LOXAHATCHEE GROVES, Fla. – Nearly three dozen dogs on the verge of being killed and sold for food are now safe in South Florida.
The 37 dogs were on the brink of being slaughtered and sold on restaurant menus in China when Big Dog Ranch Rescue intervened.
Founder Lauree Simmons said a dog breeder in China had shut down his business and was about to sell them on the dog meat trade market.
"They were going to be tortured and skinned alive and sold for dog meat," Simmons told WPBF, the ABC affiliate in Palm Beach County. "I couldn't let that happen and I knew I had to act."
Simmons said the two-month process to get the dogs to South Florida included approval from a number of agencies, including the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
Now that the dogs are safe, Simmons said she's going back to China to rescue others.
"They don't deserve to be on somebody's dinner plate," she said. "They deserve a home."
Anyone interested in adopting the dogs or making a donation to help Simmons return to China can do so by contacting Big Dog Ranch Rescue.