Revenues vs. Expenses
Posted by shazaam09  |  October 12, 2009 5:52:02 AM

Does anyone else find it astonishing that the organization's revenues are nearly 2 times the expenses?

Why does the organization have so much excess revenue?

Shame On The Owners
Posted by LauraR  |  July 1, 2009 6:00:02 AM

This is really going to be a very mixed review.

I'm happy with the "idea" of PAWS Chicago and what it's supposed to do...save animals lives. The volunteers are great. The adoptions center is wonderful, and the events are over the top.

On the flip side every single good point that I give is negated by the owners lack of responsibility in acknowledging potential donor feedback. As a result, I have never given a single dollar to this organization and won't in the near future. Why? Recently I had a few basic issues with information presented on the PAWS website and visited the adoption center for answers. The center couldn't answer my questions so I stood by as voice mails were left for the owners daughter and the head of marketing. That was over six months ago.

I think I should make it clear that some of the issues that I had are actually reflected here in Charity Navigator. I questioned operational expenses that were not reflected in Charity Navigator as well as concerns regarding upper level management not responding to concerns.

The owners daughter never contacted me nor did the head of their marketing efforts. This is unforgivable when it comes to managing potential donors.

What can I do? I have no choice but to support another organization who does answer potential donor feedback. The best news is that there are plenty of them when it comes to animal rescue efforts. Plus, all of them organize their information in a way that helps you answer questions.

Perhaps PAWS can finally learn this lesson. To the volunteers I say "keep up the good work." To potential donors I say "Look elsewhere for a charity that embraces integrity and supplies you with answers to your questions."

Two Side To Every Rating
Posted by Mike H  |  April 28, 2009 7:10:59 AM

Having recently adopted a pet from a no-kill Chicago shelter, I understand that every story has two sides. I started out doing a lot of research before I adopted because I wanted to make sure that the shelter I chose provided a good experience and used their resources well. I shopped websites, browsed online reviews and visited shelters. Plus, I consulted Charity Navigator.

As a result of that shopping, I did NOT choose PAWS Chicago in part due to LauraKs comments and a terrible user experience on the PAWS website. Like it or not, I need a charity to act like they need my donation. After visiting the new adoption center, I didn't feel this way. In fact, I felt that money that should have been spent on animal rescue was spent on decorating and big screen TVs. While I admire the passion of the volunteer's words on these pages, they have to understand that an average person like me is looking for a charity that NEEDS my money. Cleary the family who owns PAWS can spend their dollars any way they see fit, but my word of caution is that they need to be careful of the message they are sending.

I ended up choosing Lake Shore Animal Shelter for a few simple reasons. They did a great job with their web site and the in-person adoption process was flawless. The volunteers were great and it looked like every dollar spent was going to homeless pets. The adoption center was in no way palacial, but that reinforced that my dollars would help homeless pets find a home outside of the shelter.

I advise anyone reviewing these comments to do your own research. Charity Navigator is only the start of your research.

Donor Feedback Not Appreciated
Posted by lkmitchell  |  April 13, 2009 1:31:46 PM

Every year my family makes a list of potential charities that could benefit from our dollars. Each potential charity is then thoroughly researched to make sure that the organization is run well and that our dollars will be put to good use.

This year PAWS Chicago came up on our radar. Unfortunately, after a thorough investigation that included online and offline research, we decided to permanently remove this charity from our donation list. Why? Our research revealed ongoing issues with the owners who seem to be deaf to feedback from potential donors, volunteers and pet enthusiasts alike. Online public forums revealed feedback that is largely being and my own recent personal experience mirrored many frustrated donors and volunteers.

Recently, I surfaced these issues to the Fasseas family, the owners of PAWS Chicago, in an attempt to to enlighten them on the organization's perception in the community. Unfortunately the family never addressed my feedback, which solidified my experience with this organization. Generally if an owner doesn't care enough to address concerns in a reasonable amount of time they need to address their priorities.

Sadly, I'm choosing to permanently cross this charity off of my list. I'd recommend that you do the same. There are plenty of other charities in town who appreciate feedback and need your dollars.

PAWS Chicago -- AMAZING organization
Posted by KKG  |  February 20, 2009 9:37:46 AM

PAWS Chicago is the best animal welfare organization in the city of Chicago. I have been a volunteer with PAWS for more than 4 yrs...and even jumped on board to help rescue animals down in New Orleans after Katrina when PAWS organized a caravan of volunteers to make the trip. I was impressed that PAWS looked beyond Chicago to make an impact when it was needed most.

I was bummed to see the first comment about the support the organization gets from the founders' business because soooo much of the work both at the Adoption Center and the clinic and is managed by volunteers and the majority of the work done for the many events is also handled by the thousands of volunteers the organization has recruited in its 10+ years.

The PAWS team has also built incredible partnerships throughout the community. Because of this outreach, they have secured amazing donations -- not just money, but services and goods too.

They also leverage the resources and connections of their many volunteers in a number of ways. I have personally been able to tap my own company for pro bono PR support around the opening of the PAWS Adoption Center and we continue to work with them when they need PR help. I was also able to engage a sister ad agency to help with a billboard campaign. It's all about connections and outreach...not everything points back to the founders' business support.

While they may have resources available through their business, it is still an expense. I say kudos to PAWS and the Fasseas family for finding these efficiencies to be able to do MORE in Chicago and make the donations work HARDER to save the thousands of homeless cats and dogs each year.

Good Charity - Inflated Rating
Posted by LauraK  |  January 26, 2009 8:09:28 AM

I'm a big fan of saving animals, but the rating for this organization is very unfair to other similar organizations.

While most charities struggle with administrative costs, PAWS Chicago has an unair advantage in the rating system here because all administrative work is done by a group of Banks owned by the Fasseas family. Many human and material costs are not accounted for in the numbers presented here.

While I admire generosity, it hardly makes the comparison of like charities apples to apples.

So, give the other great shelters a break when it comes to your donations and understand that this rating system does not take everything into context. Perhaps situations like this should be taken into account for future ratings where costs are accounted for no matter where they're hidden.

Let's all play fair in the future.

wonderful organization
Posted by ej712  |  May 22, 2008 12:18:51 PM

Chicago's largest no-kill shelter is even better now that there are no cages either. I adopted my cat from there and they were very careful to make sure she was getting a good home. they also operate one of the largest spay/neuter clinics in the country.