Dear Sato Supporter,
As if the people and animals of Puerto Rico had not already braved incredible challenges this year thus far—from almost 10,000 earthquakes rattling our island to the Covid-19 pandemic bringing our transports to a screeching halt—now weather experts have issued the most threatening hurricane forecast ever. But we are #satostrong and you can count on us NOT to remain calm before the storm. Our small but mighty team quickly mobilized, and the first evacuation flight is landing in Florida at this very moment…
This grim weather report makes us even more relieved that our special-needs pup, Speedy, was able to flee Puerto Rico literally the morning after the first hurricane of the season, Isaias—via private jet, no less! Read more about his lucky break (and that of nearly 100 other dogs this weekend) below. As always, this 11-hour, life-saving work wouldn’t be possible without your continued support so thank you for always being in our corner when we need you the most.
In gratitude,
-- Chrissy Beckles, President & Founder
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STORM TROOPERS
Puerto Rico braces for the worst hurricane season ever, but not before we evacuate 90 satos to safety
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Top: Hurricane Isaias raining down upon Puerto Rico. Image: CBS
Left: SASFAPR's flooded kennels. Right: Aug 14 Freedom Flight!
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The 2020 Atlantic season has already seen an unprecedented nine tropical storms form before August, and up to 25 storms are predicted before it’s over November 30th (for perspective, an average season produces 12 storms total). Not only will there be more storms, but they will be stronger and longer lived.
"[Up to] 11 are predicted to become hurricanes, with three to six of those forecast to be major hurricanes of Category 3 or stronger." — CNN
Needless to say, we have a turbulent few months ahead of us. Roughly 20,000 Puerto Ricans are still living under FEMA tarps three years after catastrophic Hurricane Maria, but the hits keep coming. Two weeks ago, Hurricane Isaias battered the Southwestern corner of island, leaving widespread flooding and power outages in its wake. One of our partners, Santuario San Fransisco de Asis in Cabo Rojo (SASFPR), already lost an entire wing of their shelter to the earthquakes earlier this year, and now 45% of their kennels have been deemed unusable. With Tropical Storm Josephine picking up speed in the Atlantic, we aren’t wasting any time. We teamed up with Wings of Rescue to fly 45 animals to Florida today and 45 to TN tomorrow—all satos (and one gato) from shelters impacted by Hurricane Isaias, including SASFAPR.
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Left: Speedy boards his first class Freedom Flight. Top Right: Getting checked out by Oradell's top cardiac surgeon. Bottom Right: Speedy—now Pablo—being pampered in his forever home. |
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When we rescue dogs who have survived on the streets of Puerto Rico for years, we expect them to test positive to heartworm, to suffer raw skin from mange, to limp on fractured limbs. But the diagnosis of a heart defect in a puppy, whose new life is just beginning, feels simply unfair.
Just days before our Mission Possible 11 transport, our vet discovered Speedy had a heart murmur. We rushed him to the best veterinary cardiac specialist in San Juan for an echocardiogram, which revealed he had pulmonic stenosis and would require a surgery so advanced it wasn’t even offered in Puerto Rico. Speedy had an amazing family in NY waiting for him but he had missed his Freedom Flight and commercial airlines’ Covid-19 live-animal cargo suspensions are still in place. The clock was ticking…
In a stroke of luck, a family vacationing in PR were flying back to the mainland on a private plane and offered this special-needs pup a ride. On July 31st, the morning after Hurricane Isaias threatened to bungle Speedy’s plans yet again, our jet-setting sato flew to the mainland in style. His adopters immediately consulted with Oradell Animal Hospital in NJ’s top cardiac surgeon and Speedy—now Pablo—is going to get the treatment he needs so that he can live a long, healthy life.
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Sato Superhero: Kristin O'Brien |
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Before & After!
Kristin's first rescue on Dead Dog Beach & later reunited in NY.
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A few years ago, Kristin adopted a sato from one of our shelter partners and was hooked. She cut her teeth volunteering for us in myriad roles, from handling dogs at events to cleaning crates at transports. She always went above and beyond (even amassing donated products for pet owners at Spayathon) so when we began looking for a Volunteer Coordinator, we knew she was up to the task.
What inspired you to volunteer for TSP?
I love having the opportunity to give back to the organization that saved my best friend. Charlotte is a cancer survivor and being able to help other dogs on behalf of her means everything to me. I’m so happy I adopted her when I did!
What is your favorite part of the gig?
Transports feel like Christmas morning to me. I love seeing everyone come together and work so efficiently to help the pups get on their way. The July 5th transport really blew me away. Seeing 100 dogs ALL go home with adopters gave me such an overwhelming feeling of happiness.
What is the Spayathon volunteer experience like?
Spayathon is a whirlwind and some of the best weeks of my life. From meeting the amazing people of Puerto Rico to seeing the high-quality vetting it takes to run a high-volume spay/neuter clinic, you realize it really does take a village. It’s extremely rewarding and I can't wait to go back!
You visited Dead Dog Beach while you were there. What was that like?
It is pretty shocking and the perfect place to dump dogs unfortunately. I didn't know just how dangerous of an area it is. We passed by the body of a dog someone had burned on the beach which only proves why TSP’s mission is so important. To our surprise, we found a litter of puppies; one's tail had been cut off! We were lucky to have Chrissy take us on a rescue mission to bring them into the program. They were all adopted by amazing families in NYC.
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Kristin giving the transport team a pre-game pep talk at Mission Possible 11 in July. Photo: NYC Pet Photographer
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The Sato Project is dedicated to rescuing abused and abandoned dogs in Puerto Rico, where there are an estimated 500,000 stray dogs and a combined 94% euthanasia rate across all municipal shelters. We have rescued over 4,000 dogs, rehabilitated them with the highest standards of veterinary care, and found them loving homes on the mainland U.S.. We are also working to make permanent change on the island through community outreach and a Spay, Neuter, Vaccinate and Microchip Program. |
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"We fight so the dogs of Puerto Rico don't have to." |
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