I know Francisvale well. When I was the program manager for Pals for Life (a pet therapy non-profit) we kept our rabbit Velvet there. Since I had to feed Velvet I was there most every day. It's located in a beautiful setting with their own version of Angel's Rest surrounding it. Thank you for bringing Jasime to Best Friends, she will love it there! I'll be out there in just about a week, so I'll have to find out where she is and go visit her.

Jasmine has been adopted already - she went to her forever home this last August!

Francisvale Discriminatory to Cancer Survivor.

A very good friend and her husband (Sharon and Ray) applied to adopt Sherman, an adorable Beagle mix, from Francisvale, but they were summarily denied.

Although Sharon and Ray sat through, and cooperated with, Francisvale's various interviews, and provided all the required paperwork, including veterinary receipts for their previous pets, they were denied the adoption of Sherman. Not just denied, but told they didn't qualify to adopt any of Francisvale's pets. Why? Because Ray mentioned that he had had (past tense) cancer. He is a cancer survivor.

Whomever at Francisvale made the decision to exclude my friends as possible adopters did so, not because they are unfit to care for Sherman or any other pet, but rather because of Ray's medical history.

Actually, Francisvale denied Sharon, the primary applicant for Sherman, because her husband had had cancer. Ray mentioned it during one of their interviews. He was telling them how much he loved their previous pets and how he misses playing with and caring for them now that they were gone. Their latest pet, a Golden which passed on about a year ago, lived into its early teens. Sharon still has pictures of the dog on her desk at work.

Ray told Francisvale how his life changed when he was diagnosed with cancer. He told them that he wanted to get another dog, but decided to postpone an adoption until he went through his cancer treatment and beat the disease.

Sharon and Ray know what commitment is when it comes to raising and caring for pets. Sharon and Ray produced veterinary bills for their previous pets. As proudly as parents show photos of their children, Sharon and Ray showed photos of their previous pets to Francisvale staff.

I hope that Francisvale does something good for the animals they take in, because I know that Sharon and Ray would have been excellent companions for Sherman.

But, this isn't a story about somebody who wanted to adopt a pet, but lost out to another applicant. It's a story about the callous, and possibly even discriminatory, treatment Francisvale management extended to Sharon and Ray. According to Francisvale management, Sharon and Ray don't qualify to adopt any of Francisvale's pets, because of Ray's recent medical history.

I know that Sharon and Ray will find another pet to adopt and they'll make fantastic companions for that animal.

Gomez-

Why grind your personal axe here. This story reflects the devotion and comittment of the Francisvale staff, board and volunteers.

Besmirching Francisvale does nothing to facilitate future adoptions...assuming you have the animals best interest in mind.

There are, after all, a plethora of "kill"shelters here in the Delaware Valley that are not as discerning of potential adopters.

I am sure you and your friends would prefer the "high road" as apposed to the "rainbow bridge" for their next selected pet.

Bless you in your choice,

Gwen Atlee

I assume "Gwen" is one of the ladies who transported Jasmine to Utah. It was very kind of you to facilitate a happy ending for Jasmine. Therefore, I find your response here to be very strange at best.

Do you advocate refusing adoptions to anyone who has had cancer?

The refusal of adoption because someone had any serious illness at one time is not "discerning," it is just blatant discrimination. And it was a disservice, not only to the person who wants to adopt, but also to the 4-legged animal waiting to be adopted, both of whom needed a friend...needed each other.

The dictionary definition of care/caring does not limit that attention to either human or animal. Truly caring encompasses ALL of God's creatures. Humans are supposed to be the most compassionate of those creatures. I do not see that in this situation.

I, for one, wish to apologize for my species to the couple, wish them much luck in finding more caring humans, and the perfect animal friend.