Oregon Humane Society

One thing I reeeeeeeeeally, really enjoy about OHS is that they have enough volunteers/​staff so that you don’t feel like you’re being snubbed, etc. I know it’s difficult for animals shelters to take care of animals AND try to provide a friendly and happy environment to potential adopters when they’re stretched thin… So I try not to rag on shelters that are doing the best they can. OHS is a big enough shelter where you won’t feel that, though. It’s a big plus.
Continuing with the staff, when we adopted our cat from here a few years ago, we had a lovely time with all of them – the person we paid our cat’s fees to, the lady who helped us interact with the cats, etc. I’m sure it’s the same when adopting other animals besides their cats, but I can’t say I’ve personally experienced it.
The facility is great too – many different rooms/​areas for different animals’ needs, it’s clean, and the parking doesn’t feel like a city nightmare. They also encourage (require?) some training classes for some of their dogs, and animals with special needs come with vet consultations. Oh, and they have a little pet store in the facility!
I also love that they are involved with community events every so often, and that they do promotions. When we adopted our cat, it was a two-​for-​one. We didn’t find a good second match, but we appreciated it anyway.
I like seeing their updates on social media on special cases, too.

I am not a local of Portland, but I do love frequenting my local Humane Society and so when on a trip to Portland with my boyfriend and the husky pup in tow, we decided to drop by. The space is well organized (cats, dogs, small animals), clean (everything is sparkly and no strange smells), quite expansive (seemingly never ending cats, kittens, and doggies), and the people working there are very knowledgeable and friendly (a woman by the pet store came and talked to us for 15 minutes, as we told her about our pup and asked for park recommendations).
There was a particular kitty I was interested in, but it didn’t make sense to adopt in Portland and then road trip down with her to California where I live.
Anyways, keep up the great work OHS!

SO many animals to look at. Wish I could take all of them home.

Found the perfect dog for me at the Oregon Humane Society in June. Fantastic, caring and animal-​passionate staff made the adoption quick and easy and I was headed home with my McNab Collie in no-​time! Prices. for adopting at very fair, considering all that goes into every animal they have up for adoption. If I ever have the space for another pet I’ll for sure come here.
«A furry soul-​mate for every Oregonian»

It’s a shame they spent so much money on a fancy facility. The money should have been spent on the animals. There are always animals who need help. Instead, money is spent on a fancy building — the animals don’t care about that!
I’d suggest donating to a shelter that puts the animals’ care over the humans’ comfort.
The OHS claims to have a save rate of 98%. However, it’s important to note that they only accept animals they think are adoptable. Unlike public shelters, the OHS is free to turn away any animal it wants to.

I just adopted a cat here and I love her so much! I wish they would tell us, upon arrival, it will take several hours. I was there over 3 hours all the while several workers were wandering around on their cell phones.

They get a star because the facilities look adequate. Their customer service however is incredibly lacking. First of all, you cannot put an animal on hold over the phone… so you basically have to drop everything you’re doing and drive over if you want any chance of meeting an animal you see on their website & could possibly be interested in. While I understand that this may help to prevent people from putting holds on animals they do not intend to adopt, there are other ways of doing this (i.e., taking credit card info. over the phone for a hold).
And then there was our experience with them yesterday… it went like this:
We found a kitten we met & liked at around 10:30am but she had already been put on hold. The workers said we could put a second hold on her in case the people didn’t show up by 2pm (which was when their 24hr hold was up). We did, gave our information, put $ 15 down, and decided to wait in the Portland area because we didn’t want to waste gas driving back to & from Hillsboro. The worker also said to either check the website at 2:15 to see if the cat was still there or to call. At 2:30 we checked the website & she was still there. We also tried to call just to make sure & to let them know we were on our way but they did not answer.
We arrived excited & expecting to pick up our new kitten… but that didn’t happen. Turns out there was another hold on her before ours that they had found after we left. They explained that these people had 24hrs to pick up the kitten otherwise we would be contacted. That wouldn’t do as we worked the entire weekend & knew the second hold would not pass her up. We politely asked for our money back since we were not fully informed of the circumstances which they obliged but at no point did they offer an apology for the trouble or wasting our time. They could’ve called us after they found the second hold but they did not. They also could’ve offered some help in finding another similar kitten should they get one in, but they did not. We will be adopting elsewhere.

