Rescue Me Tucson

Rescue Me Tucson provides resources for pets and their people through its compassionate collaborative-based pet adoption center.

Rescue Me Tucson/Marana is an all-volunteer run 501(c)(3) that operates a collaborative Pet Adoption Center for multiple Southern Arizona shelters and rescue groups to help adopt their animals. In the period just over a year since opening in September 2021, we have adopted out over 1535 cats & dogs to their forever homes.

We have a special emphasis on working with rescues and shelters serving rural and reservation areas. We have facilitated the placement of dozens of animals from the San Carlos Apache Reservation into Tucson and Maricopa County rescues. Several of these animals were special needs/medical cases that required months of medical care and networking to find homes. We collaborate with multiple partners to provide much needed support such as pet food, dog houses, and supplies to animals in rural areas.

Our model is adapted from the 'No Kill LA' and 'Sugar House Centers' operated by Best Friends to better fit our community's unique needs. As proven by the Best Friends models, our Center helps more shelter and rescue animals get adopted into good homes quickly with greater visibility in a high traffic mall location at Tucson Premium Outlet Mall. There are also folks who aren't always comfortable visiting shelters. Adopters have a welcoming place with regular hours seven days a week to meet animals and complete the adoption paperwork. Our mission is to also reach the public that may not know the difference between a for-profit pet store and an adoption agency and to help educate them on puppy and kitten mills.

By forming a partnership with multiple groups, like Valley Humane Society, HARTT, Pima Paws for Life, Happy Tails TNR, and Whiskers N Wishes Sanctuary, so far, we can help save more lives by increasing adoption numbers and decreasing the over-all euthanasia rate in Arizona. Through combined marketing efforts, we can help fundraise for special needs cases and boost networking efforts for the highest need animals. We share information on the many shelters & rescues in the southern Arizona area with potential adopters looking for specific animals.

Our community corner provides education on responsible pet ownership, behavior problems and resources for spay/neuter programs, low cost vaccine options, pet training, veterinary care, and the problems posed by puppy and kitten mills. We'll also sell pet-related merchandise so that adopters can leave with all the necessary items for a successful start at their new home. As with other nonprofit organizations, we engage in on-going development work to meet our operations budget. Revenue sources include adoption fees, merchandise sales, individual and corporate donors, grants and events. We have expanded our involvement in community events that benefit our mission of education and adoption.