VIDA RESCUE Rowland Heights, California

I came here as a volunteer and the time spent was well worth it from tending to th animals to helping the office staff with organization. They really care for the animals and are ready to help them find their forever homes.

Sent email for still no response back

This shelter is absolutely awesome. My fiance and I recently adopted our cat from here. Their responses to my emails were rapid and helped us understand the process. Although the application may be long, it was worth it because they made sure we were be a thorough fit for our cat. The entire adoption process was quick and easy. Would definitely recommend to anybody looking to adopt a new family friend. We cannot thank them enough for all the smiles they've already given us so far.

Kim has gone above and beyond in finding me compatible pet and assisting with the adoption process! The rescue is great, if you find an animal here to rescue look no further and apply!

I'm fostering for this organization. Rescue work can be pretty busy and overwhelming, but I can definitely feel the love and care of the workers towards the animals!

I am so grateful that I came across VIDA Rescue. As a first time cat owner, there were a lot of unknowns for me as I began looking for my pet. Out of all the places I contacted, I found Kim and the rest of the VIDA team the most helpful. They answered my many questions and helped me feel like I wasn't in this alone! And most importantly, they introduced me to my wonderful new cat! I would definitely recommend VIDA as a great place to go to when looking to adopt.

Great organization! Friendly, helpful and very well organized with regard to paperwork and vaccination on the dog I adopted. Filled out application and they found a dog that was a perfect match. I adopted her and we are doing great. Judy Grant

At Vida rescue the people I met were amazingly responsive and kind, which was not my experience with other shelters. I was impressed with how quickly they responded and solved any issues that I had. They also know their cats and dogs well, which means they can match your family with the perfect pet. Their cats (and I also saw a couple of dogs) are clean, cute and happy. The two I adopted are fantastic purr machines and they are super patient with my kid. I chose them because they were described as child friendly by Vida rescue and they definitely are! I really recommend this shelter, you will find good people and adorable animals ????

Prior to VIDA Rescue, I had the experience of trying to go through an adoption process (notice how I said "trying") with another rescue and needless to say, in comparison, I will adopt and recommend to others only VIDA Rescue. This is the best rescue experience I've had - everything is electronic and they have a simple google survey for you to fill out if you're interested in adoption and it's quick. They also keep their forms updated so you're not filling out something dated 2016. We set up an appointment to see the available cats and met with Monica. My partner and I told her about what we were potentially looking for (a 3rd cat to be a playmate for our youngest cat so the elder cat can have a quiet retirement) but more so, my partner and I had anxiety about the entire situation in general as introducing another cat could potentially disrupt everyone's routine and most of all, our current cats' behaviors. Monica was a great listener and answered our questions (no matter how inexperienced it sounded) and instead of us diving right in, she suggested we foster for a month. Now, it's been less than a month and we made the adoption official. Everything was officiated electronically and done quickly - thank you VIDA Rescue for an amazing adoption experience!

