Introducing Rescue the Underdog
Rudy and Leo, the honorees. photo: Michelle Pas
Rescue the Underdog is a tiny, but mighty rescue. We are a small volunteer-run organization dedicated to saving dogs from being euthanized in high-kill shelters. Most of our dogs are rescued from the Central Valley, and we often save them within a day of when they’re expected to be put down.
Rescue the Underdog tries to save as many dogs as we can. Because we do not have kennels or a facility to keep dogs, our numbers depend on how many people we have who are willing to foster. Each one of our fosters is making a material difference to change a dog’s life. To date, Rescue the Underdog has saved nearly 900 dogs with the help of our volunteer community.
How We Started
Rescue the Underdog’s founder, Curt Klaus, was a volunteer at the Madera County Animal Shelter (MCAS), a kill shelter located in the Central Valley. Curt could not bear to see so many dogs being euthanized, so he wound up adopting a dog who was about to be put down, as the only way to save its life.
Eventually a nonprofit group, Friends of Madera Animal Shelter (FMAS), was formed to partner with MCAS to save dogs from euthanasia. FMAS is now Rescue the Underdog’s primary partner in identifying and saving dogs at risk of being put down. Most of the dogs we save currently come from the Modesto shelter, which is a kill shelter.
What started with one man and one dog soon became a weekly routine, with Curt monitoring the list of dogs about to be euthanized, “vouching” for them at the shelter, and assuring the shelter that he would take them if no one else did. This approach bought the animals some time for other rescue groups to save them, but if no other rescue stepped up, Curt would personally drive to Modesto each week to save the dogs, often hours before they were to be put down. This past summer, he saved eight dogs in one trip alone.
Eventually, Curt started getting help from other volunteers, and Rescue the Underdog was officially formed in 2017.
What We Do
Rescue the Underdog is a completely volunteer-run organization. Our funding comes from adoption fees (which we share with FMAS), private donations from our generous supporters, and more often than not, our volunteers paying out of pocket because we can’t bear to see these dogs go without the care they need.
Our dogs are special, and many of them need adopters who will give them time to adjust and feel safe in their loving new homes. Our reward is in saving these precious animals and seeing the happiness they bring to people’s lives when they find their perfect match with an Underdog. There is no greater joy than seeing an Underdog’s transformation, from the time they are pulled, scared and hopeless, from the shelter to being adopted into a loving forever family.
If you’d like to help, Rescue the Underdog is always looking for more people to volunteer, foster, adopt, or donate. We especially need more fosters and donations to cover the special medical care that some of our dogs require. To learn more or make a donation, please visit our website at RescueTheUnderdog.com.
Often, this volunteer work can be difficult. It is challenging to see dogs in unbearable conditions, but it’s even harder to see them put down when we can’t help. What makes it all worthwhile is getting these dogs into the loving homes they deserve. That’s what Rescue the Underdog is all about.