Lake Haven Rescue

Welcome to Lake Haven!

General Information

Director and Founder

Lake Haven’s founder is Cheryl McCloud. Before forming Lake Haven, Cheryl had been involved in animal rescue all her life. At the age of eight, she remembers fostering cats in her playhouse and adopting them out to neighbors by displaying them in a basket.

She has worked with various rescue organizations throughout West Michigan for years while at the same time running her own adoption center out of her garage and pole barns. Over time, that operation grew, and in 1999, officially became Lake Haven.

Cheryl is not shy when it comes to issues concerning animal welfare, and she is quick to praise her volunteers, without whom Lake Haven could not exist.

Mission

Lake Haven is an all-volunteer private, non-profit animal rescue shelter dedicated to the care and adoption of homeless and/or injured dogs, cats, kittens and puppies in the West Michigan area.

Goals

(1) Provide temporary shelter for homeless cats and dogs;

(2) Ensure that at the time of entry to Lake Haven, animals receive needed medical care;

(3) Provide spay/neuter services via area veterinarians;

(4) Place animals in responsible and loving adoptive homes; and

(5) Educate pet owners and the public in proper animal care and the urgent need to spay and neuter their pets.

Services

(1) Animal rescue

(2) Necessary medical care

(3) Temporary shelter

(4) Adoption

(5) Low-Cost Spay/Neuter Program (new in 2007)

Adoption Statistics

In 2007, approximately 1,440 Lake Haven animals have found loving homes. Since being founded in 1999, Lake Haven has helped approximately 14,000 homeless animals find homes.

Capacity

Lake Haven is a modest facility with four dog kennels and one holding area for sick dogs as well as a variety of areas to temporarily house felines. But Lake Haven's capacity reaches far beyond the facility itself. A network of dedicated volunteers foster many animals until they are ready for adoption. Foster homes allow more space for new rescues and decreases the likelihood of transferring common illnesses.

Partners

Lake Haven partners with area veterinarians, who perform spay/neuters as well as a variety of other medical services for our rescued friends. To view our list of veterinarian partners, click here.

Lake Haven is also a proud partner with PetSmart. Our cats are available for viewing and adoption everyday at the PetSmart in Grandville, MI. Our dogs are typically available for viewing and adoption at PetSmart the first three Saturday's of each month. To learn more about our Saturday Adoption Days, click here.

Special Events

National Adoption Weekends at PetSmart (Fall & Spring)

Annual Fund-raiser at Woody's Bar and Grill (Fall)

PetSmart Photos with Santa Fund-raiser (Winter)

Geography Served

Primarily Kent, Newaygo and Ottawa counties.

Learn More

Read the 2008 Cats and Dogs Magazine article about the rescue.

Services and Programs

Medical Services Provided for Rescued Animals

Animals six months of age or older are spayed or neutered before going to their new homes. Animals under six months of age are sent home with a voucher for spay/neuter service at a participating veterinary clinic. Please note the voucher does not cover any necessary pain medications or additional services at these clinics. A complete list of participating clinics can be accessed by clicking on the "Veterinary Partners" link above.

All cats/kittens are tested for feline immunodeficiency (FIV) and feline leukemia (FeLV) viruses, in addition to vaccinations. They are wormed, bathed and treated for any parasites.

All adult dogs are tested for heartworm and vaccinated for rabies and distemper/parvo. Puppies are vaccinated and wormed.

Low-cost Spay/Neuter Program

Lake Haven’s Low Cost Spay/Neuter Program was established in May 2007 in order to prevent unwanted cats and dogs and to reduce animal suffering. This program is intended for pets owned by citizens who normally would not be able to afford the procedure. Patrons of this program receive a voucher for a discounted spay/neuter at a participating veterinary clinic. If you or someone you know cannot afford this very important procedure, please call (231) 652-7507 to see if you qualify.

Lake Haven hopes to spay/neuter a minimum of 200 animals per year in addition to the animals that are placed into adoptive homes. Please consider donating to this very important cause today!

Barn Cat Program

Sometimes we have cats that cannot live as house pets because they are shy or fearful of people and prefer the company of other cats and animals. We do not adopt cats who are suitable to be house pets to barns, only cats without other options. This is the last chance for these cats; they have nowhere else to go.

If you have a working barn or safe, heated outbuilding, there are cats that need you. Having barn cats help keep down the rodent population. The cats will be helping you, while you provide them a safe place to live. And because these cats are already spayed/neutered, you won't have to worry about endless litters of kittens appearing!

What you need
The farm or barn owners who adopt the cats agree to give them:

Shelter in barns, buildings, or stables

Daily food and water (cats cannot live on mousing alone)

Veterinary care, as needed

A secure place to keep them for the first 2-3 weeks, while they acclimate to your barn. This can be a tack room, or any secure indoor enclosure that they cannot escape from.

Barn Cat Adoption Fee
We only charge a $25 adoption fee for barn cats. Since many of these cats thrive on the company of other cats, be sure to ask about discounts when adopting more than one barn cat at a time.

We provide the same medical services with these cats as we do our house cats.

To find out about the barn cats we have available, please call Cheryl at (231) 652-7507.