There have been many questions & rumors surrounding ELDAD HAGAR & HOPE FOR PAWS rescue. Some of the things in question date back more than 2 years, but if you're in the business of saving lives you'll never forget this one. Many dogs were abandoned, donations went missing & dogs died. I think it might be important to bring these things up, especially when the organization is always winning big charity grants, raking in tons of money & yet always begging for your votes & donations, but seems to rescue only a handful of dogs & has no animals up for adoption on their website.
Also, just as an FYI. Hope for paws is NOT a new hope partner which means they do NOT rescue shelter animals. They never have. They don't take animals into their rescue & they don't even post animals up for adoption on their page- they give them off to other rescues once they catch and videotape. The only thing Eldad & HFP really push for is votes for winning money.
A few years ago, there was a hoarding case in Palmdale, CA that Eldad Hagar (Hope For Paws) was involved in http://sangabrielpets.wordpress.com/2010/05/11/hope-for-paws-rescues-over-100-dogs-from-hoarder-in-palmdale/ where he collected over 15 thousand dollars in donations. Most of those 100+ dogs he "rescued" were later abandoned, some shipped off to other states without even a vet exam, left in boarding or some even sent to high kill shelters where one shelter (Irvine) even wrote to Eldad to please come back & get the dogs he left, which he refused.
Some dogs were left for over 18 months in boarding by Eldad who didn't even look back or try to help these dogs. Other rescues had to step up and re-rescue the dogs left behind minus the donation money. He basically took the money and ran. There are court records that prove Eldad abandoned those dogs at boarding without payment.
Court Records: NON PAYMENT FOR BOARDING FEES OF THE PALMDALE/AZ DOGS
Case Number: 10S01264
TOP DOG RESORT, LLC VS. HOPE FOR PAWS, INC.
Filing Date: 07/07/2010Case Type: Small Claims (Limited Jurisdiction)Filing Court: San Fernando Courthouse
Status: DISPOSED BY JUDGMENT
A side note that is interesting: When Milan Radovic (the owner of Top Dog Resort, where Eldad dumped all the dogs & left) took him to court & won for non payment of these dumped dogs from Palmdale, Eldad's wife, Audrey, spoke on his behalf, while Eldad stood there silently & she told the judge the reason why he didn't understand the payment situation or fees was because Eldad could not understand or speak English very well. How many of you have heard him speak in his videos, in person or on the phone? There are hundreds of people who can attest to Eldad speaking perfect English.
Upon hearing of the abandonment of all the dogs, the Executor of the AZ dogs demanded via phone & letter those dogs he was given to be returned to the estate. She did not like or approve of Eldad or Sharon Gold dumping the dogs.
Speaking of Sharon Gold... she was also convicted of embezzlement and did prison time. Yeah, great pair these two., She now lives in Washington State, operating a dog rescue, harassing fosters. One foster claims she is very abusive with kicking dogs. A transport told how she was bragging about how stupid people were because it was so easy to take their money.
Eldad also had two dogs (Basenji's) killed that he "rescued" from Palmdale. He and Sharon deemed them dangerous without even getting them properly evaluated. They never even had a chance. Milan at Top Dog and another witness can attest to this lack of compassion and total disregard to the right of life perpetrated by Eldad.
Let's not forget about the female Labrador left in a crate in Arizona to die a miserable death, melting in the hot desert sun. A concerned citizen went back to find this horrifying sight.
Eldad, Sharon and one other rescue were the last two to leave the site and this poor girl was left behind.
The only reason Eldad even bothered to "volunteer" to re-rescue the dogs he left behind was to save face. Eldad stole thousands of dollars in donations that were meant for these animals. And what's even worse are those who know the truth, yet continue to support Eldad. Why are people continuing to support him? Wake up... this is NOT rescue. I don't know any other rescue that is always armed with a video camera at every rescue & thinks that the best shots on film is the most important part of the rescue. In most other rescues, the animals are of first concern & a making a great video is only an afterthought.
The rescue of the abandoned dogs is credited to the many rescues that pulled together for the sake of the animals....one of those rescues being Pulling for Paws & others. They worked hard and tirelessly without the money or pats on the back to ensure the dogs abandoned by Eldad did not get left behind again. I commend those rescues that took on this mission without question. Eldad is NOT a hero, in my opinion...he's a fraud, a con, a marketeer...who's greatest achievement is tugging the heartstrings of thousands while dipping into their pocket books. It seems the main point behind this man is make a few great videos, & push them out all over Godvine, Facebook & other social networking sites, for maximum recognition & donations. How many animals does he really rescue a year? A handful? Is he a glorified dog catcher? Many of the dogs he uses in his videos are turned over to other rescues to care for after the initial, glorifying save & video. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e6zvLGN8C58
WITNESS STATEMENTS
Witness A
Eldad left one of those dogs from palmdale/az hoarding case behind in a crate to die in the AZ sun.....but he didnt get that on film......many.of the.dogs were dumped in boarding at Top Dog in California. We took one of those dogs and it's hard to look at him and think he could of been the one left behind in the crate.
