Peter Zheutlin goes along with Greg Mahle on his journey from the South to the North bringing rescue dogs to their forever homes. Throughout the book he also visits with other volunteers along the way who run shelters, foster dogs, bring food and medicine to dogs, etc. This was an incredible story about all of the volunteers who do everything they can to rescue dogs from being euthanized and make their lives better. It is amazing to read about these volunteers who put so much time, money, and love into making sure as many dogs as they can help have a better life.
Before reading this book I knew a little bit about dog rescue, in particular dogs coming up from the South because one of my dogs was originally from Tennessee. While, I knew these dogs were transported in trucks and were being rescued from kill shelters that was about the extent of my knowledge. I never knew how much actually went into saving all of these dogs. In addition, I didn’t know the extent of the overpopulation problem in the South. It was informative and heart-breaking to hear about how dogs are viewed and treated in the South. It made me so grateful for all the volunteers working so hard to provide a better live for these dogs, even if it is as simple as giving them food or medicine.
Zheutlin did an excellent job sharing the work of all of these volunteers by showing just how much they do. He also really highlighted just how big of a problem the over-breeding of animals and the lack of spaying and neutering. So in addition to this book showing the day to day tasks of rescue organizations, it also is educational on the problems that still need to be taken care of. I found myself crying at many parts, whether they were sad or happy tears. While parts of this book are hard to read and heart-breaking, it is inspiring to read about the volunteers trying to fix this problem one dog at a time and the people who adopt rescue dogs.
I received a free copy from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.