Six Dogs and a Trio of Pilots
Big Momma (who’s not really that big), a three-legged pit bull, and Sissy, her heeler housemate, were owner-surrenders to the Harlingen, TX pound in far South Texas. They were both heart worm-positive; given that, Big Momma’s breed, and her missing front leg, they were facing almost certain euthanasia.
Rita Benavidez, a rescuer in Denver, CO, learned of the plight of Big Momma and Sissy and convinced the pound to hold them until she could arrange to transport the pair. A couple of ground transports fell through, so Rita turned to Pilots N Paws.
After a month (long, multi-leg missions, involving multiple pilots and aircraft, can be frustrating and time-consuming to pull off), a plan came together. Big Momma and Sissy would catch volunteer ground transport from Harlingen toHouston and would be boarded for a couple of nights before the flight.
There were four last-minute additions: four Lab pups headed from Houston to Mountain Pet Rescue in Denver. Raven, a black Lab, was pulled from a pound by Vanita Mirchandani, a Houston rescuer. The other three pups were from the same litter, and were captured by Kevin Miller of Forgotten Dogs of the Fifth Ward when they were discovered living underneath a raised house in the Houston Heights.
All six dogs arrived at Pearland Regional Airport near Houston around 8 a.m. on 5/14/13. After a brief weather delay, pilot Wade Roberts departed around 10 a.m., landing at Lancaster Regional Airport near Dallas. Dallas-area pilot Ed Valentine flew the manifest of six to Woodward, OK, where he connect with Lynn Lusk, a Denver pilot who flew the pack on the home stretch back to Denver. They landed before dark, and there was a happy and joyous rendezvous between the rescued dogs and their rescuers.