r/rescuecats Nov 28 '24

COMMUNITY ALERT/ AWARENESS ⚠️ BEWARE OF SAVING SAGE IN FLORIDA

In the summer of 2023, I fostered five kittens for Saving Sage in Lauderhill. Two of these kittens, who were beautiful and bright orange, were accepted for transport to New Hampshire by plane. The remaining three kittens, who were gray and more shy, were offered placement at a PetSmart store in Weston.

I found three potential adopters from the local Russian-speaking community, all of whom were qualified and capable of adopting these three kittens. Despite the ideal applications from these families, Michelle Storch Reichler, a representative and one one of the directors at Saving Sage, refused to consider their applications for these specific kittens. Instead, she insisted that the three extremely shy kittens be placed in open cages at PetSmart in Weston. These cages were located below the store's loudspeakers and near the entry door, where shopping carts are slammed constantly by patrons and employees. This environment was highly stressful for the shy kittens, who could have been adopted into quiet homes within the neighborhood where they were fostered in Hollywood, FL., where they already had potential adopters.

They were hyperventilating and drooling when I tried to leave them in that cage. No cat beds or places to seclude themselves.

Despite the suitability of the potential adopters, Michelle stated that it may take WEEKS to approve their applications. Consequently, the three kittens had to endure fear and stress until she found time to approve the perfectly suitable adopters. Additionally, one of Michelle's representatives at Saving Sage contacted all the potential adopters who had applied for these kittens and informed them that the kittens were no longer available, suggesting they chose other kittens from the SS website. This was despite the fact that the potential adopters had already met the kittens at our house and specifically wanted to adopt them.

Before COVID-19, Saving Sage was an unsanitary establishment on the verge of closing. The same individuals who ran this rundown establishment are still in charge.

Please use caution whenever you adopt from them or you decide to foster them. Maybe they are racist against the Russian-speaking community? Idk...

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u/Staartjes 29d ago

How horrible 😢