had at one point in time; we had 6 animals inside of our house. We paid for pet vet visits, heart medicine and insulin for many years for the animals we loved. My wife spent a few hours a week volunteering at Wags and truly enjoyed helping all the dogs. I was going to start volunteering next year and I even had other people that wanted to volunteer and possibly fostering but only if I was volunteering at Wags. We would have continued fostering as well, we have big yard for those dogs to run around in. I was even in the process of lining up some donations for Wags. So now we help some other organizations Wags urgently needed for someone to foster a dog for a few days, or the other shelter might have her put down a dog, my wife did not wait and said we would do it. My wife was not ready when we first got Sweetie (small dog) about adopting her, but we fell in love with that little puppy. We had her for 2 months and we informed Wags that the month of October we had to take care of my grandsons and Sweetie needed leg surgery so we could not take care of her in that month. We informed them we wanted her back and adopt her after her second leg surgery. Well, Wags had miscommunications between management team, and no one followed up with us. Check reviews, this has happened to other people before about the breakdown of communication. We were told someone else was going Sweetie. So, 2 months of fostering and the hours my wife spent volunteering, I guess means nothing to certain people at Wags. We spoke with a person from Wags, and we thought we were going to get Sweetie back, and then we got an email, not a phone call, that Sweetie was going a friend of the second in command of Wags. We asked to speak with Terri the founder of Wags a few times, and we were told she is on sick leave. Well, days later we see her on Facebook and asking for donations on a live feed of Wags building. We feel the founder Terri does not care about certain volunteers or complaints about certain people at Wags. So, this makes you wonder why they are always asking for volunteers and donations. The one excuse we hear many times, when they make an error, we are busy and no one says sorry or anything. Why were we told by a person at Wags that she told the vet to remove Sweetie's bad right leg? Thank God the vet did not do it. We were also told that the people adopting Sweetie would have to pay for a second surgery and me/wife would pay for it if we adopted her (Sweetie). They even said a few times in an email and phone call that I did not want Sweetie. That was a lie. They even had the nerve to ask my wife to volunteer and foster again. My wife took Sweetie almost everywhere with her and they had a strong loving bond and Sweetie help her Multiple Sclerosis. Make sure you read reviews before volunteering and then make your own decision. Sweetie, we did not abandon you and we miss you and would love to get you back. We pray whoever gets Sweetie truly loves her and takes excellent care of her we would have provided for her. We just wanted to speak with Terri (founder) in person or on the phone and clear the air and try to resolve this problem. She didn't even have the time for a volunteer and people who fostered for her organization. I could go on and on about this, and maybe I will add more someday about message being deleted or etc. Fosters and volunteers should always be first choice for adopting animals, reminder they are doing it for FREE. I hope that the person at WAGS who has caused my wife grief, nerves experiences that in her life time... God bless all of good volunteers and fosters in the world. read more

I can't say enough good things about this place. The staff was some of the friendliest I've ever come across. All were knowledgeable and patient with all our questions. We had filled out an application for a specific dog but ended up looking at 3. After we chose 1 the adoption process was simple. We chose the next day to come pick up the dog, and they had her ready up front, collar and tags ready, and 2 baggies of food ready as well. Would recommend to anyone in the area looking to adopt to check this place out read more

I volunteered at wags to wishes in Plainfield IL After losing our 2 fur babies to diabetes this past summer and I needed to find a way to help with fur babies and be around them but was t ready to adopt just yet. A month after starting to volunteer there was a need for a foster for sweetie whom was in a high kill shelter after talking to my husband and not wanting sweetie to be put down and no one else could foster her. Upon getting her she had major problems with both her back knees and would be needing surgery, don't get me wrong this sweet pup never let that stop her from playing and loving walks, it only meant we would be fostering her for some time till she could have surgery which we were happy to do we feel in love with her, in meantime my daughter who was pregnant with our 3rd grandchild so October 4 we would be taking care of our other 2 grandchildren, so after having sweetie for 2 months we were told while another person would be fostering her while we had our grandchildren and sweetie we would be having her 1st surgery but when we returned we would be getting her back. Keeping in constant contact with Kim (from wags) and Alyssa whom was taking care of sweetie during her recovery. Days before grandchildren were going home I reached out to check on sweetie and Kim advised me how well she was doing and Alyssa had found a family that wanted to adopt her once she was done recovering she asked how that made me feel. I immediately said no we want sweetie we love her she part of our family my cat even has bonded with her, Kim claimed to have had no ideal and said I would have to talk to Alyssa. The next day my husband and I talked to Alyssa and she told us about her friend who fell in love with sweetie and was going to adopt her she stated she also tried to get vet to remove her back right leg instead of fixing the knee which vet refused (of course vet did shame on her) and she also said after sweetie got spade the rescue wouldn't be paying for her left knee surgery whoever adopted her would be responsible for it my husband and I said that would be fine we didn't care we still wanted to adopt her after ending call Alyssa stated she would tell her friend we still wanted to adopt sweetie and she said she would talk to her friend let them know and find them another dog. The next day I get a text from Alyssa saying it's not certain we will be able to adopt sweetie gave me a handful of lies like she had no ideal we wanted her and Kim told her my husband initially said no which was untrue she said she would be talking with her team and let us know who would be best fit for sweetie. After being ignored for several days of reaching out I mentioned the founder Terri lynn asked if she was aware of how this was being handled then Alyssa immediately responded say she is on medical leave and she was in charge. I advised I would still like to talk to her about this I did send message to Terri still nothing. In meantime days after being ignored my husband and I get a letter via email saying they have decided the other family was a better fit for sweetie no signature and making it so I was unable to respond to letter. Also stating fosters do not get 1st right to adopt. I have no ideal how the conclusion the other family was a better fit other then they were friends of Alyssa's. We had sweetie for 2 months she was always happy loved her and my cat played togather napped togather, they even used a video of my cat and sweetie playing togather fund raiser for sweeties surgery. How did they decide no one came with sweetie to our home to watch us all interact . I'm on permanent disability due to my MS so when sweetie was here 2 months I was always with her and when I went anywhere she went with, so how was decision made the other family was a better fit? Mine and my husbands heart broken, and sweetie is proable still wondering where we went how is not giving us the right to prove we are the best fit for sweetie by bringing her here seeing her with us but it seems picked the other family a better fit because they are friends of Alyssa so tearing sweetie from her first safe place how is that what's best. They wonder why they so short on volunteers they have to many dogs for the amount of people volunteering. Be careful when working with them it seems they don't put poor fur babies first. And not sure the founder Terri Lynn seems to care. If there was a way to give them a zero I would. Do your homework when it comes to this rescue read more

