A Lifetime of Quiet Love Building to This Moment
OUR FOUNDERS
From One Dog Named Tweetie to a Sanctuary Built on Love
It started in the 1970s with a scrappy little dog named Tweetie — and a gentle giant named Big Max. JoAnn and John had no grand plan the day they brought those first two home, just the simple conviction that every animal deserved to be wanted. That conviction never left them.
Over the decades that followed, they opened their hearts to the old ones, the sick ones, the ones nobody else would take. They watched as shelters turned away senior residents. They saw horses sent to slaughter when they could no longer work. And quietly, steadily, they made a promise: one day, they would build a place where these animals could simply rest.
In the 1980s, they purchased land in North Attleboro, Massachusetts, and named it Tortoise Hare Farm — inspired by the Aesop fable about patience, persistence, and the quiet triumph of steady love over haste. For decades, the farm waited alongside them. Now, that vision is becoming reality.
Tortoise Hare Farm Sanctuary is not a rescue. It is not an adoption center. It is something rarer and more needed: a permanent, loving home for residents in the final chapter of their lives. For every creature the system has written off, Tortoise Hare Farm Sanctuary writes a different ending — one defined by warmth, dignity, and the simple gift of being wanted.
Mission & Vision
Our Mission
Tortoise Hare Farm Sanctuary provides a safe, permanent, and loving home for senior, special-needs, and otherwise unadoptable animals, offering them dignity, comfort, and compassion for the rest of their natural lives.
Our Vision
A world where no animal is discarded because of age, illness, or circumstance; where every creature's final chapter is written with love.
Our Core Values
Compassion First
Every decision begins with empathy, for the residents in our care and the people who make it possible.
Permanent Sanctuary
We do not rehome. Every resident who arrives is here for the rest of their life. That is our promise.
Dignity in Every Stage
Quality of life is our highest priority, whether days or decades remain. Every resident deserves comfort and joy.
Radical Inclusion
We welcome residents others have given up on: feral, FeLV-positive, geriatric, and those with complex special needs.
Transparency & Trust
Our supporters deserve to see exactly where their generosity goes. We share openly and honestly.
Community Partnership
We grow alongside our neighbors; veterinarians, local rescues, volunteers, schools, and families.
HOW WE GOT HERE
Decades of Quiet Determination
Every sanctuary is built on a thousand small decisions. Here are the milestones that shaped ours.
Tweetie & Big Max
JoAnn and John rescue their first dogs, setting a lifelong commitment in motion.
The Farm Is Founded
JoAnn and John purchase land in North Attleboro, Massachusetts, and name it Tortoise Hare Farm.
A Living Promise
The farm becomes home to dozens of animals others have turned away — a sanctuary in practice before it carries the name.
Building the Vision
Tortoise Hare Farm Sanctuary begins formal organization, 501(c)(3) registration, and facility planning.
Opening Our Doors
Construction begins. The sanctuary prepares to welcome its first official residents.
READY TO MAKE A DIFFERENCE