Humane Rescue Alliance — District of Columbia Animal Care and Control

EDIT: After over 5 years of sharing a home and life with my wonderful friend, I came back and downgraded my vote for HRA based on what I consider to be a culture of negligence that may well be limiting the adoption potential of their organization. When I adopted Patty I was told she had been a stray, and was living in foster (3 months) to learn how to be a dog; as she had previously been feral. They described her as resource guarding and FOREVER incapable of being around children under 13, other dogs, or animals of any kind. They said she would REQUIRE professional training on a regular basis for years, and they could recommend me to the two people only they vet in the entire DMV. They told me that she was mildly dangerous and could snap at any time, and I needed to get insurance for her, and to not plan on starting a family or entertaining at my home. They even offered me other "more calm" animals (one of which was a massive 140lb Mastiff named Dallas) that I hadn't even met, going against their own protocols. First I would like to point out that my dog has never had professional training of any kind. She has never displayed a single quality of a feral animal. She has also never shown aggression towards another living thing, even bugs, the entire time she has been here. I gave her a loving and patient home and in return she has met my trust with respect and loyalty. Patty met a newborn baby less than six months after arriving here. She has also met rabbits, a house-squirrel, rough toddlers, countless adults including the elderly/infirm, and we even adopted a kitten almost a year ago. Countless road trips, off-leash camping, daily dog park during the pandemic; NO PROBLEMS! She pulls the leash, she lunges to get close to people, she jumps to give kisses... but she is most certainly not the violent "ready to snap" animal that I was made to think she was, and had I taken their advice I might've ended up like the "so many" other people who had come to see her at foster, told the foster they would adopt her, and then suddenly broke contact. As a matter of fact my 80lb Bully is afraid of and regularly ambushed by a 1yr kitten that is 1/5th his size. Instead of aggression she chooses running in terror to find me or initiates playtime. She can tell the difference between domestic and wild animals, and even plays nice with DEER and OPPOSSUM. No mediation or refereeing by humans EVER required, so I get to gape in awe at the beauty and majesty of a well-mannered animal that loves life as much as I do. It's a sad and unnecessary bout of prejudice for an animal who didn't deserve it, and the necessarily slow realization makes me wonder... how many similarly situated dogs that are anxious and scared in their current environment are slipping through the cracks, because the (volunteer, mind you) staff is either overburdened or too callous to notice when welfare is being sacrificed for... I don't even know what? Perceived operational milestones? Honestly why doesn't matter, behaviorists are not doing their jobs right. Especially when there are so many public comments claiming a perfectly adoptable animal was euthanized. Medical misclassification of a human, behavioral or otherwise, is enough to get a professional removed from their practice; I don't see how an institution with a mission such as theirs would operate any other way. But here we are, with me recommending you go to Animal Welfare League in Arlington, VA... PREVIOUS POST: After an adoption process with direct and informative staff that was cognizant to the needs of my new friend and myself, I have thoroughly enjoyed the early stages of acclimating my best friend Patty (formerly Pantene) to our home. Front desk staff and adoption counselor was friendly, and the adoption supervisor(?) took time to call me and follow up with recommendations in regards to resources catered to this dogs needs. The foster parent has also been a great asset and to me that also demonstrates a certain caliber of professionalism on the part of HRA for holding on to such a volunteer.

posted: 06/09/2024

This place is awful, tried my best to surrender a 1 week old kitten I’d found and the girl on the phone could care less. They don’t care about animals, all she talked about was the ways their funding could be impacted. So cold, so uncaring, just surprising how little empathy she showed.

posted: 04/14/2024

Someone put me on hold then hung up when I tried making a report about an injured cat. Very rude customer service, and I usually don’t leave negative reviews.

posted: 06/02/2024

I saw a review left by someone mentioning how the people working at this place (HUMANE RESCUE ALLIANCE) showed their devilish horns regarding the rescue of a cat. I too brought a cat in here years ago and they were really AWFUL to me! They tried to argue with me that it was a feral cat...SHE WAS NOT. I gave them the story of why she was outside (her owner dumped her like the atrocious beast he was) and she was scared out of her mind EVERY DAY! I had to literally use all the knowledge I knew about animal rescue, strays, ferals and so forth just so that they would see that she was a sweet girl. There is a CAT that I am currently rescuing (another stray) and i wanted to read the reviews because I thought that, maybe, I was over thinking and being sensitive the last time I brought a cat here, maybe I should give them another try... NOPE! I. Was. Not! That review proved what I felt while interacting with that staff was spot on. Phonys and Frauds..... You all are cruel and you are only Lovers of Dogs not all, and that is absolutely despicable. You have non deserving titles and work for your own selfish needs. You do it for Instagram and "awwwws how cute!" Comments/likes, and bragging rights. The people that I met here were all very mean girlish and brutal, this facility needs to be reevaluated or renamed because they are one sided and biased about which animal they choose to "rescue" how awful of you.

posted: 01/19/2024

This is a nice shelter, and they always have good things. The only thing that throws me off is the fact that when they give out free food, they always serve the cars first… and I understand first come first serve but if it’s not freezing outside….The logical thing would be to get the people who walk up out of the way…..

posted: 01/08/2024