Second Chance

01/12/2025

As always we are seeking willing foster homes for cats and large dogs! We provide all the supplies, you provide the love.

We will do our best to make sure we don’t give you any Edgars. (No promises)

If you’d like to help, head to our website to apply!

01/09/2025

Meet Edgar.

A dog who fits his name, Edgar is a crotchety old man. He isn’t even that old, at only 7 years old, but he is committed to fully embracing the crotchety angry old man vibe.

We say meet Edgar, but here is the thing. He doesn’t want to meet you. In fact if he could never meet anyone again, he’d be thrilled. If there were an island of no humans where dog food rained from the sky, Edgar would be it's ruler.

Edgar grew up in a hoarding situation with several other dogs who mostly lived outside, so his contact with humans was limited.

He has thus grown to prefer it this way.
If you try and touch him, he will notify you of his displeasure by barking at you in an attempt to get you to leave. If the auditory assault doesn’t work, he will attempt to bite you. If you persist despite these defense mechanisms because you enjoy a thrill, he will employ biological warfare in the shape of p*e or p**p. So seriously, just don’t touch him.

He does not want to be your friend. He does not want to cuddle. He wants you to leave the kibble and back away slowly.

Edgar also potties where he pleases. He has spent plenty of his life outside, why go back? Especially not in the snow. Going out to potty is beneath him and he will not stoop to it. Your kitchen floor is fine.

Despite all of this Edgar does have some positives. He does like other dogs and likely would do fine with cats. He eats well, and he keeps to himself. He is small, so at least his teeth are small and his messes are small. And how cool is it to have a dog who p**ps when you touch him? It’s like a button, right? Right?! And… that’s about it. But we tried.

We do believe with time and patience Edgar can make some progress (and he has, as his foster has been able to catch him as pictured)and we are looking for someone very stubborn … we mean patient… to work with him.

If you love hateful little dogs, head to our website to apply for Edgar. He is not excited to meet you.

01/08/2025

Meet Zayla!

Zayla is a unique beauty with green eyes that are not easy to forget, not to mention that "purr"fect petite little face!! How can it not be love at first sight?

Zayla will appreciate a quieter home with people that understand a shyer kitty. She is ready to come on out of her shell and be the playful, loving girl that you are longing to find as your new companion and best friend!

We have a few shy kitties just waiting for their chance at forever too. Will you give one a try?

Columbia2ndchance.org

01/08/2025

Update on Sparky, our boy who decided to eat things he shouldn’t!

His surgery was successful and several pieces of plastic were removed from his stomach. He has recovered and is doing well. He is still searching for his forever home!

If you’d like to apply to adopt or donate to help support our TLC program which allows us to cover emergencies or help with extraneous care, head to our website now!

A big thanks to those who donated towards his emergency surgery. Every penny helps!

Columbia2ndchance.org

01/05/2025

Stay safe and stay warm!

Our adoption will not be open today due to the snow.

Post pics of how your pets are enjoying the snow day in the comments! ❄️❄️

01/05/2025

The snow has begun, and it’s time to remember how to keep your pets safe! ❄️

We will be CLOSED tomorrow due to the snow.

01/03/2025

We would love to find Butterscotch his forever home after over 2 years with us... will it be you?

01/02/2025

12/30/2024

We are so proud of everything we have accomplished this year, and we look forward to 2025 and all we will achieve!!
It could not be done without the support of our community. Please consider supporting us one last time in 2024 to give us a great start to the new year.

https://www.comogives.com/donate/Columbia-Second-Chance

12/29/2024

With a name like Second Chance, it’s pretty clear we exist to give animals another chance where they might otherwise not have one.

A great example of this is Rocky. This boy found himself at a local pound, and was totally blind. Rocky was born with no/very small eyes which meant he had no vision. The pound knew it was no place for him and reached out! His chances at adoption were slim where he was and his special needs meant he’d need the perfect home.

We took in Rocky and discovered how special this boy was! Being blind did not slow him down in the least, he didn’t know any different. He listened to voices, navigated the house, and played with the big dogs.

This summer Rocky found an amazing forever home where he is spoiled and loved and a little bit of a celebrity. He has doggy siblings and goes to work with his owner regularly.

Rocky got the best Second Chance we could have possibly asked for, and we are so grateful.

Your support allows us to keep giving animals like Rocky their chance at forever.

Help us reach our goal so that we can continue our mission in 2025!

https://www.comogives.com/organization/Columbia-Second-Chance

12/28/2024

With only 3 days left we have a long way to go to reach our goal!

Can you help us make it all the way?

Give now via Como Gives, or share if you can’t!

We are already so grateful for the 244(!!) people who have found it in their hearts to give.

