Watauga Humane Society - Boone, North Carolina

Emma W.

I LOVE WHS, I found Sheryl Crow (Lola) on their website and two days later went to meet her. I didn’t even need to take her on a walk to know she was meant for me. Lola was abandoned on Oak street and was found and brought to WHS. I am a college student so that was a huge factor in whether I wanted a dog or not. Turns out, I needed Lola in my life and she has been the best dog ever. The fostering process was so easy and a couple weeks later I adopted her. Lola has brought so much joy into my life and I will forever be grateful for WHS for bringing her into my life.

Cynthia S.

Watauga Humane Society was wonderful, I went up there very brokenhearted from losing the love of my life, and found the new love of my life Fedora. They were extremely patient with me as I looked over many mini kittens and they were then ready to close at that time, but still were very courteous and patient with me And I thank God for that.. Fedora was the last visit before I left, and she's perfect

Alice A.

A few days ago my partner and I took home our Rico. This amazing organization takes great care of their animals and ensures an efficient adoption process. They also have discount adoption fee days, which is awesome!

Twila M.

We adopted our sweet girl and she has been such a blessing. I called and emailed several times while I waited for her to become available. The staff was helpful and sweet and took such good care of her.

Marcy T.

My dog was spayed through their low cost spay and neuter clinic. They took really good care of her. She also did very well after her surgery.

Brian P.

***READ THIS BEFORE YOU DECIDE THE ANIMAL RESCUE YOU WANT YOUR MONEY TO SUPPORT-
I had true faith in The Watauga Humane Society. That faith is now shattered. I have been trying to rescue and find a home for two 14 month old puppy brothers, Max and Leo, since November of 2022. It is nearly August of 2023 now and Watauga Humane Society has turned me away and warned me; sorry, they’ve given me the “courtesy” of informing me they will turn me away again. My desperate pleas and telling Ashley I couldn’t even be in my home until I find the boys a place to stay lead her to tell me, “This call is a courtesy and you need to listen to me or I’m ending the call.” And, “I didn’t ask you to spend $17,000 (USD) on them!” Although, the first option on their webpage is a donate button.
In November, a former App State professor and friend of mine who is now teaching at an American university in the Middle East, found two puppies dehydrated and starving on the streets of Doha, Qatar. In the Middle East, dogs are taken to pounds and are killed within a day or two. Unwilling to let that happen but unable to keep them herself, my friend found a foster facility that is the closest thing in Doha to a rescue. The woman at the facility reluctantly agreed to allow the dogs more and more time with her but it is nearly impossible to find a home for mixed breed strays anywhere in the Arab world. I am already caring for three older dogs. Two of them belonged to my father who passed away last summer. But I agreed to adopt Max and Leo since we couldn’t find any other options. I knew it would be a possibility my other dogs wouldn’t accept the brothers. But I believed with all my heart, in that case, our local humane society would take them in and find them a home. I have adopted from them when they were in the old shelter. I took a tiny puppy I found abandoned in the mountains to them in the multi-million dollar facility they have now. I have made contributions of money, crates, dog toys, leashes, etc. My mother donated monthly throughout her entire career at App State. And Max and Leo have had a very unique and difficult journey. So, I always believed, without question, they would help if we needed them. Instead I have been treated without any sympathy, guidance, or concern. And the lack of compassion for the boys has left me crushed. I was completely blindsided with Ashley lecturing me…”This is a business!” A business? Yes perhaps it is a business, but that’s not what the retirees, and working class, and struggling families, and college students, and countless other well intended people believe when we give our precious time and resources to The Watauga Humane Society. We believe we are helping a committed charity to save animals and make the world a better place. My latest dealing with this organization has been a slap in the face and a complete betrayal.
Please continue to help save and care for animals. Please continue to make the world better. But consider doing that through genuinely heartfelt and sincere organizations rather than a cold business in a fancy building. I will update this when the story has an ending. Perhaps then we will all know who we really should invest our resources in.
Follow up-
Rescue dog and end of life sanctuary in Mountain City Tennessee heard Max and Leo’s story and immediately agreed to take the boys and find them loving homes. Melissa and the volunteers and staff at the shelter on Harbin Hill, RD were moved to help Leo and Max find there “happily ever after.”
They do an incredible amount of work and service and they save and find homes for thousands of animals (over 30,000 thus far) with far less resources than the well funded shelters who turned Max and Leo away. If you have a calling to truly help animals in need, I strongly encourage you to give any time and money you can share to Rescue Dog and End of Life Sanctuary. For them it is simple…It is about the animals.
Also, if you have the place and ability to add another sweet soul into your home, please go meet Max and Leo.