My experience with this facility has been nothing but frustrating. I fell in love with one of their available puppies on PetFinder and filled out an application immediately after it had been posted (assuming I had probably been one of the very first applicants to express interest in this dog). It says on their site that if they don't get back to you within a week or so, it's most likely that the dog has already been adopted. I think this is a very unprofessional way of dealing with a potential adopter. Leaving someone in the dark for up to a week wondering if they're going to get some kind of response or not is very dishonorable in my opinion. I filled out the application last Wednesday and it is now Tuesday. I called the facility five times over the course of the last week to get information on the dog's availability and got no answer and no call-back. I just wanted to get ahold of someone that worked there, but their lack of communication was very stressful to me. I decided to drive out to the rescue to talk to someone face to face. They don't allow walk-ins and meet-ups are by appointment only, so I didn't show up expecting to meet the dog. I just wanted them to know I existed and that I was very eager to possibly meet and adopt this specific dog. I talked to a woman at the front desk and kindly explained the situation. I told them I would appreciate it if they could at least keep me updated on the dog's status, so I left my name and number. This happened yesterday. This morning I refreshed the PetFinder feed and the dog I wanted had been taken down (this typically means they've been adopted). So, the reason I'm writing this negative review is because their total lack of communication was very disheartening from the very beginning. I wouldn't be writing this negative review if they had just taken a few minutes to call me back (or email me) and tell me the dog's adoption was pending so I could move on with my life. Why didn't they just tell me this when I was there in person yesterday instead of keeping me in the dark? I hope the dog went to a good home, but I don't plan on adopting a dog from this facility at this point given the situation. If you fall in love with a dog at this facility, don't get your hopes up! They've probably already found someone else and they will not let you know. I'm extremely disappointed in VIDA rescue, please do better. EDIT: I may have come off a bit harsh in my initial review for VIDA rescue. I don't think they're a bad shelter, I was just salty about their initial lack of communication after I got my hopes up for a potential adoption. But, I appreciate that the owner of the company expressed sympathy in regards to my experience through reading this review. I'm sorry that they don't have enough staff to stay on top off the influx of applications. I just hope they will be able to come up with a system that will allow them to be more organized/timely about getting back to adopters in the future.

We just adopted our black lab Archie from them. This could not have been a more pleasant experience. Everyone involved could not be more helpful and kind. We received all pertinent paperwork and everything was ready to go at our appointment time.

The employees and volunteers a Vida rescue care so deeply about the well being of each animal. I visited the shelter back in February, and while I did not end up adopting, the individuals I spoke with were so knowledgeable about the animals health and care. I donate each month to the shelter because the workers are doing miracle work! I would highly recommend adopting or supporting this shelter.

I adopted my first dog, Trixie and it's just been a blast I will definitely volunteer over there, all of the animals over there deserve a chance for a home, Trixie is now 2 years old and I love her so much, once I drive, I will definitely go over there and volunteer

i had the most lovely experience adopting from them! it was easy but thorough and it’s very obvious they care a lot about these animals. i emailed back and forth and the replies were always quick and helpful!! i set up an appointment and i adopted same day after meeting and falling in love with a sweet little cat. i highly recommend adopting from them and supporting them!!! all the volunteers are lovely!

Great place. Friendly and helpful even if require assistance after adopting.

Staff are very nice and make it really easy to help you find the right dog.

Volunteering at Vida Rescue was such a wonderful experience. The employees are all friendly and knowledgeable about their animals. My team had so much fun helping to groom the friendly dogs. I really hope we can volunteer again very soon!

My friend and I (12) volunteered here because we both love dogs. We really enjoyed the place. You could tell they really loved the animals and cared for them. Although it wasn't the nicest place, it was truly the work being done that made the place so great. I would highly recommend.

If you are looking for someplace to adopt a pet, I would highly suggest you find another facility. They are not up front or honest with the information they provide regarding their rescues. For starters, their listing for our now dog said he was 2 years old, however, when we showed up and saw the paperwork, it said he was 4. Not the biggest deal in the world, but why lie about that? Secondly, the paperwork said that he had no behavioral issues. The woman told us that he played happily with other dogs, was good with children and showed no behavioral problems. That also turned out to be a lie. In the 2 months we've owned him, he's growled at my son and bitten him 3 times. To be clear, our son is 7 and would reach out to pet him and get snapped at. He's also charged at and bitten the vet, the groomer, family members, a neighbor, the list goes on. He snarls and growls at children so we just keep him away. We can't have guests over and my son can't invite his friends to play. I understand they want to find pets homes, but that shouldn't be the only goal. The proper goal should be to find a good fit. Had we known he was this aggressive, we probably would have kept looking for a dog that bonded better with children so our rescue can find a more well suited home. It will be more traumatizing to the rescue and heartbreaking for the families to have to return a pet due to aggression or health issues they just can't afford. In addition, she had told us that our dog had seen their vet and had a clean bill of health, however, a day or two later when we noticed his leg was bloody and raw from biting and scratching we took him to a vet of closer to home and learned he had a skin infection that went untreated. When we mentioned it to her, she insisted we see their preferred vet, but after what we found, I wouldn't trust it. We will continue to do all we can for our rescue, however, if he still poses a danger to a home with children, we are going to have to face an emotionally tough and financially costly decision. Find a shelter that is up front and honest with their animals so you know exactly what you are getting into and can make an educated decision that best suits you and your new addition to your family. This place, in my experience, just isn't that place. UPDATE: Upon seeing this review, VIDA reached out to us and has been more than accommodating and sympathetic to our situation. Unfortunately, in he end, we had to make the very tough decision to surrender our dog. While he is actually a really good dog and won our hearts over, he has some trauma which resulted in aggressive trigger responses that became dangerous for our child. After some discussions with behavioral trainers, the vet, etc. it became evident to us that VIDA may not have seen or known of these aggressive responses during the time they had him in their care. Maddie with VIDA has been very helpful in taking care of our dog and has been in communication with us to assure us that he is happy, taken care of and most importantly placed in a good home that can better help him heal and grow. Based on their response and communication afterwards, I feel that we all have learned and grown from this experience and I would feel confident in adopting from them again. Thank you VIDA for all of your help and support.

