Animal Rescue League of Boston

You do not want to adopt here… the girl at the front desk was rude… they would not let me take the dog out for a walk… Filled out an application form. They said they had other applicants and would call me if I was selected. So noone talked to me or met me they could have cared less. Called a couple of days later and I still could not stop by to take the puppy out for a walk… again they said if I was picked I would get a call. No such luck the dog is not posted but it must have been adopted. I think they already had someone in mind and just feed me a line of bull. Plus $ 400 really?

I am thoroughly impressed with the adoption wing of this shelter! I have been a lifelong cat owner and have always gotten my cats at shelters (shelter cats make the best pets!), but my experience here was particularly enjoyable.
I was able to visit the available cats and read their bios, and then once I had found one I wanted to spend some time with they brought me into a private room to get to know her. Also, they let me know that her previous owner had mentioned some bad behavior, but that they hadn’t noticed it at the shelter. (I felt like some other shelters I visited were less than forthright about past kitty indiscretions.)
The staff really seemed to care about finding the right kitty-​person match rather than just getting cats adopted quickly.
Bonus: They will provide free nail trimming for any cat adopted through them.

I volunteered here petting cats (cat socialization) until I became swamped with classes. I’m planning to return. The staff are great, and they have great animals with lots of volunteers petting them and walking them. It takes a bit of a commitment and training, but the cat or dog volunteering is worthwhile. You can sign up on their website. They list their animals on petfinder, check them out. They also have a vet clinic next door to the shelter. The best part is, it’s basically downtown, almost. You can walk there from the Arlington T stop. Check it out. They have rabbits and rats and hamsters, too.

My Yorkie, Gidget passed away 5÷11÷12 and we brought her to ARLB for cremation. The staff person was pretty nice but I fell apart when she pulled out a black garbage bag to put Gidget into (wish she would have done that in the back room!) –1star. They put me into contact with an animal loss counselor named Jane N. (not posting her last name for privacy) who is WONDERFUL! It takes about a week for turnaround on the cremation process and they highly prefer appointments. There’s no easy way to deal with such a profound loss of a beloved pet and my heart is still feeling tormented, but these people are kind and affordable. They also have burial grounds for those interested in that.

I love this place.
My boyfriend and I adopted our first kittens from here back in November 2010, fairly recently. The staff was very helpful to us in making our decision. They let us take the kittens to play with them in a room. They answered all of our questions with patience, intelligence, and diligence. It was a wonderful experience.
We went in there wanting to adopt one cat. We ended up getting two. They were in a cage together and the placard said that they have «been together their whole lives and would like to come home together» so that’s what we did. Yeah I know we are softies! We love our kids (kitties) and couldn’t imagine our lives without them!
We came back here in April 2011, five whole months since we adopted our kids. We came back with a whole bunch of donations, some kitten food, KMF (kitten milk formula), nipples and bottles for their foster program, some toys for the dogs there, and some other stuff. I was very surprised when one of the staff recognized me and my boyfriend. We weren’t expecting to even be remembered (since it’s been awhile and I’m sure lots of people come in and out of that place). But I guess that is just a testament to how awesome this place is.
I am definitely coming back here. I’ll be back in a month or so to drop of more donations and for a health check up and rabies vaccinations for my children. In the near future I would like to adopt a dog and there is no doubt in my mind where I will adopt from.