Liz M.

I adopted my kitten, Violet, from WHS on May 30th. I absolutely adore her and would not trade her for the world. They do a great job of getting to know applicants before adopting to them, and they do really well in trying to pair them with the right pet. They take great care of these animals before they are adopted.

However, I do have two complaints.

First of all, they do not do holds. I saw Violet online and knew I wanted to go meet her since I had been looking for a Siamese kitten. I went and met Violet on a Tuesday afternoon, and we spent probably close to an hour and a half in the get acquainted room. I fell in love, and had a staff member tell me that she thought this was a perfect match. I had to walk away for about 24 hours to get my addendum signed at my apartment and to prepare my room for her. I walked away that Tuesday afternoon in tears. I just wanted my kitten. If there had been an option to put a deposit down for them to hold her for 24-48 hours or so, I would have done it in a heartbeat. I walked away scared that someone else would adopt her. I'd already filled out an application and been approved to adopt her, so I don't understand why they don't do holds.

Second, regarding spay/neuter. This is included in the adoption fee, and there is a deposit of $100 that you get back once you get your pet spayed/neutered. However, they don't really tell you what's involved in getting them spayed/neutered through them. They tell you that you drop your pet off in the morning, then they take them to Asheville, and you get your pet back about 24 hours later. However, when I took Violet for her first vet appointment, the vet told me that the place the shelter takes them to get spayed/neutered is of low quality. I was told that they do not do pre anesthetic bloodwork (which most vets recommend) and they don't give any pain meds following surgery. Plus, they said that they frequently see pets who have been spayed/neutered through WHS with very poor incisions. Whether or not this is all true (I have not verified), I feel that it would have been responsible for the staff at WHS to inform me of what happens once my cat gets to Asheville, instead of just telling me that she'd be going there. They also don't tell you that it's an option to get your pet spayed/neutered through another vet, and they will refund your deposit as soon as you provide proof of surgery (which I will be doing).

Knowing these things, I still would adopt from WHS again. I just feel that these things could be changed, or at least adopters could be informed. However, I feel that the staff is very friendly and professional, and they know their animals well. The living spaces are well maintained, and they really do their best to make sure the right pet goes to the right home. The adoption fees are also quite reasonable - it was $80 for me to adopt a 3 month old kitten. I love my baby so much and I am so glad that I got to bring her home.

air

We adopted our sweet kitty Miso from here. They had her as Charlene and claimed that she had been abused, was missing her front teeth, and allergic to chicken. We can’t prove the first one but the last two claims are false and have been proven by our vet. However, they claimed her left ear was torn due to abuse but that is a common sign of spaying in cats. She isn’t marked elsewhere but confirmed spayed which this place says they had done. When we adopted her she was skin and bones and we were told she had been there for about six months. We got her, immediately took her to the vet and had her checked out, changed her diet, and within about two weeks she was already looking much healthier. She is a very friendly and playful girl (not common in abused cats). Miso also has some cardiovascular issues that the shelter either wasn’t aware of or did not inform us of. It is kind of a place to take in animals that need a home but it is NOT okay to treat them the way that it appears our sweet baby was.
first picture -> the day we got her (late January)
second picture -> late June