Thank you!!

https://www.comogives.com/organization/Columbia-Second-Chance

12/28/2024

Meet Aiden!

Aiden is new to the inside life but he's loving it! He's as cute as can be and has the most amazing coat.

He's very gentle and enjoys being picked up and held. It may take him a couple of days to trust his new humans but then he loves to get attention and play. So many toys to play with and so much attention to receive from his humans. He gets along with other kitties - he's never met any dogs.

Aiden may have not found a home for Christmas but he’d love to find one before year’s end!

Apply now on our website!

12/26/2024

If you are part of our mailing list, you may have already received it and learned of the story of the German Shepherds. If you are not on our list, we would love to tell you now.

(And if you want to be part of our mailing list we'd love to have you! Just complete this form!)

https://secure.lglforms.com/form_engine/s/Ae0T2cK49VQaWLlbY_DdZA

Last year we were contacted by someone who had been taking care of a large number of German shepherds for a breeder who had fallen ill and could no longer keep them.

The more we talked to and worked with this caretaker the more we realized that these dogs needed help quickly. They were being kept in small runs with no roof with only a doghouse for shelter. They had no warmth, and very little food. A devoted volunteer took on the role of liaison and began to work with the person caring for these dogs, and her persistence and drive to help them is truly what saved them.

But what do you do when you are foster based and there are dozens of dogs? You find your village. We began taking in dogs and transferring them to rescues and shelters. Some dogs stayed close to home with local rescues, and some went as far as Iowa and Colorado.

Many were in bad shape, malnourished, riddled with parasites. Some had gotten into fights with each other over food or out of boredom and were seriously injured. A few did not survive their conditions.

Happily, many did! They recovered, learned to be family dogs, and have found amazing lives. In all we were able to take in 17 at Second Chance and transfer out 4. Others went directly to other rescues and shelters.

Over the course of several months we were finally able to clear out this breeder and hope they will never again put dogs into the same conditions. In all, forty dogs were removed from the property. It was all thanks to our fosters, volunteers, and other rescues who stepped in and made it happen. It was all thanks to our village.

Gifts like yours are what make these big saves possible. It is what helps us keep doing what we do and making sure that every dog and cat we touch has the best possible outcome.

We hope you, our village will consider helping us this year to continue our lifesaving work.

https://www.comogives.com/organization/Columbia-Second-Chance

12/23/2024

One of our favorite sayings at Second Chance is "Just give it a few days".

Shadow Moon is an FIV+ kitty that has been living at our adoption center for over a year and a half. He is fearful, shy and swats at everyone there. He generally does not make himself very attractive to most people who come by to meet cats.

Due to the recent electrical issues, he had to move to foster care along with all the other cats. One brave foster offered up a room in their house for him, knowing that he may not want any interaction during his "vacation".

Despite his very best efforts at deterring her, she persisted in trying to be his friend. And wouldn't you know it, a couple of weeks later we had a new cat!

Some times all it takes is a little time, someone willing to "just give it a few days", and maybe some good treats too.

Shadow Moon is still looking for his forever home with someone who might be willing to give him the time he needs to settle in and show just how sweet he is. If that may be you, please head to our website to apply! In the mean time, he has earned himself an extended stay away from the adoption center in foster care.

columbia2ndchance.org

12/22/2024

Not every story has a conventional happy ending. Sometimes, the stories are bittersweet.

Earlier this year, we found Herbert needing help. He was living outside in a small chain link pen with only a dog house for shelter. His pen was muddy and he spent most of his time standing on his dog house to stay out of the mud, as in the picture.

When we brought him in it was clear he was very old and in bad shape. Many vet visits found that he had cancer in his bladder and likely in other places. We determined he was a hospice case and hoped he’d find a home willing to let him live out his life.

This past week Herbert went in for surgery to hopefully remove some of the cancer and make him more comfortable, as the cancer had been causing him some pain and infections.

Sadly we found that the cancer was too widespread. We had to make the difficult decision to end Herbert’s suffering.

At Second Chance choices like this do not come easily. The opinions of the vet, the foster and our committees are taken into account. It is hard on everyone to say goodbye, even if it is for the best.

We are heartbroken at the loss of Herbert, but so thankful we were able to do everything we could to make his time with us comfortable and make sure he felt loved.

Please consider supporting us so that we can help more dogs and cats in honor of Herbert and all the others who left us too soon.

https://www.comogives.com/donate/Columbia-Second-Chance

12/21/2024

We are excited to report our adoption center is back up and running full sp*ed and we are ready to see everyone!

A special thank you to the amazing fosters who stepped up by taking cats from the adoption center while the heat was out. We could not have done it without you and we are ever grateful!