The Department of Agriculture in Missouri called in Best Friends Animal Society to assist in rescuing more than 200 dogs this week from an unlicensed breeding farm. When state officials had arrived to take over custody of the dogs, the owner of the facility had set fire to it and began shooting at anyone who attempted to enter, including firefighters.

To bring a happy ending to this brutal situation, Best Friends put out an immediate plea for donations to fund the operation. Dan and I knew we wanted to do something to help. We discussed options and quickly came forward with $2,500, a large percentage of what they were asking for, to help them rescue these poor “babies” from this disgusting man.

It took three days for a Best Friends six-person team to finish its work in helping round up the dogs, who were dispersed across 100 partially fenced acres. From what we can tell, it was a grueling, often heart-wrenching effort. All of these doggies had to be captured, identified, tagged and then taken to new shelters and veterinary hospitals for those who were sick or injured. And, of course, the team had to win over the shy dogs who didn’t trust humans and round-up the escape artists.

It’s heroic efforts like these that help to make Best Friends such an incredible organization that we are proud to support with our “I’m Tired of Animal Cruelty” bracelet. To read the entire story, click here.

Posted by Carrie Pollare

Photos by Gary Kalpakoff