Broken Tail Rescue

One of the disadvantages of volunteer-​run foster organizations is that the individuals that prospective adopters may happen upon can be less well informed and less «people-​friendly» (for lack of a better word) than at traditional shelters with professional staff. We went to the Cambridge Petsmart to interact with a specific bonded pair of cats currently housed there, and had an unfortunate interaction with the volunteer on shift that prompted us to pursue adoption elsewhere. The volunteer had no information on the cats beyond what was written online — not a deal-​breaker, but disappointing since the staff at the Boston SPCA and the volunteers at the Melrose Humane Society and at PAWS had all cats’ behavioral preferences and medical history readily available. Nor did the Broken Tail volunteer have any insight into the organization’s process, such as how they move forward when several adoption applications are submitted for the same animals. No biggie, but still.
What actually turned us off was that the volunteer felt her role was to grill us in an aggressive and unpleasant way before we’d even decided that we were interested in pursuing adoption with them. It was like we skipped the first date and jumped straight into the pre-​nup negotiations. Instead of working with us to identify whether we would be a good match for the cats we were looking at, the volunteer seemed to be trying to catch us out in a «gotcha» moment. For example: we explained that we were not looking at any cats with chronic medical issues at this time, because we recently lost a beloved cat after a painful, intensive (and costly) battle with cancer. The volunteer’s response was that that sort of caveat would weaken our adoption application, since it could indicate that we’re not committed enough. Even she realized how offensive that statement was as she was saying it. Even if that was a misrepresentation of Broken Tail’s thinking and approach, we were made to feel defensive and unworthy, and really had no desire to have any further interaction with the organization after that.
Volunteer organizations. I’m sure their volunteers are great with cats, but maybe a little more training on how to interact with humans wouldn’t go amiss.

Very disappointing experience.
No responses to emails. No return calls.
Suggest you go to Angel Memorial for adoptions.
Walk in walk out.

I am so incredibly blessed to have found Broken Tail Rescue and moreover that they chose me to be Houston’s mom. I adopted my ridiculously awesome yellow lab in December of 2010, it has been the best years of my life. Meghann from BTR was exceptional. She emailed me several times with updates and answered a million questions for me. They also had the nicest woman visit my home for an inspection, to make sure everything was a perfect fit for my big guy. Meghann even gave me treats to wrap Houston’s post neuter medication in and additional food. He’s been a super healthy dog with an unforgettable personality. He’s a legend around Cape Cod and Maine. BTR, thank you for the greatest dog ever. We love our rescue, he’s the best part of our family.

I adopted a dog from here who I was told «loves other dogs.» During the first week I had her, she attacked my daughter’s dog twice, the second time causing major damage. I returned the dog to them, and since then have been trying to contact them about the vet bills I had to pay. They will not return my calls, so that leads me to believe they aren’t going to be responsible for their dog that turned out to be other than advertised. And, they don’t list an address, so I can’t go there. I’m screwed for the money, my relationship with my daughter is strained, and they just go on their merry way. If you are going to adopt a pet, go to someplace that has an actual address, so you will have some recourse if something goes wrong.

When we started the process of looking for a new pet, it was an intimidating task. With so many new ways to search for animals in need with the internet and applications, we felt a little out of our league. We hadn’t had a dog since 2001 and my family was finally ready to welcome in a new addition. My mom and I found an adorable terrier mix that we fell in love with. I filled out the application and was contacted the next day. Our dog’s foster mom was so informative and helpful. We could tell she truly cared about our little girl and wanted her to find a new loving home. I can’t say enough good things about our experience with Broken Tail and its fosters. I would highly recommend going this route to find a new family member.

I adopted 2 kittens in June 2012 from Broken Tail Rescue and two years later my cats are awesome and my best friends! I thought that Broken Tail was an easy-​going rescue group and I really had no issues with the adoption process. I appreciated the fact that rather than being in a dirty shelter, these kittens were placed in foster homes. The women at the foster home were SO nice and loving and let us take our time picking from all the kittens, so it was worth the hike out to Worcester.
The cats are spayed and neutered when they are adopted out which seems great, except that these surgeries can really hurt the kittens when done too early. We adopted our kittens at «8 weeks,» however in the following days, at their first vet appointment the vet pointed out that they were certainly not 8 weeks, likely 7 weeks, and we had already had them a few days. A few days after the initial appointment, our kittens became very sick. The vet believes that the kittens had feline distemper, which can be fatal and is very contagious among kittens. We were at the animal hospital every night for almost 2 weeks pumping them with fluids and antibiotics in hopes that they would make it. They did, but we racked up quite the bill. I informed the foster home that my kittens got sick and they should be aware of other kittens getting sick, but I was never told if that was the case or not.

I worked with the volunteers through the Everett PetSmart. I filled out my application and got a call within a half hour! The volunteer (Joyti) described two cats that could be a good fit and we set up a time to visit them in the Everett PetSmart. We met the cats and came back the next day for the adoption. We had a change of heart about the cat we were interested in and the volunteers let us sit in the room with the cats for over an hour while we tried to make a decision. They were all very very kind and helpful and weren’t bothered at all by the fact that we were sitting in there deliberating. We finally decided on a cat and went through the paper work in less than 20 mins. They gave us tips on food, litter, etc. and we even available by email when we had questions after taking her home. It is clear that they care very much about the animals and know their personalities and histories and want to get them into loving homes as soon as possible. We had a wonderful experience with BTR and would absolutely adopt from them again.