Misfit Mountain seeks to help animals and owners alike
Amy McIntosh snuggles one of Misfit Mountain’s furry residents. Donated photo
The holiday season is among the toughest times in the animal rescue world. Adopting pets isn’t always front of mind for people, and harsh weather can create a sense of urgency when rehoming furry friends.
For Amy and Tera McIntosh, founders of Misfit Mountain in the Thickety community northwest of Canton, running an animal rescue has never been easy. But with passion and help from equally eager volunteers, they’ve grown their nonprofit into a thriving operation. Both Amy and Tera bring something to the table. Tera handles the books and runs the operational side of things, while Amy deals with the animals, a job that can both be wonderfully rewarding and painfully difficult.
Amy McIntosh told The Smoky Mountain News that Misfit Mountain, which is coming up on its second anniversary on Dec. 18, has been a blessing for her.
“When I was a kid, I always wanted to start my own animal rescue, Amy said. “I told my mom I’d build the rescue in the backyard and connect it to our house with a tube.”
When she was younger, Amy volunteered and worked at vet practices doing whatever she could to help out, including walking dogs and cleaning. About four years ago, the couple moved to Haywood County, and Tera surprised her wife with a large parcel of land, about 12 acres, on which they could build the rescue.
“When we got it, it was just a big overgrown field and nothing else,” Amy said.
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They got to work, and before long, they had the bones of what one day would become Misfit Mountain, a name that calls attention to the fact that rescue animals can sometimes be thought of as misfits. They figured why not embrace that?
Misfit Mountain has a slightly different mission than most other rescues. They haven’t euthanized an animal, although McIntosh said one time, they were close to making that decision. In addition, the rescue not only tries to rehome and foster out animals; it also tries to get animals whose owners are going through a tough time — like those who may be experiencing homelessness or a mental health crisis — back into their previous homes after their stay. Sometimes people just need a chance to get back on their feet before they can go back to caring for their fur baby, McIntosh said.
“We want to be proactive and remind people that just because they’re going through something, that doesn’t necessarily make them bad,” she said. “So if they want to reclaim their animal, we’ll help them.”
One program created with aim in mind is Misfit Mountain’s Summer Camp, which offers temporary foster care for the pets of those “experiencing addiction, mental health, physical health treatment or temporary homelessness.”
“Often times animal owners have limited finances or family support to help out so that’s where we step in because we know that just because you ‘are going through something’ doesn’t make you a bad pup owner,” a page on the rescue’s website reads. “We have all been there. When you foster a pup in summer camp you help keep one more animal out of an already overcrowded shelter.”
Misfit Mountain is located in the Thickety community. Donated photo
Misfit Mountain will also take in animals from crowded rural shelters. Just recently, they took in a few dogs from Duplin and Vance counties, rural areas with fewer resources to rehome rescue animals.
“We get multiple inquiries every week from shelters asking if we can help them pull animals, and we get calls and texts from families looking to surrender their animals,” Amy said.
Amy said things have been busy for her and her wife, who both also have jobs of their own.
“We haven’t hit a slow period yet,” she said.
Part of the problem is that people are busy enough with their own lives that volunteering and fostering hasn’t been a priority, leaving the McIntoshes to shoulder an outsized burden. The nature of the work requires them to be on-call 24/7.
“Last night at like 8 o’clock, we assisted a family who made an appointment and went into an emergency vet to request a behavior euthanasia for a dachshund who is food aggressive with its owner,” Amy said, adding that they took in the dog during what proved to be an emotionally charged situation. “The dad was in tears and gave me a big, long hug.”
But those kinds of experiences, tough as they may be, are why Amy said she keeps doing the work.
“That’s my driving force is to see these animals who don’t have a voice like humans, they can’t go out and ask for help, money, food, that’s my driving force is to be a voice for them,” she said.
But at this point, Amy said that although they love their work, more hands would go a long way.
“The biggest thing is time — time with animals time at rescue, time doing laundry and cleaning up dog poop, things that help make the big picture easier,” she said. “The biggest factor is we are so overrun by animals, there are strays, there are neglected animals, there are animals who don’t have homes. Every little bit helps, but it’s difficult to make a dent in such a large issue.”
In addition to volunteers and people willing to foster animals, Amy said that donations are a major need now to keep things operating into the new year. The rescue is hosting a fundraiser this Saturday, Dec. 15, called “A Festivus for the Rest of Us,” a nod to the classic Seinfeld episode. At that fundraiser, Santa Claus will be on hand, and there will be a food drive. In addition, there will be an ugly sweater contest with a twist — instead of humans, the entrants will be animals, meaning anyone who turns out should find the ugliest Christmas sweater that fits their pet.
Anyone interested in adopting, fostering, volunteering or donating can visit misfitmountainnc.org.
