We don’t just say that Home is Our Specialty. In fact, HOME is the ultimate goal of everything we do. We believe that there is a home for everyone—and that everyone is worth finding a home for. And because our mission is to catch animals as they fall through the cracks of the animal sheltering system, we have built into our program structure the flexibiity to address needs where and when they exist.
Shelter Rescue
This is the biggest part of what we do’. We work with area shelters and rescue organizations to take the animals that they are not equipped to help. Then, we do what it takes to turn these “unadoptable” animals into pets who are wanted and loved’. Whether it’s a medical issue, disability, a behavioral problem or sometimes just an animal that is hard to understand, our staff and volunteers develop a tailored plan to address those special needs and to find a home where that animal can thrive. Although most of our work is done within the Portland Metro Region, we do periodically assist other localities where rescue efforts are overwhelmed by hurricanes or other events.
Farm Sanctuary
It’s not just dogs and cats who can find themselves out of options. Indigo Rescue owns a rural property on which is housed our for-profit home-style boarding facility’. This makes it possible for us to offer sanctuary to farm animals in need. Among other residents, we are currently home to a small herd of alpacas whose fleece doesn’t measure up to industry standard, a beautiful little club-footed pony, two elderly miniature donkeys whose owner could no longer care for them, multiple discarded “Easter Bunnies,” “backyard” chickens who are no longer wanted, and even the occasional rescued “battery” hen’. For these wonderful but unwanted farm animals, we provide an idyllic setting for a carefree retirement.
Lili’s Home Retirement Center
One of the mainreasons that dogs are surrendered at shelters is that an elderly human that cares for them either dies or is unable to continue caring for them’. Ideally a family member or friend should step up to take them in but, all too often, this is not the case’. These dogs are often old, have medical issues and are frequently severely overweight, the result of a loving owner who overindulged them with food and treats but was unable to exercise them in any way’. Whatever the case, they are too often deemed “unadoptable” and euthanized’. Indigo has rescued these special seniors for decades, knowing full-well that many will live out their days in foster homes…
“Someone Has to Do It”
Maybe this isn’t actually a “program” since we never know what will fall into the category. What we do know, however, is that catching animals that fall through the cracks of the system will always mean that we have to address those cracks as they appear. Whether it’s a lost dog that needs to be found, trapped and brought safely back to the people who love him, or life-saving assistance to rescue efforts in a hurricane, or a terrified cat crying for days to be rescued from a very tall tree, or a wounded and dying goose who needs to be nursed back to health, Indigo Rescue will rally—because we believe that someone needs to do it and that we can be that someone.
Indigo Ranch Boarding
At our rural property in Vernonia Oregon, we offer home-style boarding in the country’. This is a for-profit entity, but it also exists because “Home is Our Specialty.” We know how traumatizing a kennel environment can be for many dogs, and we know that many caring dog parents don’t want to put their pets through that trauma’. That’s why we developed our boarding facility to be more akin to a sleep-away camp than a kennel’. The dogs stay in dormitories with couches, and televisions, and they play together outside in huge securely fenced yards’. 100% of the money generated from boarding is put directly into our rescue efforts, making us more sustainable and allowing us to do far more good than if we relied only on donations’. And although this business is for-profit, it also fills an unmet need’. We provide a home away from home for your wanted and loved pet, and they help provide homes for pets who only want to be wanted and loved.