Sorry to tell you this, but my new puppy Sansa is the best & brightest … and cutest & cuddliest … and craziest and bitiest dog evah.
Thank you Oregon Humane Society.
Sansa is her name and she is a Shepherd Lab mix of joy and terror. Love her. Besides furniture, carpet, clothing, and hands without bite marks, rips, and tears are over-​rated, right?
Getting a puppy is competitive at OHS. My best tip is to go often and go early in the day because by the time you get an email announcing a cute pup, he’ll be adopted (or have a hold placed) long before you get there. We started looking for a puppy to adopt after moving to the area. Six months and a dozen visits later plus several second/​third puppy holds, we finally got the best, brightest, cutest, and cuddliest dog ever.
We completed the Oregon Humane Society Puppy Training class held over 7 weeks in the evening. Sansa got her graduation certificate although to be honest I think it was more a certificate of attendance and good luck. She definitely needs a remedial class.
If you get a cat, bunny, or dog from the Oregon Humane Society, also check out the small store for some really good deals. We got an excellent starter package for the puppy for about $ 80 which included a cage, toys, leash/​collar, food, bowls, and treats. Everything you need to make it through the first day with your little puppy of joy.
After that, plan several return visits to learn how to train your own best, brightest, cutest, and cuddliest new member of the family.

We recently adopted our third pet from OHS (endpetlessness amiright?)
We have gotten two dogs and just got a new cat.
The volunteer who helped us was extremely helpful and friendly. We knew we were looking for a cat comfortable with dogs, so read all the signs. There were two that indicated they were cool with the hounds. The volunteer was very upfront and let us know one of them had some issues and needed some special attention — probably more than we could bite off right now.
We ended up with the other cat (a silver tabby that got dumped at some ones property) and named him Sterling. He is awesome, gets along great with the dog and we are happy to have him join our family.
I think they do a super job at this organization and would love it if everyone got their animals from the Humane Society.

I just adopted a sweet little kitten from here! Her name is Lottie and she’s an absolute doll.
The adoption process was really simple. I’ve had some precious experience at a humane society in California, but nothing was as easy as this place!
I roamed around a bit, found a couple of cats that I was interested in and then was given a buzzer and waited for a kind volunteer to bring me some of the cats/​kittens to get a feel for their personalities. I totally fell in love with little Lottie.
The rest of the adoption was easy, but the gal who helped me sign the forms didn’t seem to be as excited or enthused by the whole ordeal as I did. She went through the information very quickly, and I left realizing that I had no idea what kind of food she had been eating or if they had any vet recommendations. (I checked on the form that I would like a recommendation).
So far so good though, I’ve been checking out Unilocal for vets in my area so cross your fingers for us!

I was there last Wednesday ⁷⁄₁₅ with my Grandparents and we dealt with one staff member who was incredibly unpleasant. She was tall and thin, probably in her 40’s and had short brown hair.
When we asked questions about the dog or about the breed the staff member was condescending, rude and snarky to both myself and my Grandparents. While my Grandfather was visiting with a Dog my Grandmother and I walked out of the room and went to the car because we didn’t want to deal with the Staff Members crappy attitude anymore.
My Grandparents ended up going back there over the weekend and adopted a dog they bonded with and said that the lady who was a «real witch» (according to my Grandfather) was not there.

Adopted a beautiful kitty from this shelter. We looked at another beautiful one and the shelter was very upfront and informed us she had serious medical problems. We weren’t ready to tackle that responsibility and really appreciated the honesty. Overall great adoption process. I have now had Gracie, aka, doc for three months. I really couldn’t be happier with how our adoption turned out. Great staff, very compassionate. And lots of loving fluff balls to adopt.

