Second Chance's mission is to rescue abandoned and stray cats and dogs, provide excellent care for each pet and match each pet with the best home for its needs, in order to ensure a long lifetime of safety, love and companionship. Second Chance also encourages responsible pet ownership through education, advocacy, programs and services.

It is hard to believe how far we have come from the day when three women, Cheri Sowter, Deborah Ruggero, and Judy Benrud sat down in 1987 and committed themselves to helping the homeless animals in the Triangle. As Judy relates, “There were a number of people talking about things that could be done, but it seemed few were actually doing anything.” They began by "fostering" the stray cats and dogs they would find. Word got around and other people who found strays would bring them to Second Chance. Things began to get bigger and bigger. They built a ”cat condo” in one of their back yards and one of the other women penned off part of her back yard for the stray dogs.

Judy and Cheri had ties to The College of Veterinary Medicine at North Carolina State University and were able to get donated time from some vets and vet students. Things blossomed even more, and in 1989, they decided to apply for non-profit status. They created by-laws, rules, contracts, screening guidelines and became a bona fide 501 (c) (3) rescue organization. They began recruiting volunteers to help them with the many tasks involved with caring for the animals and to assist with screening applicants. They recruited more vets to donate their time, drug companies to donate vaccinations and food companies to donate food.

Meanwhile, more and more volunteers came aboard, and more programs within Second Chance were created. Other volunteers began fostering animals, fundraisers were created, and ways to show the animals were discovered, such as adoptathons, advertisements and TV Public Service ads. Throughout this time Second Chance had relied on foster homes for all the animals in its program. However, as Second Chance continued to grow and create more programs, including a humane education program, a cageless no-kill facility to house cats was opened in February 2004.

With the opening of the first facility the number of animals that moved through Second Chance’s programs doubled. In 2006, Second Chance touched the lives of nearly 900 abandoned and homeless pets.

Second Chance will continue to partner with its extended family of supporters, volunteers, and other rescue groups to work toward the common goal of no more homeless animals.

The guiding principles on which Judy, Cheri and Deborah founded Second Chance continue to this day. Namely that Second Chance itself would make a lifetime commitment to each of the animals it rescued; retaining the option of taking them back in the event the new home could not keep them, for whatever reason. Each animal will receive the best medical care available, each animal will receive unconditional love and time to be socialized, and each animal will be carefully matched with the best home for its needs in order to ensure a lifetime of safety, love, and companionship.