My Experience Saving 110 Dogs from Being Euthanized Valerie Ruberto

His name was Tiger. He was a 13-year-old Yorkshire Terrier with eyes that were too big for his face. He was nervous, understandably, having been displaced after his family had to give him up. Tiger was one of 3.9 million dogs that enter shelters every year, and was one of the 1.2 million who were scheduled to be euthanized (according to the ASPCA).

I met Tiger while volunteering for an organization called Freedom Train Animal Rescue Transports. They transfer dogs from overcrowded “kill” shelters in the south to “no-kill” shelters in the north. Each volunteer drives one leg of the trip, about 60-90 miles, to a meeting spot where the dogs are transferred to the next volunteer, “relay style,” until they reach their destination. I did not know what to expect during my first time volunteering with Freedom Train. When we arrived at the meeting spot to pick up the dogs we were assigned to transport, another volunteer walked Tiger over to me. She explained that Tiger was put into a shelter when the family he had lived with since he was a puppy had to move away and was unable to bring him with them. I was heartbroken that this dog had to give up his home and everything he knew at such an advanced age. But Tiger embraced his second...