It Takes a Village

Christophe Valton, HSSA Donor Relations Manager

Shelters are sad places. Unwanted dogs are brought there because they have nowhere else to go. The lucky ones get adopted. This is the general perception of what shelters are. The Humane Society of Southern Arizona (HSSA) defies this definition. Its enabling environment ensures that meritorious dogs will get a second chance.

This is the story of Hundi, a young Rottweiler deemed “unadoptable” because of his size, protective training, and inability to follow commands, except those in German. Hundi is a sweet and gentle dog with people who understand him, but he is not easy to place. His options were not encouraging, but his friends at HSSA were not giving up on him! HSSA’s behavior lead searched desperately for a place where Hundi could have a happy future. Volunteers raised money to underwrite his trip to wherever it took him, and senior management did not discourage these efforts. Everybody came together to save Hundi. In the end, a home in Port Angeles, Wash., near the Canadian border, was found! So, how to get this huge dog from Tucson to Port Angeles? The logistics were daunting. HSSA’s operations manager worked tirelessly to make this happen; options were identified and then discarded numerous times. Finally, it all came together! A volunteer and a staff member drove Hundi 1,650 miles from Tucson to Port Angeles in a HSSA van, delivered him to his new home, and then drove back to Tucson.

Our latest update reveals that Hundi and his new mom are bonding and that Hundi’s future looks bright.