St. Charles pet rescue joins nationwide effort to expand shelter capacity, find adoptive homes

St. Charles nonprofit dog rescue Tiny N Tall Rescue, Inc. joined 39 other organizations participating in Rescue Roundtable to provide a safe haven to over 1,500 pets and counting from overcrowded shelters since April.

Dogs transferred by Tiny N Tall, which include breeds under 25 pounds and giant dog breeds, immediately go to a partnering foster home and remain there until adoption. The rescue relies on donations, volunteers and fosters to provide dogs with medical care, food and shelter as they await adoption.

Rescue Roundtable is a nationwide initiative led by Best Friends Animal Society, an animal welfare organization working to end the killing of cats and dogs in America’s shelters by building transfer partnerships between shelters and organizations like Tiny N Tall.

Best Friends Animal Society, headquartered in Utah, was founded in 1984 with the mission of making the entire country no-kill. The group runs facilities and programs nationwide, in partnership with more than 5,000 shelters and rescue organizations.

For a shelter to be considered no-kill, it must maintain a 90% save rate over the course of a year.

Tiny N Tall is one of 40 rescue groups and nonprofit shelters that participated in the nine-week roundtable program to help overcrowded shelters expand capacity by relocating pets into adoptive homes. The educational aspect of the program ended in April, but Rescue Roundtable continues to offer support for transfers and partnerships through September.

Facilitated by Rescue Roundtable, Tiny N Tall partnered with Harlan County Animal Shelter in Kentucky in May, and transferred 23 dogs to foster homes in Illinois in the first month.

Through the partnership, Tiny N Tall provides Harlan County Animal Shelter with vaccines and has transferred 49 dogs in its care to foster homes since May, thus increasing their chances of finding a permanent home. The organizations also work together to implement new policies aimed at reaching no-kill status.

“We told staff we are here to answer questions, bounce ideas off of, and aid them in any way they feel is best for their operation,” Tiny N Tall Medical Director Shelby Golonka said. “Thanks to Rescue Roundtable, we have implemented so many changes to our own program and are championing the no-kill goal with Harlan County Animal Shelter. We are excited to help close their gap and welcome our newest lives saved!”

Rescue Roundtable participants have transferred over 1,500 pets to date from shelters to partner organizations like Tiny N Tall. These efforts have helped five shelters achieve no-kill status so far, with four more nearing that goal.

“No-kill is within reach across the country because organizations are working together to save the cats and dogs who need us, wherever they are located. Tiny N Tall’s participation in Rescue Roundtable means pets whose lives were at risk are now safe in homes where they belong, and it means that for more shelters, no-kill is within reach,” Best Friends Animal Society administrator Whitney Bollinger said. “Communities like St. Charles want pets to be safe. Best Friends is proud to support Tiny N Tall and the other Rescue Roundtable participants in their commitment to lifesaving and to helping partner shelters reach, and sustain, no-kill.”

St. Charles residents can support Tiny N Tall’s efforts by adopting or fostering a pet. Tiny N Tall’s inventory of available dogs can be found on Petfinder, Adopt a Pet and on Instagram and Facebook.