Today we’d like to introduce you to Heather Owen.
So, before we jump into specific questions about the business, why don’t you give us some details about you and your story.
In 2008 I was in law school and needed an escape. I started volunteering with a dog rescue and absolutely fell in love with the community, and felt an intense need to continue to help it along. In 2009 I opened my own rescue, “One Tail at a Time” with some friends. I continued to run OTAT on the side while I finished school, took the bar exam, and then started practicing law. All the while it was tugging at my heart
In 2015 OTAT was in an incredibly great position with donors, volunteers, and fosters making up a big community of advocates. I made the decision to leave my career as an attorney and to help OTAT open up an Adoption Center in Bucktown. When I left I started a small capital campaign to raise $70k in 70 days, but we ended up raising $150k instead. That’s when I knew I had made the right choice.
In the two years that I have been full time at OTAT we have enjoyed considerable growth and are now rescuing over 500 animals per year while putting on community assistance programs throughout the city.
We’re always bombarded by how great it is to pursue your passion, etc – but we’ve spoken with enough people to know that it’s not always easy. Overall, would you say things have been easy for you?
In the 7 years that I ran OTAT in my “free time,” it was a massive struggle. I had to sneak out of court to field emergency calls, I had a hard time maintaining a personal life, and trying to manage growth and staff was not easy. My transition to OTAT wasn’t entirely easy either. Financially it hasn’t always been easy to go down to a non-profit salary, but over the years we have figured out how to make it work.
In terms of being full time with OTAT though it is completely my dream job and I feel like I’m living my dream life. While dog rescue isn’t easy it is still incredibly rewarding, inspiring, and fun. I get to play with dogs as a big part of my job and there’s nothing better than that.
So let’s switch gears a bit and go into the One Tail at a Time story. Tell us more about the business.
One Tail at a Time is a dog rescue that serves Chicagoland. The heart of our organization is our dog adoption program. We take in dogs that are in overcrowded shelters, place them in foster homes, get them proper veterinary care and socialization and then find them adoptive homes.
Over the years we have expanded to focus on Chicago’s neediest dogs. That means we intake sick dogs, injured dogs, large dogs and pitbulls, parvo positive puppies, neonate kittens, senior dogs, and other animals that are in immediate danger of euthanasia at our city shelter.
We also focus on community support to create solutions on the ground, before animals ever get to the shelter. We were one of the first groups in Chicago to bring large scale free vaccine clinics to the city. We operate them twice a year and serve about 300 dogs in each clinic. Additionally, we started the first coalition based shelter diversion program. The goal of that program is to assist families who come to the shelter to surrender their pet so that they can keep them and continue caring for them.
Has luck played a meaningful role in your life and business?
There is no room for luck in animal rescue. You are purposefully taking the hardest dog, the sickest dog, the dog that might die. You aren’t rolling a dice to get them better, but raising money and getting them needed vet care.
The best thing about OTAT are the people that support it, but those people didn’t come to us by chance. They fit in with us because they believe in the same things we do; compassion and hard work.
Contact Info:
- Address: One Tail at a Time Adoption Center
2144 N Wood St Chicago IL 60614 - Website: www.onetail.org
- Email: Heather@onetail.org
- Instagram: @onetailatatime
- Facebook: facebook.com/onetailatatime
- Twitter: twitter.com/onetailatatime
Getting in touch: VoyageChicago is built on recommendations from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you know someone who deserves recognition please let us know here.
