And somehow, after hundreds of hours of planning, vetting, driving, crating, bathing, organizing, loading, and FLYING - 150 animals landed safely in New Jersey. Our first #SatoUnited transport is officially in the books.

And if you know us, you know we don't do anything halfway. When we saw how high the demand was for spots on our safe, responsible transport option for rescue animals, we decided in the eleventh hour to add a SECOND plane full of dogs and cats to the day - and they flew BACK TO BACK! An unprecedented feat for our team in Puerto Rico and New Jersey, plus our incredible volunteers who rolled with the punches and stepped up to help.

Last week we announced a matching opportunity to fund this huge transport - and we're thrilled to say we reached our $50,000 goal! But with the addition of the second plane, we're stretching that goal another $15,000 to cover additional costs of flying dozens more animals than anticipated.

The amount of effort put in to make this weekend happen is astounding. This work isn't easy. We don't do it because it's fun or straightforward. We do it for moments like these.

It’s for a rescue puppy like Leia, above, hopping off a plane and into the arms of a family that has been looking forward to this for weeks. It’s about her uncontrollable wiggles as she realizes he’s about to go home and become the center of their world. It’s about all the behind-the-scenes blood, sweat, and tears that went into his rescue and rehabilitation by our staff in Puerto Rico, and the huge web of logistics it took to get her off the island. It’s about taking a new family portrait outside in the sun and the grass. This kind of gratification makes building SATO United worth it, day after day.

We hope you'll continue to build it with us via a #SatoStrong donation today.