It was easy to surrender my cat. Woo whoo!
The guy let me use lexis to pick my cat up. Who does that? Pure awesomeness

I really love the Oregon Humane Society. I’ve visited a couple times, and the last time I was there, I adopted a small black cat and named her Emily.
The adoption process was smooth, and I felt comfortable throughout the experience. The volunteers are awesome, and they really helped me pick out the right cat.
The cat areas where they house them were wonderful, and I had never seen so many kitties simply laying about calmly together before! The shelter was fairly busy so I had to wait a bit after I filled out my form, but the wait wasn’t bad. They have a little shop where you can buy some accessories for your new rescue pet!
I just love what they do here, the attention that the animals get from the volunteers, and how clean this shelter is.
I recommend anyone looking for a furry family member to visit OHS!

Amazing. Absolutely amazing.
After a horrible debacle in Sacramento where they shipped the dog I was adopting up to the Oregon Human Society, my husband was absolutely gutted that he was losing his dog due to an error at the Sacramento City Shelter. I called and spoke with Jennifer at Second Chance after receiving an apathetic and dismissive response from Sac. She told me that Lee, our misplaced pup, was on route to Portland and would be available for adoption as soon as he was neutered which only gave us two days to get up there, a nearly impossible task given our distance and our work situation.
She spoke with her manager who allowed a special extension for the adoption of our little Lee to give us enough time to drive up to Portland as the airfare (with the pet fee) was too steep for a last minute flight. Jennifer filled out most of the adoption forms over the phone and placed up multiple holds on him so he would not be placed up for adoption before we got there by requiring her authorization in order for Lee’s adoption to be allowed. The adoption fee for Lee based on his age and breed was $ 400 and I asked if there was any way a discount could be applied to the adoption based on the circumstances even though I knew that adoption fee was firm. Never hurts to ask. Much to my surprise, a discounted adoption was allowed. What? We were going to drive up and adopt Lee no matter what but we were so grateful that the trip wouldn’t cost nearly as much as we had thought. After a full day on the road, we finally arrived in Portland with our dogs in tow (I am not keen on boarding my pups) and walk into the gorgeously designed and impeccably clean facility. When I walked up to the desk, all of the paperwork for Lee’s adoption was ready and I was finally able to breathe easy again. They gave me an electric pager like those given out at restaurants and I went to grab a seat.
There were a lot of people waiting to adopt/​view animals so there was a bit of a wait so I wandered around the gift shop and picked up an incredibly handy poop bag dispenser that included a torch on the end to help you out if you walk your dog at night. Finally my pager lights up and a staffer goes back to bring Lee out front; as he turns the corner, Lee starts to jump out of his arms and I knew that this entire ordeal was more than worth it– he remembered me! I went back and finished up all of the paperwork and the staffer walked me through all of the health issues that he had/​may have contracted while at both shelters– he ended up getting kennel cough– along with the warning signs of other shelter specific ailments. He then went through all of the adoption perks– microchip and free trial of Home Again, free original vet visit (although it was specific to Portland, our vet still accepted it), free trial of pet insurance, and access to their training classes and behavioralist. I finished up the paperwork, paid for the adoption and poo bag dispenser at the gift shop and the staffer carried Lee out to our car where my husband was waiting in anticipation. After ten minutes of hugs in the car, we started our journey back to California with Lee snuggled up in my husband’s arms for the entirety of the trip.
Jennifer at the Second Chance Program brought so much joy to my family and helped reunite Lee with his human. Adopting Lee was an intense roller coaster of emotion and we are eternally grateful to Jennifer who was always available for my never ending questions during the process and who went above and beyond her duties at the OHS to bring us back to Lee. She is an amazing human being and truly is a guardian for the animals that pass through OHS.

