By Mimi Pollack
Life for the numerous street dogs in in Baja California is not very good, except for the lucky ones who eventually get a responsible owner. And because these homeless animals are not neutered, the problem grows.
Brothers Adam and Josh Prater were inspired to try to make a difference for the street dogs of Baja. They found a 50,000-square-foot space in Tijuana and started Baja Dog Rescue in 2008, building a nonprofit organization dedicated to rescuing and finding loving homes for homeless dogs.
Although they mostly rescue Baja dogs, they also take animals from the American side of the border. So far they have rescued more than 6,500 dogs.
Both brothers work day jobs. Josh is a chemical engineer and Adam works as an administrator helping people with government programs. But the rest of their time is dedicated to their growing rescue organization.
Their organization has a full time hospital and medical center that is open seven days a week to care for both rescued dogs and animals brought in by owners. It is a no-kill facility that is often referred to as “The Sanctuary”.
The Praters have treated over 500 dogs for Parvo with a 90-to-95 percent success rate and have a 75 percent success rate in treating distemper. They have helped many dogs with various ailments and diseases and even manufacture their own flea, tick, and worm medications.
Poppy is one such dog. This sweet girl was abandoned in front of the facility completely covered in ticks. “She was more tick than dog,” said Adam. She was also full of worms and anemic. It was obvious she had been neglected and unloved. The ticks were so bad that she contracted Ehrlichia, a canine typhus.
She is now being cared for and is on the road to recovery and hopefully finding a loving home. Her story is one of many, and the expense to care for so many dogs continues to rise. The organization relies on donations and the help of volunteers on both sides of the border.
Baja Dog Rescue has seven full time employees and many volunteers. “We truly are a cohesive group doing this and there really is not one person that is more the leader than the other,” said Adam. “It really does take a group effort to make this all happen and no one person could do it without the others.”
He said the organization always needs donations and volunteers. Prospective volunteers can email info@bajadogrescue.org for more information.
You can also help by adopting one of the dogs. There is a pet adoption event every Saturday from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the Petco store at 3495 Sports Arena Boulevard.
The problem of homeless dogs in Mexico won’t go away anytime soon, but thanks to organizations like Baja Dog Rescue, and the dedication of all the people who work and volunteer there, at least some of the lucky ones have a fighting chance.
Mimi Pollack is an English as a Second Language teacher at Grossmont College and a freelance writer.
