100 Dogs On Californian Death Row Flown To Vancouver For New Life

100 rescue dogs who were on death row in California were flown to Vancouver for a new lease on life.

The rescue mission was coordinated by Vancouver’s Thank Dog I Am Out and was assisted by Landmark Aviation and Wings of Rescue. The 100 lucky pooches, who arrived this weekend to their new home and native land, were plucked from high kill shelters in the Los Angeles area.

Though there was some dreary weather to contend with when they landed, the California dogs were warmly greeted by hundreds of animal lovers, eager to adopt them (after they went through customs and were checked out by a veterinarian, of course).

“It’s been the most amazing show of support for rescue,” Susan Patterson, the founder of Thank Dog I Am Out, told CTV News. She said the high amount of stray dogs in California leads to overcrowding in shelters, which often means euthanasia for the number of canines who aren’t being adopted right away.

“When you have a shelter that holds 600 dogs and you’re getting 200 a day and only 40 are getting adopted a day, you do the math,” Patterson said. “It becomes a critical situation where the dogs have to be euthanized.”

But, thanks to the rescue society, these dogs went from death row to their forever homes. Hundreds of pre-registered (and pre-screened) prospective pup parents went through the rows and rows of of pens containing mostly small and mixed-breed dogs in hopes of finding the latest addition of their family, which many did.

“No matter what,” Patterson said. “These dogs are safe.”

The event was so successful that organizers said there could be another one just before Christmas — because there is no better gift than the one of life and love for a much deserving dog.

We salute all of the volunteers who made this cross-border event possible.

Via