This is a SICK and TWISTED organization.
We adopted a 5 year old dog who they grossly misrepresented both in her physical abilities as well as her health.
When we were considering adopting her, we said very specifically «is this a dog who can hike» and the rep said a very enthusiastic YES. He said the only problem with her was that she had a little arthritis in her back and that she would not do stairs. We asked if we could walk her down their path and they refused, only allowing us to see her in the back parking lot and therefore not see how far she could really walk. She also had no problem with stairs. We had a decision between her and a Kelpie and chose her because of her sweet personality since he said both were dogs who’d be great for hikes. OHS rep also said that they didn’t have her vaccinated for rabies because «there’s not a big bat problem in Oregon».
By the way, at no time did they do anything to vet our application — we had her in and out of there within an hour and only that long because they were busy. Never did they check our house, nothing. (Compare this to the Pixie Project who has a 4 page, incredibly thorough application and really seem to «get» the matchmaking process.
So we take her home. On the good side, she has NO problem with stairs. No barking, digging, chewing, is housetrained, etc. And NO problem with stairs. First vet visit cost $ 120 because she had horribly infected ears (bacterial & yeast) that OHS did not tell us about. The vet also confirmed that OHS «vet team» is vet STUDENTS, not real vets, and that our dog was a healthy 80lbs, not an «overweight» 92 lbs like the rep at OHS had said. She also said that rabies is a REQUIRED vaccination, and I confirmed that Multnomah County requires this proof for the license. So they sent us home with a dog who did NOT have all her required shots. But the hardest part was watching this dog who is obviously not comfortable with long walks, and tires easily. And our «walks» were not long — just around the neighborhood. Having been a dog owner of a rescue dog who was both stubborn and eventually developed hip issues, I know when a dog is too tired to walk, and not just being obstinate.
After a week and a half of this, my husband wondered, will she fit our active lifestyle? It was tremendously emotional, as he and I had both become very attached to her and she is incredibly happy with us.
So we thought maybe the best thing to do is to look to our community for a better fit, and put some feelers out. We also reached out to both OHS and Pixie Project asking for counsel and to see if perhaps we could foster her until a family that was possibly a better fit, because we love this dog and most importantly did NOT want to subject her to the horrible stress of the shelter life.
Rather than being empathetic, we got horribly rude emails from Chase Patterson, their «customer care manager» whose sole objective was to demand we return her and FALSELY claim that our contract required this (NOT TRUE:(not true: it says we have to either NOTIFY them if we rehome her OR we can bring her back). He also claimed they told us everything about her which was a huge lie — the vet had all of the records & they had bad or no info, including a bad tooth that needed x-​rays!
After letting him know we hadn’t made our decision, he continued to demand we bring her back, that she «was important to the staff» — excuse me but if your goal is to find the right fit, you should matchmake PROPERLY & not scoot dogs out of there as quickly as you can while lying about their health & abilities!
I asked him to please not continue to call as we had a lot of thinking to do & were really torn & I’d let him know within 24 hours.
By the way, at no time did he show sympathy or try to help us in keeping her. He refused to take accountability for their misleading communications (including the BS ad which lied about her abilities). OHS focused instead on trying to making us as recent adopters feel like bad people.
After my husband and I talked for hours about this, and consulted with friends who adopted, and discussing our starting a family in the next few months, we decided we’d keep her and make the adjustments needed. I sent a note to Chase to let him know we decided to keep her.
Instead of congratulating us, he said he put us on the «do not adopt» list and he’d tell all of the shelters around town to not adopt out to us! Blacklisting because we decided to KEEP the dog instead of return her? Sick, twisted, unprofessional, unethical.
We’ve rescued dogs for 20 years and have never been in a situation where we’d considered rehoming or returning a dog. We were in tears just considering it. To take advantage of a couple actually reaching out when we didn’t have to, refusing to be accountable, then blacklisting? Unforgivable.
After volunteering & donating to OHS, I now find them a reprehensible organization and urge people to adopt elsewhere.

Now that we have adopted the love of our lives, a female American shelter dog that is now 2 ½ from the humane society when she was a 4 moth old puppy. She was the beginning of creating our new dog family. She is the most amazing and sweetest girl!, but we have since taken several obedience classes with them because we now have 4 dogs!
They are my favorite dog training facility for all our dogs! We have learned so much. The instructors are awesome, helpful and kind. They work with everybody and really want the dogs to learn how to socialize in a healthy and safe manner. we have loved every class we have taken. All of our young dogs are very obedient because we learned so much from all the different classes we have taken. If we get another one (that won’t happen) They are going there!
They also offer lots offer free one day work shops (no dogs) which has been ever so helpful when working with our numerous foster dogs. In addition they have free puppy romp classes!

