The organization Tracy’s Dogs began in 2011 when Tracy Whyatt was furloughed from her job for six weeks. She used the time to visit animal shelters near San Antonio. She began filming dogs who were especially unlikely to be adopted and posted them on line. Before long, people from all over the country were expressing interest in adopting them.
It became a full time job in itself and now the non-profit she founded is rescuing dogs from shelters in southern Texas and finding them homes elsewhere in the country. As Operations Director Liz Grabarits describes their work: “We take them to our facility in San Antonio and we rehabilitate them, get them healthy, get them ready to be adopted, and then we get them all pre-adopted. And then we transport them up to northern cities and all of the families that have pre-adopted these dogs get to meet them for the very first time.”
The facility where Tracy’s Dogs does the rehab work can only hold 100 dogs. Each month, about 60 of them are taken to their forever homes. When someone adopts one of the dogs, they’re really rescuing three: the adoption frees a space at Tracy’s Dogs, which in turn frees a space at the shelter. In a five year period, they’ve been able to find homes for over 3,700 dogs and hope to see that number grow even more in the future.
Tracy’s Dogs works in partnership with pet supply retailer PetSmart, which provides space for the dog trailer and the dog parents-to-be. In the video posted below, you’ll learn more about the organization and see the wonderful moments when people meet the dogs they’re adopting.
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