Step One: You Shop
When you buy a Pink Tongue bandana, you are joining a community of people who believe in adoption, compassion, and transparency.

Step Two: We Give
5% of every sale goes straight to our shelter partners. That money is used to offset adoption fees, fund medical care, and keep shelters running when donations run thin.

Step Three: Dogs Go Home
Lower fees mean faster adoptions. Each time a fee is reduced or waived, another dog gets a home, another kennel opens up, and another life is saved.

The Shelter Crisis: Why Adoption Fees Matter

There are more than 3.3 million dogs entering U.S. shelters each year. Most small rescues depend on adoption fees to cover vaccines, surgeries, microchips, food, rent, and transportation. The problem is that those same fees can keep dogs in kennels longer than necessary.

When adoption slows down, shelters fill up. When shelters fill up, costs rise. When costs rise, fewer dogs can be saved.

By lowering adoption fees, we interrupt that cycle. It allows shelters to move dogs into homes faster, opens up space for new rescues, and gives every animal a better chance at life.

And despite the myths, lowering or waiving fees does not lead to worse outcomes. Studies show that pets adopted during low or no-fee events are just as loved, just as well cared for, and just as likely to stay in their homes as those adopted at full price.

Lowering fees simply ensures that money never stands in the way of love.

Border Tails Rescue: A Story of Heart, Grit, and Second Chances

Our giving program began with a small shelter called Border Tails Rescue in Northbrook, Illinois. If you have ever visited, you know it is not a glamorous facility. There are no big sponsors or shiny corporate backers. What you find instead is the sound of barking, laughter, and love, dogs who have been through the worst but are now getting a chance to start over.

The story of Border Tails Rescue begins with one woman, Harleigh Garcia.

When Harleigh was just 20 years old, she made a decision that changed her life and thousands of others. She decided to start a rescue. She had no major funding, no experience running a business, and no plan other than to save as many “underdogs” as she could.

In her first year, she rescued and adopted out about 700 dogs. She did it from a small building in the suburbs with help from volunteers and donations from the community. She poured her savings into it, including the money she had set aside for her own wedding. For two years, she took no salary. Every dollar went to the dogs.

Her rescue, Border Tails, quickly became known for saying “yes” to the dogs everyone else said “no” to: seniors, bully breeds, medical cases, and stray dogs from impoverished areas. Over time, Harleigh and her team began pulling dogs from overcrowded shelters across the United States and Mexico. When others saw a challenge, she saw a second chance.

By 2025, Border Tails Rescue had saved more than 6,500 dogs. For a shelter that young, it is an incredible number. But those dogs did not come easy. Most of them arrived with medical problems, trauma, or months of neglect. They required food, medicine, vaccinations, and surgeries. All of that cost money: far more than the adoption fee usually covers.

Border Tails runs almost entirely on adoption fees and small donations. There are no grants or trust funds. It is a rescue fueled by heart, hustle, and community support.

Recognizing how uneven the economics of rescue can be, Harleigh created a unique internal program called the Guardian Angel Adoption Fund. This program allows the fees from highly adoptable dogs, such as purebreds or puppies, to subsidize the costs for dogs that are harder to place. In her words, “We use the additional funds from easier adoptions to help lower fees for pit bulls, long-term residents, and medical cases.”

It is a quiet act of fairness that changes lives. A puppy’s adoption fee can help pay for a senior dog’s surgery. A quick adoption can help fund the care of one that takes months.

But even with creative programs like this, shelters like Border Tails constantly operate at the edge of financial survival. Every month is a balancing act: cover the vet bills or pay rent, order food or fix the kennels. This is where Pink Tongue comes in.

By donating 5 percent of our sales directly to partners like Border Tails, we help fill that gap. When a shelter can afford to lower adoption fees without losing funding, it means more families can step forward. It means fewer dogs stuck in kennels, fewer hard choices, and more happy endings.

This is the model we want to replicate nationwide: a cycle where community funding meets compassion to break financial barriers. Every purchase from Pink Tongue fuels that cycle.

FAQs

Why do shelters charge adoption fees at all?

Because they must. In smaller rescues, adoption fees cover the real cost of rescuing, housing, and caring for dogs.

Why are high fees a problem?
Because they can delay adoptions and lead to overcrowding. Lower fees mean faster placements and more lives saved.

Do lower fees lead to bad adoptions?
No. Studies across the country show that reduced-fee adoptions have equal or higher retention rates. People adopt because they love animals, not because of the price tag.

How does my purchase help?
Every time you buy a Pink Tongue bandana, 5 percent of your purchase goes directly to shelters like Border Tails Rescue. That money is used to offset or cover adoption fees so dogs can go home sooner.

Can I nominate a shelter for partnership?
Yes. We are expanding our giving network. If you know a shelter that could benefit from our program, reach out through our contact form in the about us section.

Border Tails Rescue, Northbrook, IL

Bideawee, New York, NY

Pink Tongue pledges to donate 5% of the purchase price of each product sold, excluding taxes, shipping fees, discounts, and returns, to support our partner shelters and rescue organizations. The “purchase price” is defined as the retail price paid by the customer at the time of purchase, before any applicable taxes, shipping costs, or promotional discounts are applied.

100% Donation Collection: Every so often, we release a special bandana where 100% of profits go directly toward a specific shelter or cause. That means after covering production, shipping, and third party logistics costs, every remaining dollar is donated.

Donations are distributed at Pink Tongue’s discretion to qualified nonprofit organizations working directly in dog rescue, adoption, medical care, and shelter support. While we frequently highlight our impact and the organizations we support, the specific recipients and donation amounts may vary based on need, geography, and timing.

Donations are calculated and distributed on a regular basis, typically monthly. In cases of order cancellation, refund, chargeback, or product return, the donation amount associated with that order will be adjusted or withheld accordingly.

Pink Tongue reserves the right to modify or discontinue this donation program at any time, for any reason, without prior notice. Updates to these terms will be posted publicly and will apply to future purchases from the time of posting.

This program is not intended to constitute a charitable solicitation or partnership. Rather, it is a voluntary initiative by Pink Tongue to allocate a portion of proceeds to causes aligned with our mission. Donations are made by Pink Tongue LLC and not by the individual purchaser. Purchases made on this website are not tax-deductible to the customer.

For questions about the program or to request a summary of impact, please contact us at info@pinktongueco.com