Save a sato
Helping to rescue dogs in Puerto Rico
Maura Curley
It's fueled by love and outrage at a society that devalues animals.
The Puerto Rico based Save a Sato organization is a grass roots, hands-on initiative combating widespread abuse and neglect of dogs in Puerto Rico.
The name sato (pronounced Sah–toe) is the term for mixed breed street dog in Puerto Rico. Countless numbers of diseased, abused or neglected ”satos” roam the streets.
Save a Sato’s mission is to rescue as many of these dogs as possible, nurse them to health, and place them in loving environments. But stray animals are at such an epidemic proportion in Puerto Rico the task of helping them is complex. It begins with basic feeding programs for feral animals to establish trust, followed by proper medical care, spaying, neutering, rescue and finally re-homing.
The Save a Sato organization is comprised of a remarkable group of women, funded only by out of pocket personal donations, who operate without any government support. The dogs rescued are often seriously sick, but there are some wonderful before and after success stories.
The organization’s extraordinary endeavors, include basic care and rehoming of dogs, and a program, which sends dogs to stateside shelters for adoption. This is because nearly all shelters in Puerto Rico kill animals.
Several no kill shelters in the United States work closely with Save a Sato to placie stray dogs in private homes.
The program began in Massachusetts about 13 years ago.
The Northeast Animal Shelter in Salem Massachusetts was one of the first shelters in New England to get involved with the Save a Sato program.
Now shelters in Connecticut, Maine, New Jersey, New York and Florida are also assisting.
In the past American Airlines helped transport the animals as free cargo. But current security restrictions allow the dogs to travel only in partnership with a ticketed traveler.
Save a Sato is seeking donations of frequent flyer miles for dog transport.
It also needs passengers traveling from San Juan to any states with their partner shelters to consider escorting a dog to the airport, where it will be picked up by a shelter volunteer.
For more information visit saveastato. org.
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Maura Curley is publisher of virginvoices.com
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