Witness BI witnessed this one with my own eyes & put my own reputation at stake. Not good. These animals were abandoned by them & good people's donations were not going to the animals in need. Quite a shame. I can name at least 5 rescues who came in & saved those dogs that Eldad abandoned yet took the donation money. And yes, some died, not just that one in the desert.
Witness C
Eldad & I worked together when he responded to helping me with an ongoing cat hoarding situation... only to leave me feeling completely used once he got footage to show he was a cat rescuer, as well. Created videos asking for money, then BAILED on ALL of us!! And I'm putting all that nicely & in a nutshell. It was ugly & WRONG!! There are a lot of details on specific situations where he acted like scum. I was shocked. Thought he was a hero, too. Add another 20-25 cats/kittens to the animals on which he's bailed but collected $$$.
He also nearly killed a litter of kittens by grabbing a tube of Frontline saying, "gimme that... let ME do it" (cuz he claims to also be going to VET school). Turned out he used up the entire tube VS. one drop per kitten. Two of them crashed, were rushed to emergency vet in Eagle Rock. After the vet helped stabilize, he picked up the worse one, said , "no sense letting it die at the vet & paying the overnight stay", took the kitten home, shot video of him with another rescue dog cuddling in a bed", submitted it to the Bonnie Hunt Show where he made THAT video go viral, collect more donation monies & fans, bad-mouthed that vet... saying, "he saved Hunter's life". Ewww, I better stop now... I'm gonna throw up.
Witness D
The Chase Community Giving grant is over and I am RELIEVED!! We did NOT get enough votes to secure a spot on the leader board which means we will NOT be receiving any of the grant. I am a rescuer, I spend my days scooping poop, racing to the shelter to make sure dogs are safe or to the vet to make sure they are well, facilitating dogs being pulled to safety, transporting dogs, responding to emails from potential adopter's, arranging home checks, weeding through applications and networking dogs in danger. I do not have time to video tape every dog I rescue, every trip to the shelter or set up live stream cameras while I wash puppies for your votes. I don't have the money to buy expensive ads on Facebook promoting myself nor do I have the huge network of supporter's in the states and/or over seas to bring in votes. If you voted for us I hope it was because you know I work hard, genuinely love & care for animals, and deserved the money.
Witness E
Why bother, the masses are STUPID - they want to believe in fairy tale BS - no one wants to be a part of the WORK it really takes to save an animal - sure, I'm off to WASH my rescued pitbull & shep..tune in...it's FREE, it's not glamorous....that SOB Eldad has left dogs to die, abandoned an old chow & left a pittie on the street left a dog to die in a crate & WTF - keep on sending HIM money..I give up.
Rebuttal to Witness E by Witness B
I bother because there ARE good & decent rescues & rescuers out there who never get a chance, any donations, or any accolades for all the hard work they do day & night to save animals. I bother because this is absurd what is going on with Eldad & how people are snowed. I bother because the animals matter most to me of all.
Witness A
Eldad left one of those dogs from palmdale/az hoarding case behind in a crate to die in the AZ sun.....but he didnt get that on film......many.of the.dogs were dumped in boarding at Top Dog in California. We took one of those dogs and it's hard to look at him and think he could of been the one left behind in the crate.
Witness BI witnessed this one with my own eyes & put my own reputation at stake. Not good. These animals were abandoned by them & good people's donations were not going to the animals in need. Quite a shame. I can name at least 5 rescues who came in & saved those dogs that Eldad abandoned yet took the donation money. And yes, some died, not just that one in the desert.
Witness C
Eldad & I worked together when he responded to helping me with an ongoing cat hoarding situation... only to leave me feeling completely used once he got footage to show he was a cat rescuer, as well. Created videos asking for money, then BAILED on ALL of us!! And I'm putting all that nicely & in a nutshell. It was ugly & WRONG!! There are a lot of details on specific situations where he acted like scum. I was shocked. Thought he was a hero, too. Add another 20-25 cats/kittens to the animals on which he's bailed but collected $$$.
He also nearly killed a litter of kittens by grabbing a tube of Frontline saying, "gimme that... let ME do it" (cuz he claims to also be going to VET school). Turned out he used up the entire tube VS. one drop per kitten. Two of them crashed, were rushed to emergency vet in Eagle Rock. After the vet helped stabilize, he picked up the worse one, said , "no sense letting it die at the vet & paying the overnight stay", took the kitten home, shot video of him with another rescue dog cuddling in a bed", submitted it to the Bonnie Hunt Show where he made THAT video go viral, collect more donation monies & fans, bad-mouthed that vet... saying, "he saved Hunter's life". Ewww, I better stop now... I'm gonna throw up.
Witness D
The Chase Community Giving grant is over and I am RELIEVED!! We did NOT get enough votes to secure a spot on the leader board which means we will NOT be receiving any of the grant. I am a rescuer, I spend my days scooping poop, racing to the shelter to make sure dogs are safe or to the vet to make sure they are well, facilitating dogs being pulled to safety, transporting dogs, responding to emails from potential adopter's, arranging home checks, weeding through applications and networking dogs in danger. I do not have time to video tape every dog I rescue, every trip to the shelter or set up live stream cameras while I wash puppies for your votes. I don't have the money to buy expensive ads on Facebook promoting myself nor do I have the huge network of supporter's in the states and/or over seas to bring in votes. If you voted for us I hope it was because you know I work hard, genuinely love & care for animals, and deserved the money.