If you are considering adopting a dog I would suggest you do your homework before going to Wags2Wishes. We adopted a beautiful, smart dog and were not told of the significant issues he had. Only after we signed the contract and paid the adoption fee were we told about his anti-anxiety meds. They said they were used prior to grooming even though the amount of pills remaining did not correspond to the date of the prescription and to potential grooming events. He showed aggression in the car on our way home from the rescue, however we thought he was very nervous and stressed about leaving the rescue. Unfortunately throughout the seven weeks we had him, he would growl frequently and increase his aggression and intensity. Twice, it ended in a bite with one resulting in an emergency room visit with stitches. We provided a peaceful and stable home with nothing to trigger these episodes. We even hired two separate trainers to deal with his behavioral issues. After his aggressive incidents, we reached out to the rescue several times but received no response. These professionals we hired assessed and determined that there is no possible way the rescue did not know the dogs aggression problem. Therefore they should not have allowed the dog to be adopted until his aggression problem was resolved. read more

I wish there was a choice for zero. This rescue has lost their way. I adopted dogs from them in 2017 and the staff was great. I went back a few years later and it was a different place. The young girl in charge was arrogant, irresponsible and completely unqualified. I'm a long time animal foster and rescuer. (Since 2004) I'm trained in behavioral evaluation of dogs and also in obedience. I went to look at a female pit bull approved application and all of that already in place. I wanted to evaluate her behavior and see if she would be suitable. The girl in charge refused to allow me to get close to the dog. When the dog got close to me she would refocus the dog's attention back on her and reinforced to the dog not to come to me. The dog had issues with fence jumping and I was appalled when the staff not only did not deal properly with the behavior but encouraged it. I came back three times to spend time with her and the staff sabotaged every effort I made to get to know or evaluate the dog. I moved on and pulled a dog from Chicago Animal Control. I also saw families there to adopt a puppy and they treated the potential adopters like supplicants and ran them through the ringer. The condescending way she spoke to them infuriated me so much that I passed on information to some much more reputable rescues with competent management to the families. They need to get their house in order. read more

A close friend volunteered to foster a pregnant dog for this rescue. She ended up delivering 10 puppies and housing all 11 dogs for over 9 weeks in a Chicago walkup apartment. For those who are not aware, fostering newborn puppies is a lot of work as they are not housetrained and although they are cute, they constantly make messes that require clean up, and multiple baths. Imagine that, times 10. She put her professional life on hold for a few weeks, foregoing income as the puppies needed near constant monitoring. My friend received little support from this rescue. Unlike most rescues I'm familiar with, they did not call her to check in on how she was doing and whether she needed anything. When she asked for help and/or supplies, they expected her to leave her home to travel to them, an hour away, rather than sending things to her. So she crowdsourced what she needed so that she could get it when she needed it without having to leave the puppies. They accused her of "drama." They promised her she would be able to adopt the mother dog and one puppy when she asked. But in the end, after she delivered the dogs as promised to the vet for spaying/neutering, they sent her a threatening email announcing they would not adopt any dogs to her and that if she tried to contact them they'd take legal action against her. And yet, they continued to use her photos to promote the puppies for adoption, without permission or attribution. I would avoid this rescue, for adoption, fostering, volunteering, or donation. Check their ratings at Charity Navigator and Great NonProfits - they are terrible, and now I have personal insight as to why. read more

I have been a long time volunteer and fostered multiple times for this rescue. I am not sure who Karen is referring to up front. I am sure they would love to have a certified behaviorist volunteer to help out. Charities can't afford to employ them, but volunteering would be awesome! I do remember the woman in the walk up in the city that decided to try fostering a pregnant dog. That seemed very ambitious. I do not live close to the rescue either, and I fully understand that anything I need, I need to buy or go back to the shelter. I also remember that woman live streaming daily. No need to call to check when you are all over social media. There are plenty of supports when you foster. And you get first dibs on any dog. I can only imagine that if her relationship with the rescue ended like that, she must have made some major errors. This rescue is knowledgeable, respectable, and focused on the health and well being of the dogs in their care. They did undergo a change in management a little over a year ago. They are amazing! read more

I have fostered and adopted thru this rescue and they have been wonderful and supportive. I'd recommend 100%. They do care who is adopting their pups and do put the pups needs in front of all else. Just because it's a rescue it doesn't mean that everyone is qualified to adopt. read more