Bergen County Animal Shelter

I have adopted 3 cats from here (2 together and a 3^rd one later) and it has always been a good experience for me. I also went for the free rabies booster shot and although they were crazy busy and I could tell the staff was a little flustered (admittedly, I got there just before closing) they took care of my cat and were very professional about it (he was not an easy cat to handle). They gave me a ton of free stuff when I adopted the first 2 cats because I took 2 of the more difficult cats home.
If you’re mad about the background check for the adoption, and you’re upset they require rigorous checks for you to volunteer, get over yourself. There are a lot of weirdos out there when it comes to animals, they have to be sure. Follow the rules and don’t be a jerk and you’ll get what you need. Some people are so entitled!

I can only speak of my own experience. We adopted an older cat a few weeks ago that was there for about 4 months. The place was very clean and the staff were relatively nice, albeit it was a bit hectic. The woman that showed us several cats we asked to look at was very patient. They tested and vaccinated our cat for all the appropriate things. Vaccines are rabies and distemper, the top two. They test for everything, including FIV. They neutered him, vaccinated him, and treated him for worms and fleas when they got him. I’d say that’s pretty good considering. That all being said, I’d say the only pitfall is that he clearly has food allergies and nobody picked up on it, not sure how it was missed but it’s being addressed now and he’s a very happy kitty!

This place is so sad. I have been trying to volunteer for years. Always given the same answer… waiting for the state to come in for testing? Don’t even know what that means. I have collected tons of, linens, given donations and, brought treats. Even brought my girlfriend who adopted 2 cats on my word. The staff is nice but all agree… the woman who is in charge is a psychopath!
This is not the fault of any of the animals there so please. ADOPT!

I am afraid I have to agree with the previous comments. They do a very bad job on screening their animals before adoption.
My cat had a violent URI the minute I got him back home, he almost died of it. When I called the shelter the day after, they just told me «you can’t bring him back, he is contagious» and hung up on me… who do they think I am! Of course i won’t bring him back, I just need advices… Their staff is actually very rude… and it is more difficult to go through their screening process than getting a mortgage!
I understand the difficulty of the job and I still donate to them because it is really ythe only one around, and I believe it is a noble cause, but still, they should work on their PR and customer satisfaction!

Came to pick up a volunteer application. Found out there online information is incorrect. FYI Closed on Mondays. The staff was very unfriendly and rude. This makes me sad. How are you suppose to encourage adoption if your attitude stinks. Please look pass the staff behavior and give the animals a real chance. 2 stars because the facility looks nice compared to others. they actually handed me an application… And they have a nice play area outside for the shelter animals.

Here’s the deal:
We’ve adopted two animals from Bergen County Animal Shelter, both which ultimately were nothing but heartbreak. Unlike other animal shelters, this one does hardly anything at all to screen for health, etc before adopting them out.
The first was our dog: we adopted her, loved her, took her to vet care the next day after adoption only to find out that she had REALLY REALLY bad heartworms. We weren’t sure she’d survive, but after thousands in vet care, she did… thankfully. But, the vet said that all shelters should be testing for that and advising people of such conditions before adoption.
The second was a kitten: he immediately was sick with FIP, a feline virus that they also should have tested for. He got it from the shelter, so likely other animals there have it as well. Except, he just died, and now the vet is testing for rabies b/​c it has similar symptoms and guess what? Bergen County Animal Shelter does NOT vaccinate its animals for rabies. So, they can get rabies IN the shelter.
I’d rather just see a shelter put animals to sleep humanely than giving them out to the world in such a poor health and breaking hearts right and left, as well as causing well-​intentioned families to run up thousands in vet care. It’s horrible. I will never, ever go to this shelter again.

I adopted my youngest here about a year and a half ago. They took great care of her before we met!
I’m not certain whether this is a no-​kill shelter, but I believe it is. People there obviously care about animals and understand them.
I couldn’t give them 5 stars because of the ridiculous background check I had to undergo to adopt. It’s not worth getting into details, but I’ve gotten jobs as a professional with significantly less effort (mind you, my little cutie was worth it). They also get overwhelmed quite easily when it’s busy.
TONS OF HEALTHY, ADORABLE ANIMALS ARE ALWAYS AVAILABLE FOR ADOPTION!