Rescue Scam Alerts
A community-built guide to help adopters, donors, and animal lovers stay safe.
Rescue should be a safe path—for you and for the animals depending on us.
This page gathers verified information about rescue organizations that raise serious concerns.
It exists to help our community make informed, compassionate choices as we work toward a world where animals receive the care, honesty, and protection they deserve.
No verifiable location or contact information
No adoption process, screening, or contract
Refusal to provide vetting records, intake details, or medical updates
Patterns of neglect, money requests without transparency
Stock photos, repeated posts across multiple fake pages
Animals shown in distress, recycled content, or suspicious urgency
No registered nonprofit status (optional but helpful)
Reports from adopters, volunteers, or other rescues
These patterns are red flags, not legal determinations. Each listing is reviewed before being added to our list.
How to Recognize a Scam Rescue
Learn More: Safe Ways to Support Real Rescues
Supporting animals should feel safe and hopeful. The more we understand how real rescues operate—transparency, veterinary care, intake processes, communication—the easier it becomes to donate confidently and avoid pages that feel unclear or misleading. These resources offer gentle education and practical steps to help you make informed decisions.
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Learn essential steps to verify shelters: red flags, nonprofit credentials, ethical care—secure your donation. Read
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Protect your heart—and your wallet. Learn how to identify fake rescue accounts and support real nonprofits doing life-saving work. Read
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From solo fosters to grassroots sanctuaries, meet the quiet heroes shaping a more compassionate future. Read
Download: Before You Donate – A Quick Rescue Safety Checklist (PDF)
New Resource in Progress: Building Trust as a Rescue. Starting a rescue is hard. We’re creating a gentle, practical guide to help rescues understand what supporters look for, how to share information clearly, and how trust grows over time.
Coming soon.
Accuracy, Fairness & Rescue Verification
This page is a community-supported resource. Some organizations listed here may be genuine rescues that simply lack clear public information, strong communication, or necessary documentation. If your rescue appears on this list and you would like to provide verification, updated records, or clarity, you are welcome to contact us.
We review all information with respect and will gladly update or remove entries once transparency is confirmed. Our goal is protection, not punishment—ensuring safer outcomes for animals, adopters, and supporters.
Looking for Trusted Organizations?
Explore the Rescues & Nonprofits Directory to discover legitimate, transparent organizations doing real, lifesaving work.