The "S Dogs" (part 1)

Anxious yips and whines seemed to fill every bit of space in our Admissions hallway. Crates upon crates upon crates filled with terrified dogs lined the walls. Staff and volunteers hurriedly went to work getting each dog … Severus, Sherlock, Saber, Sunday, Sage … checked out as they entered our collaborative network of care.

Each of these Collie mixes … Saxon, Sharon, Seger, Shea, Sergio … had been rescued as the result of a case that our Humane Police Officers had been working on for nearly a decade. Dozens of dogs had been living on a property without adequate food, water or shelter. Their “home” was reminiscent of a junkyard. They … Sally, Shiloh, Sasha, Sonny … lived under broken-down cars, among trash and in their own waste. They received barely enough human interaction to survive.



They were so scared they were almost catatonic … Sheldon, Sedona, Salvatore, Scully … some needed immediate medical attention … Selena, Seneca, Sydney, Sanford, Shelly, Sargent … and were rushed to receive emergency care. Many were so fearful they wouldn’t even allow as much as the gentle touch of a compassionate staff or volunteer. We so badly wanted them to understand that they were finally safe, cared for and, most importantly, loved.

It was no easy task to get these pups to Animal Friends, but after more than 12 hours of working together, a team of staff and volunteers returned to our Resource Center. They were filthy, sunburnt and exhausted, yet overjoyed that these dogs would finally get a fresh start. Even after a full day of scouring the dilapidated property, there were still dogs in need of rescue. Over the next few months, our team returned to the property and one by one, brought back … Sean, Simon, Sierra, Steffan, Salem, Silas, Sanderson, Silchas … the remaining eight.



In all, 38 canines, lovingly dubbed the “S Dogs,” … September, Salma, Saturday, Sloane, Sal, Serena … were now in our care and ready to begin their second chance. At the time, physically getting them to Animal Friends seemed like the biggest hurdle we’d need to overcome. But had we known exactly what was ahead, we would have simply recognized that this was just the first step on the S Dogs’ long road to recovery …

Click here to read The "S Dogs" (part 2).

At Animal Friends, every day is full of compassion. Visit ThinkingOutsideTheCage.org/31Days to turn your compassion into action. After all, it only takes one day to save a life.