Animal House Cat Rescue and Adoption Center

First off, let me give the usual disclaimer: I do not work at Animal House. I never have. In February 2014 I adopted a 13 year old problem child from that shelter. I hope my experience and my review will serve as a rebuttal to that questionable rant that R.O. posted here.
Cherub belonged to a senior lady who went into a nursing home. As I understand it, Cherub was grossly overweight, had a fatty tumor underneath her chin and was absolutely furious and terrified. She would not have lasted a hot second at the Humane Society or the Animal Protective Association. They would have put her down immediately. Despite this Animal House took her in and calmed her down. They made sure that she got the surgery she needed and helped her lose weight. Even though she was defensive towards them for a time they did not declaw her. Once they realized she hated being in those open rooms with the other cats (in the back) she was given a place in the lobby. I saw her photo online one day and decided to check her out.
I visited her three times before I made the final decision to adopt. She seemed aloof towards me at first but then I realized she was actually waiting for her former owner to show up. Cherub couldn’t understand why her human had left her. I touched her, patted her, skritched her underneath her chin and behind her ears. The staff doted on her and she would frequently walk around the lobby like a queen.
Now here’s where I take issue with R.O.‘s review. Yes, the door was locked. So what? Yes, I was interviewed by the adoption counselor and I filled out an application. Again, so what? It stands to reason that the shelter would investigate potential adopters. I have no problem with that. And as far as home visits? That didn’t happen until the day the adoption counselor brought Cherub home. I wouldn’t have minded a home visit before then. With all the kooks and perverts out here it makes sense that they would check people out when they come in. My question is, why did R.O. have such a problem with that?
I was approached by various cats while I was there. They would reach out and tap me on my shoulder or rub up against me, and I turned around and played with them. At no time did the staff ever tell me «Don’t touch.» I wasn’t there the day R.O. And her child came to visit, but it seems to me that if her child was as excited as she claimed, then possibly the child would have been too rough with the cat or kitten. Cats do scratch. And speaking of which, why was R.O. upset that Animal House has a no-​declawing policy? Would anyone out here want to have their fingernails pulled out? I don’t think so. De-​clawing causes more problems than it solves, and I personally believe that practice is done by lazy cat owners who can’t be bothered to clip nails, teach the cat not to claw up the furniture and provide scratching posts for their felines. If the procedure isn’t done correctly and the stub is left inside the nail will grow back. It’s a good thing that Animal House didn’t allow that woman to adopt a cat or a kitten.
Cherub (now Samirah) has been with me for nearly two years now. She’s beautiful. You folks who passed her over because of her age missed out on a really sweet cat.
I didn’t mean to make this review as long as War and Peace, but you get the idea. As Shakespeare once said, «the lady doth protest too much.» Yeah, I’m looking at YOU, R.O.

My girlfriend and I decided to adopt 2 cats for our new life in St. Louis and we came in to explore the idea of being cat owners. The volunteers and employees there were kind and helpful, and amazingly knowledgeable about every cat there. Suffice it to say after 2 visits, we narrowed down our 2 awesome new additions to our lives and the whole process was great. The facilities are clean, and orderly. The cats have I think 8 large playrooms where 8 – 10 cats are put into to socialize and have room to play. It’s a no kill shelter and the amount of care given towards these cats is commendable. Please stop in here if you ever are in the search for a new cat to add to your family

OMG! I love this place! I came here today to donate some things that I bought for a feral kitten in my neighborhood. Like other reviews have stated, if you live in a place that doesn’t allow cats, you can come here & volunteer. Once I went inside, I was instantly transported to a place of peace & calmness. Parking can be a bit of a hassle. You can only back out. There is no place to go forward & into 59^th street. Watch out for the big rocks near the sidewalk. My car has a mediumish scratch from that huge rock as I backed out. Ouch! But worth it to see one of my fave animals (the kitty).

Since my last review I have made it my personal project to volunteer at least one lunch-​hour a week at the Animal House Fund socializing cats. I cannot express fully how much I appreciate the work being done here. Brandyn Jones and the others who work here seem tireless in both their patience and enthusiasm for tending to the cats and kittens in their care!
There are many single and paired cats sharing cages here but one the things I love most about this place is that they have several very large and well-​constructed cages that hold groups of up to 10 cats each. This gives those cats much more room to move around and more cats to interact with, which again serves to make them more adoptable to homes where other cats are already present. It is a total pleasure to spend time in those cages, playing with and petting these lovely little creatures!
Sometimes I feel a little guilty because hey, it seems like all I’m doing is coming in and playing with cats for 45 minutes or so. I’d almost pay THEM for the privilege! But they have told me time and time again how much they appreciate the volunteers who do this. The more socialized the cats are, the more adoptable they are, and really it is an endless effort to give them all the attention they need.
If you’re looking for volunteer activities (especially if you’re a cat-​lover!) the Animal House Fund is definitely a place you need to check out!

This is a great, great thing and I wish Animal House all the success in the world. I visited for their open house and got teary-​eyed over the level of dedication I saw from the staff there that night.
Cats get such a bad reputation for being aloof, unfriendly, etc. and I encourage anyone who «hates» cats to visit here some day and listen to the different stories about what these animals have been through and observe their unique personalities. I’m glad this place exists. The city’s cats need it!

Unilocal Can Haz Kittehs?
It’s no secret that I love feline creatures — and Animal House recently converted a building downtown on Clark street into a cats only shelter. HEAVEN!
I used to volunteer at the Gasconade shelter — where Animal Care & Control (i.e., «the pound») takes its strays. It was supposed to be a temporary fix until the City of St. Louis built a new shelter… and that was over 60 years ago. Animal House Fund is a private group who’s raising money to build a more humane/​up-​to-​date facility. In the meantime, the Gasconade shelter is a sad, sad place…
So imagine my sheer joy to find out that AHF took all of the cats out of Gasconade and moved them to the 2801 Clark in Midtown. Went on a tour last week and the kitties have a MUCH better setup. The volunteers make sure that the cats get socialized and have clean surroundings. Granted, the cats are in cages, but it’s probably not safe or sanitary to have 50+ cats roaming around in a 2,500 square foot building. There’s even a «maternity ward» for mommy cats and their babies… so cute it hurts!
My only complaint is that I leave here contemplating the adoption of yet another cat in my menagerie (don’t worry, I only have two and am not allowed to get any more). But that doesn’t mean that I can’t visit and/​or volunteer on occasion.
For those of you who love cats but can’t take ‘em home (either because you have too many already or live with someone who’s allergic), this is a FAB place to donate your time.

Animal House is an amazing organization using unique ways to raise money to build an animal shelter that is also environmentally friendly. I have been to several of the events that are held and they do well at keeping supporters involved and informed. If you are interested in volunteering you can contact the organization here: