A dog on The Sato Project’s Dec. 28 freedom flight (left) and rescue workers loading recently adopted pets on a plane to New York (right).Photo:The Sato Project
The Sato Project
Dozens of dogs celebrated the start of 2024 in new homes thanks to a committed group of rescuers.
On Dec. 28,The Sato Projectand their partnerWings of Rescuecarefully packed up 133 homeless pets pulled from the streets of Puerto Rico in carriers. The pets were then flown to Westchester County Airport in White Plains, New York, where eager adopters were waiting to take all the animals to new homes.
“There are currently an estimated 500,000 stray dogs roaming the island’s streets and beaches. With no access to food, fresh water, or veterinary care, many of these dogs are living daily lives of severe suffering. The municipal shelter system is drastically overwhelmed, with only five shelters across all 78 of the island’s municipalities. All of them have incredibly high euthanasia rates. For thousands of stray and abandoned dogs in the area in which we operate, we are their only hope.” Chrissy Beckles, who founded The Sato Project in 2011, said in the group’s release.
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A rescue dog in a carrier outside the plane used to fly over 130 pets from Puerto Rico to New York for one of The Sato Project’s freedom flights.The Sato Project
The Sato Project and Wings of Rescue often team up on freedom flights like the one on Dec. 28, which took months of planning to pull off. But the Dec. 28 trip marks the first time Sonesta International Hotels has contributed to a freedom flight. The company offered the families adopting pets on the plane an overnight stay at the Sonesta White Plains Downtown, so they were ready and refreshed when they welcomed their new family members.
“Travel is better with your furry companion, which is why partnering with Wings of Rescue on this flight was so important to Sonesta,” Elizabeth Harlow, the chief brand officer of Sonesta International Hotels, said in a statement. “Rescuing animals is a testament to the transformative power of love, and pet-friendly accommodations become the sanctuary where our loyal friends find solace and families find joy.”
Among the 133 pets that landed in New York on the evening of Dec. 28 to meet their new families was a senior pooch named Pancho. According to The Sato Project, the canine was abandoned in 2019 and has been under the rescue’s care for over 18 months. It took Pancho years to attract the attention of an adopter, but he remained patient.“Pancho has seen countless other satos [a term for street dogs in Puerto Rico] come and go into forever homes,” Melissa Giordano, the adoption and foster manager at The Sato Project, said. “It can be harder for senior dogs to get adopted, and Pancho is around 8-10 years old – but that never made him any less of an incredible candidate to join a loving family. We didn’t give up on Pancho.”
Now, Pancho and the other pets on the freedom flight are all enjoying the first few days of 2024 in new homes across the northeastern U.S.
To learn more about The Sato Project and how to support the organization’s efforts,visit the nonprofit’s website.
source: people.com
