Our Story 

At Lifeline of Galveston County, we believe that no healthy or treatable pet should die simply because they don't have a place to go. Founded in September 2020, we are a grassroots nonprofit working to create a future where every companion animal in Galveston County has a chance to thrive.

Why We Started

Texas shelters see more animal deaths than any other state in the country, and Galveston County is no exception. In 2019 alone, over 2,300 cats and dogs lost their lives in our local municipal shelters. These were pets who didn’t find an adopter in time, weren’t claimed by their owner, or weren’t given a second chance.

 

But here’s the thing: it doesn’t have to be this way.

 

We started Lifeline to change the outcome for animals most at risk of slipping through the cracks. We aim to assist those overlooked, misunderstood, or simply out of time. We're here to build the programs and community support needed to save them.

Who We Serve

We prioritize the populations we know are most vulnerable in our local shelters:

• Community cats (feral, outdoor, or stray cats)

• Neonatal kittens

• Large Dogs 

• Nursing dog moms and puppies

• "Pitbull” or blocky-headed dogs

 

These animals are often the first to be euthanized in crowded municipal shelters not because they're unworthy of saving, but because the resources and programs to support them simply don't exist. Yet.

Our History 

In 2020, 25-year-old Caroline McKenna approached two friends, Jennifer Jones and Heather Heacock, with a bold idea: to start a nonprofit that could change the fate of at-risk animals in Galveston County. All three women had firsthand experience with the failings of the animal control system. With no funding, but a powerful vision, they launched Lifeline of Galveston County.

They started with the most at-risk population: cats. In 2019, cats made up 65% of shelter deaths in Galveston County many of them healthy outdoor cats who never belonged in a shelter to begin with.

 

Lifeline’s flagship program became Trap-Neuter-Return (TNR), a proven, humane approach to managing outdoor cat populations and preventing future suffering. Through TNR, outdoor cats are humanely trapped, spayed or neutered, vaccinated, ear-tipped for identification, and returned to their original location with a community caretaker. This strategy stabilizes colonies, prevents litters, and reduces nuisance behaviors like spraying and fighting benefiting both the cats and our neighborhoods.

 

In our first year, we facilitated just over 70 TNR surgeries. By 2023, that number had grown to over 1,500, thanks to our partnership with Fix Ur Pet, the daughter organization of SAVE Rescue. In 2022, we also launched our kitten adoption program, giving adoptable kittens from local colonies a second chance at life in loving homes.

 

As our program grew, we recognized the need to move faster. In 2023, we made a leap: signing a 3-year lease at a former hair salon in Webster to open our first adoption center. This allowed us to significantly expand our reach. By focusing on pulling at-risk pets from local municipal shelters and continuing to support colony kittens through Fix Ur Pet’s Traps to Laps program, our impact soared.

 

In 2025, we’re placing 50 to 80 pets per month, both dogs and cats, into adoptive homes. At any given time, we care for 50 to 100 animals in foster homes, many of whom are neonatal kittens, medical cases, or large-breed dogs overlooked in shelters. We also provide essential community support through our pet food bank and free vaccine clinics.

 

We started small with a dream, a few traps, and a lot of grit. Today, Lifeline is a safety net for the pets of Galveston County, and we’re just getting started.

Where We're Going

We envision a Galveston County where every pet has access to safety, care, and a second chance. While we began with community cats, we’re expanding our programs step by step to meet the needs of other vulnerable animals.

 

We're not a shelter. We're a safety net. And with your help, we can catch every animal before they fall.

 

Whether you're volunteering, fostering, donating, or simply sharing our story you are part of a growing movement to create a more humane future in Galveston County.

 

Together, we can end the killing of companion animals in our community.