St. Pete animal rescue working to give animals 2nd chance on 'Adopt a Shelter Pet Day'

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. - Tuesday, April 30th, marks 'National Adopt a Shelter Pet Day,' and it comes with a grim statistic. 

Florida ranks fourth in the nation for euthanasia deaths in animal shelters.

But FOX 13's Regina Gonzalez recently got an inside look at what PetPal Animal Shelter in St. Pete is doing to change that. They are a private rescue organization whose main mission is to get dogs and cats out of high-kill shelters across the Bay Area and beyond before it's too late.

READ: Tampa Bay area pet shelters ask to donate locally on 'Adopt a Shelter Pet' Day

She recently joined PetPal transport volunteer Lara Warn, on a journey to pick up ten animals from Desoto Animal Services in Arcadia. 

"Hello, everybody. Welcome aboard. My name is Lara, and I'll be your Uber driver today. You're on your way to PetPal animal shelter, you're now safe and sound," Warn said to calm the nerves of the ten animals sitting in the back of the transport van.  It was a five-star ride to a brand-new life for them. 

Lara Warn with animals

Each one with a harrowing story of how they ended up at DeSoto County Animal Shelter.

"From what we know, there was a house fire in DeSoto County, and the owner of the property died in the fire, so animal services was called in to pull all of the animals that were on property," Warn added. "We have two adult dogs and three puppies on board, along with five cats." 

Lara is the creator of a dog-inspired apparel company called 'Pup Active,' and a huge animal advocate in Pinellas County.

It's why she was inspired to join the team of hardworking volunteers at PetPal.

They send Lara on this three-hour round-trip journey about once a week.

"Municipal shelters like DeSoto County Animal Services take in strays and owner-surrenders, and if they're not able to get these animals out to either, an adoption by somebody in the community or get them out to a private rescue like PetPal, then odds are the animals will never make it out of that shelter, and they'll be euthanized for space and due to lack of resources," explained Warn.

It's a stigma not many understand; overcrowded shelters, like DeSoto County, do not want to euthanize.

But they've continued to see an influx of owner surrenders, strays, and animal cruelty cases after the pandemic, and after Arcadia, specifically, saw extreme damage from two major hurricanes in the last two years. 

"They're smaller and out in the rural areas," added Karri Head, Marketing Director for PetPal. "They don't have a lot of room. They pick up a lot of strays, they have a lot of abandoned animals, and because they're out in the country, a lot of the animals are outside so they come in with skin issues, they come in heartworm positive, they have injuries, things that the shelter can't afford to take care of."

To give these animals a second chance elsewhere, Desoto's shelter director, Susan Brodowsky, has worked to establish relationships with almost 90 private rescues like PetPal. 

"She told us about a stat from last year where they brought in 1600 dogs and 900 were transported out to private rescues," Warn said. "That happened because of the partnerships that she created." 

The PetPal staff greet them with open arms every single time, nursing them back to health before watching them get adopted into a forever home. 

Crying happy tears as they walk out the door with a new family is something Head never gets tired of. 

WATCH FOX 13 NEWS

I've been lucky enough to see every little bit of the process, and every part of it is just amazing to be involved in," Head said. "The animals are grateful. They know they've been saved. "

They know they have a voice when they can't speak up for themselves.

"I feel like humans are always going to let down animals in some capacity," Warn added. "We can't save them all. But the ones that we save, we can certainly do our best to give them the best chance we can."

SIGN UP: Click here to sign up for the FOX 13 daily newsletter

To donate, inquire about an adoptable animal, or learn more about how you can volunteer with PetPal, click here.