In May, our program was at full capacity. On the one hand, it's positive because we are helping as many satos as we can, but on the other hand, with no more room in our program, it leaves us unable to help more satos. We therefore asked our community of supporters to help us raise funds to fly over 100 satos on two planes in two months. And you delivered!

We not only unlocked $40,000 from our original goal of matching funds, but we unlocked an additional $10,000 in dollar-for-dollar matching gifts. We want to share our deep appreciation to all of our individual donors and give a big thank you to our matching partners: Sidewalk Angels Foundation, Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS, the Schultz Family Foundation, a group of wonderful people in Hollywood, Florida, and a generous group of donors who wish to remain anonymous. 

Above is Chrissy with Buddy, our senior sato who was with us since last December. He went through our 90-day heartworm treatment program and due to his legs healing poorly after being hit by a car, he was fitted for a wheelchair donated by Joey's Paw. Buddy is one of the 100 satos that flew in the last four weeks. He is now living his best life with his forever family in Colorado. We cannot thank you enough for believing in us, and caring about the work we do for all the satos whose lives we help transform for the better. Because of all of you, we raised over $100,000 to help fly two planes full of satos and open up space in our program to help more satos during the start of hurricane season.



You helped us raise the funds, and our task was to complete the mission of sending 100 satos to NJ and NY to forever families. Our first flight was scheduled for Saturday, May 20th, but mother nature had other plans for us. 

We had record rainfall on Friday, May 19th as we were preparing crates and getting ready to fly 60 lucky satos to New Jersey. We knew there was inclement weather, but we thought we could fly around the storm. We loaded up the planes with the dogs, said our goodbyes, and the plane flew into the stormy night sky. The storm, however, moved too quickly and pushed our flight path over Cuban airspace. Unfortunately, this path wasn’t a possibility due to a 48-hour notice requirement. We were left with no choice. The plane had to turn around and land back in Puerto Rico. 

At that time, our small but mighty team was already awake for 24 hours. But the love and dedication to our satos are what helped us find the strength to drive back to a different airport to unload the dogs and bring them back to the Sanctuary. After the satos stretched their legs and had a meal, we cleaned all 60 crates in preparation for round two Saturday night. Luckily, the weather was calmer, the flight took off on time, and our satos landed safely in Morristown, New Jersey on Sunday morning. We are so grateful for all of our volunteers and adopters who remained flexible during the last-minute, unexpected flight change. Adopters were happy to meet their satos, with even more appreciation, given the stormy weather the previous night.

We also helped transport rescued animals from Puerto Rico to our trusted partners Paws4survival. Below is our beloved sato, Stanley. He was rescued in the parking lot of our vet clinic while the Morgan Stanley team was in Puerto Rico. Our sweet Stanley was adopted by Chris and is now enjoying life with his loving forever family.



Less than four weeks later, we were preparing another flight of 40 satos. Fortunately, the weather was more cooperative, and we were able to load the plane without concern of delays.

The photo below shows our team in San Juan, Puerto Rico loading our second plane just past midnight on Saturday, June 17th. This time of year, the time between April and November, flights are more challenging. Not only are storms more common and rain comes down harder, but the heat indexes reach their highest. That’s why we crate the dogs and get them to the airport by midnight and start loading the plane as soon as we can. At night, the temperature doesn’t drop much, but without the heat of the sun, it’s manageable for the satos. We aimed for a 2 am takeoff so that the satos will stay as cool as possible during loading. We do whatever it takes to make sure these satos are safe and as comfortable as possible.

Our chartered plane filled with crated satos landed at Westchester County Airport around 11 am that same morning. As always, we depend heavily on volunteers to help us uncrate the pups, harness them up, and hand them off to adopters, along with veterinary paperwork and tips on how to ensure the safety of their new family member. 

Below are two adoptive families. On the left, is Yah with her new sweet sato, Gemini. On the right, Lauren is smiling with her five-month-old puppy, Myra. Adopting a sato not only gives the dog a better life, but it also improves the quality of life for the adopters. We are so excited to see our satos, who once were struggling to survive, be truly happy.

Thank you for following the work we do for the stray dogs in Puerto Rico. If you would like to support our rescue efforts, you can make a donation today. CLICK HERE to help fund our life-changing rescue efforts for so many satos.

Help save satos.

Cyd Marie flew to New Jersey on May 20th, but her journey didn't stop there. She traveled a little further east to Rhode Island, where she lives with her adopter, Beth.

At the beginning of this year, we rescued Cyd Marie and her three siblings. They were living with an elderly woman in Puerto Rico, who had dementia and was struggling to take care of her dogs. She loved her dogs dearly, but due to her deteriorating mental health, these poor angels were not being taken care of properly and were not in ideal conditions.

For the past month, Cyd Marie has been adapting quite nicely to her surroundings. She's exploring the condo community they call home with Beth by her side. This eight-year-old sato loves stopping to smell everything during walks and gets lots of peaceful outdoor time.

Beth and Cyd have formed a special bond! On the first day in her home, Cyd was unable to "tolerate any separation at all — she had to be in direct physical contact with me every minute," Beth shared. "As I write this on day two, I am in the living room and she is hanging out on the bedroom floor. She can’t see or hear me, but she knows I’m here and she is perfectly content. I’m thrilled with the progress she’s made in confidence and independence in just 24 hours. I can’t wait to see her reach her full potential!"

We know Beth and Cyd were meant to be together and make each other's lives sweeter.

We said it before and we will say it again, senior satos are the sweetest satos.