My home felt empty after the passing of my Mario. My home needed feline energy.
It was late October, 2013. I fetched my pal Oscar B. and my cat carrier and together we headed to the Oregon Humane Society. I could just feel it; I was going to find my new fur baby.
The Oregon Humane Society is a beautiful building. The kitties are housed in roomy and bright rooms as well as some individually in large cages.
I was searching for someone very different from my Mario. I was looking for a little girl kitty and for some reason I was enamored by the thought of having an all black kitty as I had never had a kitty like that before. I also wanted her to be friendly and a «talker.»
There were so many beautiful kitties. I did see four lovely black kitties and I met them all. One was a little terror that was just too kittenish. The next little one was extremely skittish and shy. When I met little Mousavie, she jumped right up on my lap and meowed at me. I knew she was the one. Thanks to the volunteer assisting me with bringing the kitties into the «get acquainted» room for me, it was really that easy.
I wish I could say the paperwork aspect of the adoption process was as seamless. It took almost an hour just to be called into the room to do the adoption paperwork. Still, I would do it all again. Included in the adoption paperwork is a certificate free follow-​up vet visit at the vet that you choose, initial vaccinations, and a microchip.
After I brought her home, my little girl hid under my bed for about 4 hours before she poked her head out and decided she would make herself at home. Now she is known as Little Mimosa… because of her big yellow eyes.
2014 — Review # 48

I seriously love this place. Can I just put a hammock up in the kennels and live here?
They have a great volunteer program and extensive classes for all kinds of creatures. Free classes are also available to the public.
They have primarily «owner surrendered» pets, but they have a Second Chance program, which allows animals another chance at getting adopted, primarily from shelters/​humane societies that don’t have as many resources or the right demographics. Portland is pet-​centric and very dog friendly, so they adopted out 99% of their dogs in 2013. They’re the 3^rd oldest Humane Society in the country, but definitely up there with being modern and tech-​savvy. One thing most places don’t have is a surgery viewing area. You can view surgeries (mainly spay and neuter). They really do care about educating the public.
I, like most people, am a dog person. I like dogs more than people, and I’m not ashamed to admit it. I talk to them in my dorky baby voice. I just can’t help it. Their kennels are amazing, right down to their security and waste disposal systems.
As a volunteer, I’m super excited to work with all of the animals that call OHS home for a short while, but I fear that I’ll become the crazy dog lady. There’s not a bad pup in this place. I’m sure I’ll be posting pictures like a madwoman. It’s incredibly therapeutic coming here — and it’s free! I feel so good about OHS based on their practices, their staff, and their outreach.
If you can, sponsor an animal, donate to OHS on your taxes, volunteer your time.
Their adoption fees are so low and don’t cover the cost to care for the majority of these animals.

Have you been here???
You MUST go!!!
It’s crazy far from where I live, but was SO worth the drive. It just makes me LOVE Oregon SO much more.
I’ve got this crazy desire to have a dog. The cat is seriously distraught with this idea. So, I haven’t committed fully to getting one, just playing with the idea.
I visited their website and found lots of dogs. A couple looked pretty interesting. But, just like with online dating I was a little leery of internet photos. I knew I had to make the 25 minute drive out there.
The building is a giant compound on NE Columbia Boulevard. It’s über clean and shiny inside and out. No doggy poopy pee smell hitting you in the face. The greeters at the front desk were very friendly and helpful. I got there only 30minutes before closing, which gave me only enough time to check out the dog area. If given more time, I would spend the whole day here. I love Critters.
Each dog has it’s own clean spacious enclosure. They all wear attractive collars AND tags. SO adorable. And just as I thought, the internet photo didn’t clearly represent the dog I met in person. In my short visit I was able to see all the dogs and chit chat with the front desk greeters. I noticed they have a very large cat adoption area and a small area for caged critters. There is also a super cute little retail store. There is a lot more to the compound, but this is all I got to quickly gander at.
I am so happy animals have a place like this to care for them and find loving homes.
I had done some reading online before I had drove out there. The Oregon Humane Society doesn’t get a dime of government money. It is COMPLETELY funded on donations and adoption fees. There are many volunteer opportunities. I signed up to volunteer. Maybe that will dull my desire for a dog of my own.
I could go on and on.
End Petlessness and Find Your Furry Soulmate.
DONATE.