Loxahatchee Groves, Florida
Big Dog Ranch Rescue
B
ig Dog Ranch Rescue’s mission is to rescue, rehabilitate, and educate until every dog has a loving and safe place to call home. The organization believes they can achieve this goal, and will achieve an end to dog homelessness and abuse through legislative efforts, hard work, and strategic partnerships near and far. “We will never give up and we will never back down from the needs of all heartbeats because every life matters,” according to president and founder Lauree Simmons. Simmons’ passion for saving dogs led her to create Big Dog Ranch Rescue, the largest cage-free, no kill shelter in the United States. Founded in 2008 in Palm Beach County, FL, the rescue has evolved into a powerful global voice with Simmons leading the way on issues including ending dog euthanasia in kill shelters in the Southeast U.S., stopping the China dog meat trade, and as a key participant in the White House signing of the first animal anti-cruelty bill in U.S. history, preventing all forms of animal abuse. Simmons first became inspired while volunteering at a Weimaraner rescue. She would later assume full control and convert it to serve dogs of all breeds. One afternoon, she visited a kill shelter where 14 dogs were about to be euthanized. She left that facility with all of those dogs filling her car—it was then that her vision of Big Dog Ranch Rescue was born. Her unique concept of creating a temporary home that nurtured dogs both physically and mentally has become a prototype of what every rescue should be. Simmons’ advocacy work has extended to the rescue of hundreds of stray dogs left at the U.S. southern border by migrants. On a recent visit to Eagle Pass, TX, near the Rio Grande, Simmons personally saw hundreds of starving and abandoned dogs. “They were left to fend for themselves,” she said, “and they can’t survive on their own.” This experience led Simmons to open a new 100acre rehabilitation, medical, and adoption facility in Shorter, AL, in an effort to save more animals from euthanasia and to help transport dogs to the Northeast for adoption. Big Dog Ranch’s website states that their “mission is to save as many innocent dog lives as possible through education, sterilization, and legislation” and its foundation “is a collection of donors, staff, volunteers, and corporate partners who share the same vision. Through an annual consolidated commitment, we can develop mutually beneficial relationships and provide recognition of generosity.“ Big Dog Ranch will be represented on the catwalk by Paris-based designer Anne Fontaine, who will be wearing her own creation. Fontaine, an ecologist and president of the Anne Fontaine Foundation that concentrates on protection of the Brazilian rainforest, is known for her collections that emphasize elegance and refined chic. “I am so lucky to be able to partner with Big Dog Ranch, such an amazing Foundation that rescues all these animals.,” said Fontaine. “This cause goes hand in hand with my Anne Fontaine Foundation which helps to plant trees in the Brazilian Rainforest, also giving animals a home.” Fontaine will be accompanied by a dog from Big Dog Ranch on the runway. ■
Sponsor: Barbara Gilbert and Lauree Simmons / bdrr.org
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• le printemps 2023 • l’édition pour animaux de compagnie et mode • readelysian.com
