San Diego Humane Society celebrating Adopt-A-Shelter-Dog month

A group of dogs transferred to the San Diego Humane Society’s campus in Oceanside from the Loreto area of Baja California, Mexico, are looking for a second chance and a new home.

The Baja dogs are among many that are available for adoption during October, which is also Adopt A Shelter Dog Month, San Diego Humane Society spokesperson Nina Thompson said.

The nonprofit group, with other sites in the county on Gaines Street in San Diego and in Escondido, Ramona and El Cajon, is also looking for a home for a 9-year-old Chihuahua named Dante, who came from Texas to receive advanced medical care in San Diego.

Dante needed extensive orthopedic medical care due to a severely broken tibia and fibula, and was among seven dogs transferred to the San Diego Humane Society from overcrowded Palm Valley Animal Society in Edinburg, Texas.

The dogs from Mexico were strays, struggling to survive on the streets in Loreto, when they were saved by the private dog rescue Segunda Chansa, Thompson said. They were medically evaluated and placed on a 3-month quarantine in Mexico before being transported by Patrick T. McGorky of Segundo Chansa to San Diego Humane Society’s Oceanside Campus earlier this month.

The San Diego Humane Society has started doing more work in Baja, with the intent to improve the quality of life for pets south of the border, Thompson said. The group also partners with other rescue groups in Mexico, as well as animal control facilities in Tijuana and Rosarito, to assist with wellness checks, vaccines, flea medication and other pet supplies.

Once the Baja dogs arrived in Oceanside on Oct. 5, the Humane Society’s team conducted its own medical exams, behavioral evaluations, vaccinations and microchipping. The group’s Oceanside campus has welcomed 18 dogs from Loreto in recent months. The most recent group included several shepherd puppies, a pit bull puppy, a terrier and a chihuahua.

“We are so pleased to be able to help and give these dogs a second chance,” said Ayeshah Al-Humaidhi, the Humane Society’s senior director of animal welfare. “They are coming from an area in Baja where there is less rescue activity. For each dog we welcome to San Diego Humane Society, Segunda Chansa can rescue and care for more dogs in Loreto.”

All Humane Society campuses are open for walk-in adoptions from 10 a.m. until 6 p.m. Tuesdasy through Sundays.