Guardian Angel Basset Rescue: A Labor of (Puppy) Love

By: Jessi Haish LaRue

Floppy ears, short legs, and big hearts: it’s hard not to fall in love with a basset hound.

That’s what happened to Emmy and Larry Little, a married couple from Dwight, when they first bought a basset hound puppy from a pet store decades ago. It made them fall in love with the breed, but now, after 25 years with Guardian Angel Basset Rescue, they know that rescue is the only way for them. “I’m glad I did it or I wouldn’t be doing all this,” said Larry Little, board member and president of the rescue. The rescue, based in Dwight, now has a location on Washington Avenue in Hampshire. It was previously a laundromat, and the rescue took on the building as their newest location. Many contractors in the community helped with labor, construction essentials and donations. A generous facade grant from the Village of Hampshire allowed the 501(c) (3) nonprofit to create a building they are proud of. “We think we can get a lot of people involved in Hampshire,” Little said. “And that building shows we are committed to the future of this rescue.”

Now the space is ready for hosting fundraising events, as soon as COVID-19 allows. The rescue is fosterbased, meaning they do not have a shelter building, and they have placed more than 5,000 dogs in homes over the last 25 years. Once a dog is in their care, they provide needed vet care before placing them in a foster home. They also help re-home bassets whose owners go into assisted living, or must relinquish their pet for other reasons. Board member Kelli Zopfi is excited to see the impact the rescue will have

in Hampshire. She said the group has received supportive commentary from the community in the last year, and she encourages people to stop in to their location to find out how they can get involved. Most recently, the group rescued eight basset hound-mix puppies, and five of them went to families in Hampshire. “[Rescue] helps put a smile on someone’s face,” she said. “You meet a lot of wonderful people and a lot of great dogs.” COVID-19 has had quite an impact on the rescue, including the inability to hold in-person fundraisers. They’ve adapted by choosing events such as a Queen of Hearts raffle, virtual auctions and more. As life returns to normal, however, they look forward to hosting in-person events in their new Hampshire building and getting to know the community. “We’ll do whatever they want to. And I’d love to see a basset on the water tower,” Little said with a laugh. They’ve also had fewer dogs available in the last year, and Little thinks it’s due to people staying home with and spending time with their dogs, rather than re-homing them. He thinks the stay-at-home order made people more forgiving of their pets. Unfortunately, he expects that to change once people return to their regular work and vacation lifestyles, and people will have less time invested in their dogs. However, when there’s a hound in need of a home, the organization will be ready to help. Little said the rescue has done well in Dwight over the years, and they are looking forward to new connections and opportunities in Hampshire, especially working with the village and its residents. He just wants the organization to get “bigger, bigger and bigger” so that they can truly fulfill their mission of “no basset left behind – ANYWHERE.”

Little emphasized that running a rescue is very expensive. The average cost of bringing in a dog, including sending them to their new home fully vetted, is $850. However, the adoption fee of the same dog is only $250. That’s where the donors come in, Little said.

“I firmly believe you must be involved deeply with a charity,” he said. “It’s important to see things [that are] worse off than you and have that perspective.” Dogs have the power to change someone’s life, especially someone who may be struggling and need the extra push to make changes in their own life, he said. “Now they’ve got a dog to take care of, and it gets them out of bed and moving,” he said. “That attracts people to having a dog.” And it’s hard not to love a basset.

“They’re just a wonderful breed,” Zopfi said. “They rescue us more than we rescue them.”

n TO LEARN MORE, visit BassetRescue.org or visit Guardian Angel Basset Rescue on Facebook.