Our mission
Second Chance Tails Rescue started with one van, two crates, and a phone call from a county shelter that had run out of room. We have not stopped driving since.
“Ruby waited eleven days on the list. She waited four more in the grass behind our barn, and then she went home.”
The story behind the barn
Rural shelters in our region run on small budgets and smaller staff. When kennels fill, a euthanasia list gets written, usually on a Friday. Most of the names on it belong to healthy, ordinary animals: a senior beagle whose owner passed away, a litter of barn kittens, a shepherd mix who barks at the wrong time.
Our founder, Marguerite, spent nine years as a shelter tech before she started answering those Friday calls herself. The rescue now runs out of a converted dairy barn outside town with a quarantine wing, a cat sunroom, and a paddock where dogs learn that grass is safe.
Every animal that comes through here is vetted, vaccinated, microchipped, and known by name before a single adoption photo is taken. We would rather hold a dog two months longer than send them to a house that is wrong for them.
A partner shelter sends us their list with photos, intake notes, and a deadline. We answer within the hour, seven days a week.
Volunteer drivers run the route. Our vet partner sees every animal within 48 hours for exam, vaccines, spay or neuter, and dental if needed.
Two quiet weeks in a home, on a couch or in a sunny window. Fosters tell us who this animal really is, which is what makes the match work.
Applications, a phone conversation, a meet and greet at the barn. We stay reachable for the life of the animal, no exceptions.
Four staff, sixty-one active fosters, and a Saturday crew that shows up with coffee and bleach.
Marguerite Delaine
Founder & intake director
Theo Nakamura
Medical coordinator
Ray Beckwith
Transport lead
Partner shelters we pull from
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“They drove three hours on a Sunday for a dog we had listed for Monday. Then they sent us a photo of him asleep on a bed. That is the whole job, right there.”
“We asked for a calm older cat and they talked us out of the first two we picked. The third one, Pearl, has slept on my husband's chest every night for two years. They knew.”
“I fostered eight dogs last year and cried over every single goodbye. Marguerite answers texts at midnight when a new one won't eat. Nobody does this alone here.”
Come see the barn
No appointment needed to walk through and meet whoever is here. Bring the kids, bring your resident dog for a proper introduction, or just come sit in the cat sunroom for a while. If you are driving in from out of county, call ahead and we will hold a quiet spot for you.
