Lost in Big Bend, found by kindness: How 2 dogs got home to Mexico
Like any great adventure, this story starts like a lot of them do: someone stopping to help. A group of young hikers ventured to Big Bend National Park last year to see the unparalleled canyons along the Rio Grande River and the rugged desert landscape that is only found in the great Southwest of this country.
Little did they know, they would see a lot more than the great American West.
These accidental heroes of ours soon came upon two very skinny dogs out in the middle of nowhere in Big Bend National Park. A German shepherd and a Belgian Malinois had no place being in the desert without food or water. With no collars and no one around, the hikers scooped up these dogs, found cell service, and called the closest animal shelter they could find.
And this is my favorite part about adventures. We meet our rescuers, and we soon realize that to pull off a true victory, we need quite a few sets of hands.
This is a tale of many heroes, each with an invaluable set of skills and resources.
Next up: Alpine Animal Services. About an hour's drive from Big Bend National Park, this shelter is known for being one of the most responsive and active in saving animals’ lives in the area. The hikers jumped at the opportunity to bring these dogs in. Maybe these folks could help.
After all, that’s what shelters are built to do, right? They’re meant to help. But with such a rural area, some people think it’s impossible to save all the animals — that a shelter like Alpine Animal Services could never reach the adopters or get the resources they would need to save every animal who can be saved.
Here’s where they’re wrong.
With programs and practices adapted for each community, every county large and small can (and will) reach no-kill. For Alpine Animal Services, that looks like needs-based admission protocols that ask what the best options for each individual pet are.
Jennifer Stewart, animal services supervisor at Alpine Animal Services, says, “We encourage the public to get involved with returning pets to their families before bringing them to the shelter if possible. While there are always hiccups, we navigate them as they come and continue to try new ways of keeping animals out of the shelter whenever it is safe to do so.”
And for the animals who do end up in their care, they do everything in their power to find them the right homes. “Another key factor has been our partnership with One Tail at a Time West Texas,” Jennifer says. “They help us with the majority of transports. About 50% of our adoptable animals, mostly dogs, leave via transport with the other leaving by adoption. Without that 50%, we would likely not have the lifesaving numbers that we do. We are very grateful for their partnership.”
Because the thing is, it’s not just the shelter that can save every animal in its care. It’s the job of the community members — us! — to help them get there. Without volunteers, donors, foster caregivers, adopters, or partnerships with other rescue groups, there’s no way every animal could be saved by shelter staff alone.
So, back in Texas, the Alpine Animal Services team jumped into action. One of the great lifesaving tools that we advocate for is the use of social media. It’s great for finding families of stray dogs or helping reach new people who might not otherwise engage with the shelter.
Alpine Animal Services posted across their channels and platforms to reach as many people as they could. After the likes, reposts, and shares, the post finally reached a friend of the family who had been missing their dogs. What they didn’t know was just how far these dogs had come.
At over 130 miles away, the family of these two dogs lived in Boquillas del Carmen, Mexico, a Big Bend tourist destination across the border. Luckily, the family’s friend, Edgar, lived on the United States’ side of the border and could easily pick up the dogs and bring them back to their home.
In a heroic last lap, Edgar picked up the dogs from Alpine and drove them home to Mexico.
What stuck with me about this story was how every player in this game became a hero through a simple act of kindness. These hikers became heroes as their adventure to Big Bend turned into a rescue mission. And Alpine Animal Services became the heroes who were able to reunite a family across hundreds of miles and a border. Finally, there was the heroic finish from the family friend who would do anything to keep this family together.
While this story of saving lives and reuniting families feels like it should be a blockbuster film –– and maybe actually should be, if it’s not encroaching on the legacy of The Three Amigos –– this true-life adventure is as simple as any other day on the job working to save animals’ lives.
Jennifer concludes, “It takes every single one of us to make it happen. It doesn't happen overnight, but it's all possible.”
With a commitment to lifesaving and accessible tools like posting on social media, everyone and anyone can save the day.
Without heroes like you, we couldn’t save as many lives as we do. With heroes like you, we can Save Them All.
-Julie