The volunteers and person at the desk were kind towards us.

We adopted our sweet Autumn from this great organization. We changed her name to Frida and we are in love with our baby, she's is an amazing dog! I was contacted by Madison the next day after I filled out an application for our baby. Madison was so sweet and you could tell she cares for the animals. Our baby had a cough and needed her stitches from being spayed removed and I was able to bring her to get them to be removed, received meds for her cough, and even got her nails trimmed. We are so happy and thankful to VIDA!!!

Thank you to Laura for being so responsive and making sure Tito was taken care of. We appreciate you and Vida!

The new edition to the family

Took in a dog last Saturday, for a week's trial period. Turned out that the cute medium-sized, energetic girl was more attached to me than my husband, who was very gentle with her. I fell in love with her, but it was unrequited. I had to return her yesterday. We miss her.

Laura and the staff deeply care for the animals in their care and work so incredibly hard to get every single dog and car adopted. I recently began volunteering with VIDA, mostly office work, and really admire the dedication and heart of this organization. This dogs get walked about twice a day, are let out and run around time to time and eat well. It’s a very loving facility.

I've been volunteering here since December 2018 and I'm still volunteering here... I decided with a group of people to volunteer here together. I would recommend anyone to come here to volunteer, or even adopt a dog or cat!!! They are all adorable. This place is making a change for each and every dog's and cat's lives, and I praise them for this!!!

I called them and told them I was interested in helping out their cause by volunteering. I made an appointment to meet Laura at 11:00 am. I got a message at 10:52 am that she would be there in 5 min. I waited until 11:30 am and nothing. I called her and she didn't even return my call or text me. Not even a simple apology. Very disrespectful.

I adopted my new fur baby Miley here about a month ago. I have an excitable Beagle and Laura helped me find the perfect fit. When she was diagnosed with a parasite Laura offered to give me the meds. This was a great experience and the people there truly card about the animals. I would recommend them to anyone looking to adopt.

Sadly the dog we rescued here had aggression and biting history but Laura didn't let us know and we are stuck with a very difficult to train dog. I really wish ViDA was more transparent with us! We really regret adopting from here.

I adopted my baby boy Wolf from VIDA and they were SO helpful! They drove him all the way up from Mexico for me to meet and adopt him. The woman who fostered him was a true angel. She bought him from a homeless drug addict who was abusing and starving him, giving the man all the money she had just so she could save Wolf from his terrible existence. She fed and bathed him, loved and petted him and helped him not to suffer anymore. He still had fleas when I adopted him and when I told Laura (the head of VIDA) about it she offered to buy the flea medication to treat him. When I informed her I had already had him dipped and bought medication for him on my own, she took $50 off the adoption fee to cover the cost. This is a wonderful organization with amazing fosters and volunteers. Donate, volunteer or adopt from this rescue. ❤️