Life-saving companion animal superheroes, collecting starfish in Hoke, Cumberland, and Moore Counties, one dog and cat at a time.
Tilted Acres Rescue & Adoptions (TARA Rescue) is a foster-based, all-volunteer rescue. Every dog and cat lives in a real home while we carefully match them with families where they can actually thrive, not just “fit for now.”
TARA Rescue officially began on January 1, 2014, but our roots go back to a tilted little piece of property, an Australian Shepherd, and a woman who couldn’t stop throwing starfish back into the ocean.
Tilted Acres Rescue & Adoptions grew out of the work of the Hoke/Raeford Humane Society (HRHS), whose primary mission is spay/neuter and community support. Our founder, Karen, started taking in dogs and cats who needed more than just a clinic appointment. One turned into a few, a few turned into a network of fosters, and eventually it made sense to create a dedicated rescue group.
The name comes from Karen’s own property, where a tree grew at a dramatic angle on a bit of tilted ground. “Tilted Acres” became a joke, then a nickname, and eventually the name of the rescue. Being in the South, T.A.R.A. also just felt right.
While TARA became its own 501(c)(3) organization, we remain on excellent terms with HRHS and share the same core goal: fewer unwanted litters, fewer animals suffering, and more pets sleeping safely inside.
Since we began, more than 12,000 animals have found homes through TARA, and we now average around 1,000 adoptions each year thanks to our foster families, volunteers, and supporters.
Our motto comes from the story of the girl and the starfish — the reminder that even when we can’t save them all, we can make a world of difference for the one in front of us.
Karen, our founder and original director, liked to say she was “just trying to collect starfish.” She knew she couldn’t fix everything, but she absolutely could make sure this dog, this cat, this litter of puppies or kittens didn’t slip through the cracks.
Her life revolved around rescue. If she wasn’t grooming, she was moving animals between fosters, triaging late-night emergencies, or bottle-feeding whoever needed it most. Her fridge held vaccines and coffee creamer. Her freezer held tiny bodies waiting for respectful cremation. Her heart held every single one of them.
When Karen died, the loss was enormous. The work didn’t get easier — if anything, it got harder. But the animals kept coming, and the need didn’t stop. So neither did we.
Today, TARA Rescue continues in the spirit she set: stubbornly hopeful, a little tired, and still absolutely determined to make a difference for the next starfish. Fueled, of course, by coffee.
We’re not a big building with rows of kennels. We’re a web of homes, hearts, and fosters across Hoke and Cumberland Counties and nearby communities, allsupported by a small leadership team and a lot of volunteers.
TARA Rescue is powered by a small leadership team and a much larger circle of fosters, volunteers, and supporters who show up, over and over again.
Behind them is an ever-rotating crew of fosters, transporters, event volunteers, and people who say “yes” when an animal needs help right now.
We couldn’t do this without the businesses and clinics that support the animals in our care:
These partners help us provide the medical care our animals need, from routine vaccines to middle-of-the-night emergencies.
TARA Rescue is based in Raeford, NC and primarily serves Hoke County and nearby communities. We see the same neighborhoods, the same shelters, the same people who love their animals but sometimes need help.
Whether it’s pulling animals at risk in local shelters, helping families in crisis rehome responsibly, or supporting spay/neuter and microchipping events, our work is rooted right here at home.
We’re small, scrappy, and stubborn in the best possible way. And we’re not going anywhere.
Rescue is hard. It’s also full of ridiculous joy: first tail wags out of a shelter, nervous cats finally choosing a lap, and update photos months later from families who can’t imagine life without “that dog” or “that cat” anymore.