Chester County S P C A

doggies

Bar far the best kept pets and most welcoming shelter environment in southeastern PA. They really try to get to know their dogs before adopting them out. Very eager and helpful staff as well. Only 4 stars because the person who answers the phone at the number listed on Google isn’t actually at the shelter, and was slightly abrasive and extremely unhelpful. Ended up driving over an hour for a dog she first said didn’t exist and then said wasn’t adopted yet, who turned out to be gone. Otherwise, extremely positive experience all around.

The staff is rude and they do not follow the rules. They encourage people to keep found dogs saying they are full and if they find them homes it’s ok. The completely go against animals control laws and are not held accountable for the laws they are supposed to enforce.

Between my parents and me, we’ve adopted 4 cats in the past year. Workers there are very friendly and helpful, and we’re very happy with our new kitties.

I drove a half hour to get a little dog that the spca had on there website. When I got there I didn’t see the dog or any of the small dogs they had on there website. I asked a girl there were he was n she told me they don’t have any dogs of that breed. I told her then why is it on your website? She didn’t believe me so I showed her. She was confused n went to talk to I guess a managet. Some manager they are. I was told «oh we do have that dog but you can’t adopt him cause he’s getting checked out I think she said. You can come back tomorrow at 10. I told her I couldn’t I have to work n that I want him n I’d pay for him now. No way was that happening. So I asked about another little dog on website… same situation. Then I asked about a German Shephard on website. Nope don’t have that one she went to a rescue. Wtf are you for real?! What makes matters about this place so bad is about 5 mnths ago I adopted a bulldog that was brought in they say from coats villa wandering streets. They didn’t even h@ve him 2 days n adopted him out. They also said he was evaluated an everything was good. Bullshit… the dog was good up until the second day we had him and .now mind you this dog was around little kids ranging from age 6 mnths to 8 yrs old. This dog went completely nuts for no reason. No one provoked him no one did anything to him but this dog stared you straight in the eye n literally lunged at you. My sister was bit by the dog n I had to kick him off of me n broke a board over his back. The dog was so vicious we couldn’t move or he would attack. We called the police. They came an they said to leave him in the car @ll night n take him back tomorrow. The cop couldn’t believe how this dog was snarling an aggresive. The next day we took him back an of course they didn’t believe us an were adopting him out again. They also were not gonna give me back my money of 380.00. It’s not my fault they are incompetent an have no idea that it doesn’t take one day to see a dogs true colors. So them telling me I’m not getting my money back n there adopting him out again I told them they better pray that dog doesn’t severely injure or kill a child n let them no I’m no idiot an that I have a video of that dog being beyond aggressive changed there tune n I was refunded the money. Even though I asked what happened to the bulldog they never replied. To all who cares I will be posting the video. This place is unbelievable how I wanted that dog n willing to pay now n told them there was no way I could get there by 10 an they just don’t give a crap. Why don’t you try thinking about the animal instead of acting as though your some high n mighty athority figure and better than the people who come there trying to adopt a dog into a loving home. Hope that little dog gets a good home cause I’m not going back there again. Waste of my rime. To many animals that need homes out there to have to deal with people that just make it impossible to adopt I can def. See why this spca is filled w so many dogs. Good luck! Oh sorry one more thing. When I took bulldog back an they weren’t refunding my money but I could get another dog there were two little dachshunds there n I told them I will def. Take them! They said oh they got adopted. I said I was just there like 2 sec ago no they didnt. Long story short they completely lied to me n were tripping over there own tongues! Apparently a volunteer may have wanted them n she took them without anyone knowing n she was being told to bring them back. Then oh she’s gonna adopt them maybe? Does anyone see how much bull goes around in this place? And I just couldn’t n wouldn’t have the time or energy to make up such a story or stories! A complete joke they are

If I could give them a 0, I would. This place is disgusting. Here’s why.
1. Uncleanliness and Unhygenic. Dogs are wallowing in their own crap/​piss. Or should I say, diarrhea, from poor quality food and poor care. Literally, stepping in it. I even saw a trail of blood along with the diarrhea, and it had a lovely paw print in it.
2. Diseases & Sicknesses. Literally the majority of the dogs above age 1 have infections; their scleras (the white of the eye) are completely red, an obvious sign of infection. Of course, the caretakers don’t seem to do their job and get them medical care, let alone notice them. So what about the dog’s under age 1? Well, considering they’re all lumped together in a massive room, barking and yapping and whining, the infections will quickly transmit to those younger pups.
3. Poor care. As said before, there’s poop and piss all over the cages. When the dogs are yapping too much, I witnessed a caretaker slam on one dog’s cage and scream at it in an almost horrifying, demonic fashion.
I could list more reasons but for the mean time I will sum it all up in two words: ANIMAL CRUELTY. This isn’t a shelter. It’s pure abuse and torture.

This SPCA (along with the DELCO SPCA) is now a NO KILL shelter, which we were overjoyed to hear.
We learned they offer discounted veterinary services, which is great for anyone who needs a vet on a budget.
* * * TIP: * * * We also learned they sell discounted flea and tick products, as well as discounted heartworm preventatives. Their prices were a lot lower than our vet’s for Revolution, so we will be taking advantage of this great offer. Thank you, SPCA!!!
The facility is very nice. They look like they’ve had a recent makeover, and the atmosphere (while noisy and a bit overwhelming in that sense), was not a scary depressing experience, as shelters of yore used to be. It is always emotionally difficult to see all the sweet faces needing a home, when you are searching for a pet, but the staff here was attentive, and quick to help narrow down options by the species, breed, age, sex, and type of home you have, so you know who does well with other animals /​children /​etc. That, and searching their available pets ahead of time on
, help the process a lot.
We had a long conversation with Janet in the cattery, who gave us a lot of interesting info on the T&R (trap and release) program for spaying and neutering feral cats, as well as the low down about how the shelter works, and tips for acclimating new cats, to an existing cat family. Having had multiple pets my whole life, I thought I knew a lot, but Janet knew tons more than we did. While I have a lot of pet experience, Janet still had a lot of insight and wisdom to share. We learned a lot from our talk with her. Thank you, Janet.
All in all, we had a very positive experience, and we really appreciated the professionalism and knowledge of the staff at Chesco SPCA.

Bait and switch. My wife and I have to move and unfortunately we could not bring our cat, we called around to a number of places and chester county spca said they would take him. First we did not want him to be put to sleep, we were told that they would rehome our cat. We would arrive in the morning drop him off pay what we were told was 10 dollars and he would go to a foster home. If for any reason they couldn’t shelter him any longer we would be called and have the option to take him back instead of him being put down. We arrived in the morning as instructed but no one was there and all signs said they open in the afternoon. The person we spoke to was not around and no one would confirm or deny that they worked there. The ten dollars was now two hundred and fifty, and the rehoming was now a cage. The lady we talked to told us that she was probably just going to put him down. We took our cat as fast as we could and left. Our cat is now living in a loving home with a friend of the family.