Lucky was found in a Home Depot parking lot. Jackson came from a rescue down the street.
This is a family project built by people who love rescue cats and wanted to make it easier for everyone else to find them.
Where it started
Lucky and Jackson
Two cats. One family. The reason this exists.
It started with our son. He was seven years old when he spotted a tiny kitten alone in a Home Depot parking lot. We weren't looking for a cat. But you don't walk past a kitten in a parking lot. We took him home, named him Lucky, and that was that.
Lucky needed a companion, so we adopted Jackson from a local rescue down the street. Where Lucky was bold and scrappy, Jackson was quiet and patient. The kind of cat who'd sit beside you for hours without asking for anything. They were as different as two cats could be, and we loved them both completely.
We lost them both. Lucky first, then Jackson. After they were gone, we started volunteering at shelters. We helped with whatever was needed. Feeding, cleaning, playing with the cats, doing paperwork, helping with fundraising. Whatever the shelter asked, we showed up. We saw firsthand how hard these organizations work and how much they depend on people finding them.
That's when the question started. How do we help more people find these shelters? How do we connect the people who want to adopt, the people who find a stray, and the people who want to volunteer with the organizations that need them? We couldn't find a good answer anywhere. So we built one.
We currently have four rescue cats at home, two of whom started as fosters we simply couldn't give back. We also share our home with four dogs. Lucky and Jackson are the reason we started. Everyone here today is the reason we kept going.
Lucky
The one who started it all
Lucky was found as a kitten in a Home Depot parking lot by our youngest son. He wasn't planned, wasn't expected, and turned out to be one of the best things that ever happened to our family. He's the reason the name "Second Paw" means something to us. He never had a first chance anywhere else.
Jackson
The quiet one
Jackson was adopted from a local rescue to keep Lucky company. He was gentle and patient, the kind of cat most people walk right past at a shelter. He never made a fuss. He never demanded attention. He just showed up and stayed close. He taught us that the cats who need the most are often the ones who ask for the least. He's the reason we care so much about the overlooked ones.
The team
A family project
Everyone here has a role. And a cat story.
This started around a dinner table with a family that couldn't stop talking about a problem they wanted to solve. We've volunteered at shelters together. We've fostered cats together. We lost Lucky and Jackson years ago and they are the reason any of this exists. We currently have four rescue cats at home, two of whom we simply couldn't give back after fostering.
We couldn't open a shelter. But we could build something. We kept meeting people who wanted to adopt and didn't know where to start, people who found a stray and didn't know who to call, people who just needed a better place to look.
So we built it. Second Paw doesn't rescue cats. We make it easier to find the organizations that do, so more cats get their second chapter and more people get the companion they didn't know they needed. We used what we know. A background in healthcare administration. Experience in fundraising. Skills in mathematics, computer science, and data. All of it in service of one thing.
D
Dad
Founder
Senior healthcare administrator with more than 30 years at nonprofits and public entities. The one who asked the first question that started all of this.
M
Mom
Fundraising & Community
Brings years of fundraising experience and the instinct for what a community actually needs to feel connected and supported.
K
The Kids
Technology & Data
Backgrounds in mathematics, computer science, and patient-facing healthcare. The people who make the platform actually work.
What we believe
Our values
1
Every cat deserves a second chance
The overlooked ones, the seniors, the FIV-positive cats, the ones who've been waiting the longest, deserve to be found just as much as anyone else.
2
Technology should serve the mission
We're a discovery platform, not a rescue organization. Our job is to get out of the way and connect people to the rescues that can actually help.
3
No advertising. Ever.
We will never sell ad space or allow advertisers to influence what you see. The Second Paw is funded by memberships, merchandise, and donations. Nothing else.
4
Free to use, always
Finding a rescue organization near you will never cost anything. The search is free, the results are free, and the connection is free.
5
Honest about what we are
We're a discovery platform. We connect people to rescues. We don't run one ourselves. That distinction matters and we'll always be clear about it.
Our promise to you
We will never show you an ad or allow a sponsor to influence your search results.
We will always be honest about what The Second Paw is and what it isn't.
We will never charge you to search for a rescue organization.
A meaningful portion of every merchandise purchase goes directly to supporting cat rescue.
We will keep building this platform as long as cats need second chances, which is to say, for a very long time.
Stay connected
Updates on the platform, rescue stories, and cat health guides, free, a couple times a month.