Alayna’s Story

I’ve always had a heart for animals. I started volunteering with local animal shelters in high school, and continued throughout college. But at the time, I really didn’t understand the magnitude of the homeless animal crisis in Texas. In fact, I grew up in a family that purchased dogs from breeders simply because we didn’t know any better. We didn’t have the knowledge or understanding of the problem.

After graduating from the University of Dallas with a business degree, I built a career in events and sales. Then I moved to the south side of Houston upon marrying my husband, and my eyes were opened to something I could no longer ignore: thousands of homeless animals being euthanized simply because there weren’t enough resources or willing adopters.

I felt called to use the gifts God gave me to help. What started as a hobby alongside my career eventually became Three Little Pitties Rescue after I had my son in 2018. In our first year, we saved more than 1,000 animals. Today, that number is more than 23,000.

I don’t take credit for those numbers. I believe God calls us to be good stewards of His creation. Proverbs 12:10 says, “a righteous person cares for the needs of their animal.”

These days, I’m a wife, mom of two, small hobby-farm owner, professional puppy-baby-voice user, and proud dog-and-cat person. (The cat part is especially impressive because I used to be afraid of cats. Now I’m a fan!)

I also love Dolly Parton, solving problems, and bringing smart people together to figure out how to do more with what we have. That’s what I love most about Three Little Pitties. It’s about what happens when people with different gifts, talents, and crazy ideas come together around one mission. Try new things. Stay humble enough to look for ways to improve. And work extremely hard together.

I’m incredibly grateful to be one small part of it.

— Alayna Matranga Goodson, Executive Director