South Bend Animal Resource Center

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OPEN NOW - Closes at 4:30am

I am seriously disappointed with South Bend Animal Control. On Wednesday, October 1st, I fell in love with a dog named Mya at the shelter. I already had an approved application through the shelter, so I immediately agreed to adopt her.



They placed a hold on her—I have a physical carbon copy of this contract—and we decided that Saturday was a mutually agreeable day for me to adopt Mya. I told them to make a note of this in Mya’s file.



On Friday, October 3rd at 3:03pm (less than 90 minutes before they close at 4:30), they called me and left a voicemail. The voicemail asked “how serious” I was about adopting Mya. I did not hear this voicemail until after they closed.



When they opened on Saturday, October 4th, I gave them the courtesy call they requested so that they could be prepared for my arrival. By chance, the lady who answered the phone was the same person who had left the voicemail. “Let me stop you right there,” she said, when I informed them that I would be at the shelter in 20 minutes to adopt Mya as agreed upon, “Mya went to rescue yesterday.”



As it turns out, South Bend Animal Care and Control does not honor their contracts. They claim that rescue agencies take precedent over pending adoptions (a claim which is not stated anywhere on the hold contract that I signed). They stated that the shelter was full and they “had” to allow the rescue to take dogs or else they would be “forced” to euthanize the dogs. They did admit that the rescue did not take all of their dogs, which means that another dog could have easily taken Mya’s place in the rescue. After all, Mya would be adopted within hours, so why wouldn’t they give another dog a chance?



I pleaded with them to correct this wrong, by helping me to get Mya back from the rescue immediately. Todd flat out refused to help me. Matt Harmon, on the other hand, tried to make it appear that he would help, but he ultimately did nothing. He agreed to call me but never did.



I will not be adopting from this shelter. They did not honor their contract, a few of their employees were especially rude when I contacted them, and even the director refused to help me. They already gave away the dog I agreed to adopt, so what is to stop them from giving away another? The incompetence, pride, and unwillingness to admit to and correct their mistakes is absolutely appalling. Adopt from a shelter you can trust.