Witness E
Why bother, the masses are STUPID - they want to believe in fairy tale BS - no one wants to be a part of the WORK it really takes to save an animal - sure, I'm off to WASH my rescued pitbull & shep..tune in...it's FREE, it's not glamorous....that SOB Eldad has left dogs to die, abandoned an old chow & left a pittie on the street left a dog to die in a crate & WTF - keep on sending HIM money..I give up.
Rebuttal to Witness E by Witness B
I bother because there ARE good & decent rescues & rescuers out there who never get a chance, any donations, or any accolades for all the hard work they do day & night to save animals. I bother because this is absurd what is going on with Eldad & how people are snowed. I bother because the animals matter most to me of all.
The other concerning thing is he has won the Chase Charities giveaway again ( in addition to a Toyota Highland this year & other contests).. He's won 4 years in a row, first as Hope for Paws & then in following years by partnering with The Kris Kelly Foundation, & just this past week where he partnered with another Foundation winning $100,000. I don't even think you're allowed to enter more than one year in a row. I guess "partnering" with another organization is a way to get around this. But how many small rescues rake in over $100K a year? This is public record for a non profit & this was just in 2010. How much money is spent on advertising? How much money actually goes to the animals in need? It may deserve closer examination.
For those who want a second opinion, there is another blog for you to read that was researched independently and her findings are outlined in great detail. is-hope-for-paws-shady-hollywood
SUMMARY
Eldad abandoned so many dogs from a Palmdale rescue at Top Dog Resort.He said he'd get them all spay/neutered, vaccinated, microchipped, rehomed etc.... he did not and yet he took about $15,000 in donations.
Eldad and Sharon said they were in Arizona getting 12 dogs off an estate, came back with 11. One of those dogs was left behind to die a miserable death.
Several other rescues had to step in to vet the dogs,spay/neuter, find them homes etc, on their own dime without the recognition they deserved for saving the dogs he abandoned.
Eldad also had 2 dogs from Palmdale euthanized at Top Dog resort he considered dangerous without having them properly evaluated first..
Some of the dogs were abandoned for over 18 months.
Pulling for Paws took a majority of these dogs along with other rescue orgs. Their names are all at the end of that video, Rescue Uncovered, on youtube.
Eldad was sued in court and lost.
http://www.freenewspos.com/en/home-news-article/f/271623/today/allegations-of-fraud-dog-killing-and-pet-abandonment-surround-hope-for-paw
In conclusion
Real rescues don't have time to go out and video tape everything they do, let alone edit the video adding haunting music & text and then posting all over the world. That does NOT make you a top rescue, that makes you a video editor & marketeer and to use God to profit from is appalling. If you're going to support a rescue, please support a real rescue that doesn't abandon dogs everywhere, or leave them in crates in the hot desert sun as they drive away in an air conditioned van with all the donation money. Please make sure who your donating to is really concerned about the animals they claim to 'rescue'.
Reviews can be read here.
Listed below are screenshots of some of the reviews.
For those who want a second opinion, there is another blog for you to read that was researched independently and her findings are outlined in great detail. is-hope-for-paws-shady-hollywood
SUMMARY
Eldad abandoned so many dogs from a Palmdale rescue at Top Dog Resort.He said he'd get them all spay/neutered, vaccinated, microchipped, rehomed etc.... he did not and yet he took about $15,000 in donations.
Eldad and Sharon said they were in Arizona getting 12 dogs off an estate, came back with 11. One of those dogs was left behind to die a miserable death.
Several other rescues had to step in to vet the dogs,spay/neuter, find them homes etc, on their own dime without the recognition they deserved for saving the dogs he abandoned.
Eldad also had 2 dogs from Palmdale euthanized at Top Dog resort he considered dangerous without having them properly evaluated first..
Some of the dogs were abandoned for over 18 months.
Pulling for Paws took a majority of these dogs along with other rescue orgs. Their names are all at the end of that video, Rescue Uncovered, on youtube.
Eldad was sued in court and lost.
http://www.freenewspos.com/en/home-news-article/f/271623/today/allegations-of-fraud-dog-killing-and-pet-abandonment-surround-hope-for-paw
In conclusion
Real rescues don't have time to go out and video tape everything they do, let alone edit the video adding haunting music & text and then posting all over the world. That does NOT make you a top rescue, that makes you a video editor & marketeer and to use God to profit from is appalling. If you're going to support a rescue, please support a real rescue that doesn't abandon dogs everywhere, or leave them in crates in the hot desert sun as they drive away in an air conditioned van with all the donation money. Please make sure who your donating to is really concerned about the animals they claim to 'rescue'.
Reviews can be read here.
Listed below are screenshots of some of the reviews.
