Dozens of new dogs, facing euthanasia, were saved thanks to the Jackson County Animal Shelter and non-profit flight service called Dog Is My CoPilot.
Since Monday, October 20, many of the 25 dogs have found new homes here in Michigan after making the trek from Texas.
While taking dogs from outside of our state might sound strange, Jackson County Animal Services Director Lydia Sattler said it is their mission to help as many animals as they can, regardless of where they are.
“We don’t think compassion has a border or there should be a border, “ Sattler stated. “So if we can help animals in Jackson County and any other place in Michigan or anywhere else in the country, we’re gonna do it if we can.”
While many might not realize it, Dog Is My CoPilot flies dogs into our state for Jackson County every month.
“Dog Is My CoPilot is a non-profit group, and they have planes that travel all across the country taking animals from first shelters that have a higher euthanasia rate or overcrowding or lesser adoptions and they fly them to destination shelters.” Sattler added.
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Funding comes from Petco Love and other sponsors, not costing Jackson County Animal Shelter a penny to get them on the flight, just the care once they are place in the shelter. “They are usually adopted very quickly!” Sattler said.
Overbreeding is a problem down south because animals do not have to be registered like they do here in the Midwest. Sattler said she is not saying that overpopulation is not an issue in parts of Michigan, but it is just more prevalent in the south.
Because of these types of flights, healthy dogs get to live. It is common for even puppies to be euthanized in the south because no one will adopt them, she added.
The straight flight from Texas is four hours, all dogs snuggled nicely in their carriers, falling asleep quickly after the plane takes off.
“A ground transport is very long, it’s required to stop, walk the dogs and water the dogs but the flight is so short, they quickly go from one destination to the other.” Sattler stated.
Dogs are given a thorough exam before they can make the trip; they also must have all the necessary vaccines required by the state of Michigan.
“Even if one animal just slightly looks a little bit lethargic or this one has a little bit of a loose stool, they will pull them from the flight” she added.
Once they are driven to Jackson County Animal Shelter, just five minutes from the airport, volunteers were ready to greet them, bathe any that needed it and lead them to their pre-tagged kennels.
Streams of people came through, with twenty-nine dogs adopted at the end of the first day! Remember, only twenty-five dogs were brought from Texas so these types of flights draw attention to resident shelter animals that otherwise would have gotten overlooked.
“It’s really a win-win for animals in our own county as well as the dogs from the other state and we also want to encourage people to adopt.” Sattler said.
Dog Is My CoPilot will make one more flight to Jackson, the third week in November. Make sure to keep an eye on the shelter’s Facebook page and watch for real-time animals to adopt on their website.