Take a scroll through Rescue Pals’ Facebook page and one will inevitably find forlorn faces of pooches found roaming a local parking lot or wandering alone down a busy road, many without a collar or a microchip.

“Recently they found a blue Pitbull dumped in front of Petco and it was just roaming around the parking lot,” Mary Molnar said, a concerned citizen of Fountain Hills who, with her husband Dennis, are proud owners of three dogs, all of which are from Rescue Pals.

“If a dog comes into Rescue Pals, they feel obligated to make sure it is in good health, is spayed or neutered, gets vaccinated…and so all of a sudden, you’re paying $300 or more for this dog,” Mary said. “It adds up really quickly.”

According to Rescue Pals Co-Owner, Susan Dawson, that number is closer to $500 when all is said and done (feeding, boarding, vaccination, spaying or neutering).

“It costs quite a bit to keep each dog,” Dawson said, adding that vaccination is necessary because most of the time, there’s no way of knowing if rescues are already vaccinated.

31st Garage Sale

As a non-profit organization, Rescue Pal’s main source of income is donation-based. So, beginning tomorrow, Rescue Pals is hosting its 31st biannual, three-day Charity Garage Sale where all proceeds will go towards medical costs, boarding and food for dogs that have been abandoned or surrendered.

The Garage Sale begins tomorrow, Thursday, March 30, and ends Saturday, April 1. It will be held from 7 a.m. to 1 p.m. daily and located at 17014 Lema Circle.

“Most of our rescue dogs are found in Fountain Hills. The dogs are waiting for their forever home or at Pal’s Inn Pet Resort in Fountain Hills,” a press release said of the event. “We are always looking for homes for these wonderful dogs.”

Room at the Inn

Founded by longtime Fountain Hills residents Christine Schaeken and Susan Dawson, Rescue Pals has an important relationship with Pal’s Inn Pet Resort, which houses all the incoming rescues. Run by Tracy Rothstein, Pal’s Inn is typically the first stop for stray dogs that are picked up around town.

According to Pal’s Inn Assistant Manager Jahna Harned, the rescues are separated from other dogs until they receive their shots. They are introduced to the rest of the dogs once they’ve been properly vaccinated, spayed or neutered.

Harned says that lately, a steady flow of strays is checking into Pal’s Inn, citing last week’s total of five dogs, including a mama with her two pups and two other strays.

Once checked in, pictures are taken of the dogs and posted online in case they are lost. After about two weeks go by with no response, the dogs are added to Rescue Pal’s growing list of rescues.

Price and priority

With so many abandoned dogs, space at Pal’s Inn can be tight during times when demand for dog sitting is at its peak around the holidays.

“They’re kind of in dire need,” Mary said, who believes the uptick in the number of abandoned dogs is a result of two things: price and priority.

“The price of dog food has doubled in the last year,“ she said. “Dogs are a lot of responsibility…so if it’s a decision between feeding my child or feeding my dog, the dog’s gotta go.”

Volunteers sought

In addition to proceeds from the Charity Garage Sale, donations of time and care from the community are always welcome at Rescue Pals and Pal’s Inn Pet Resort, which are perennially in need of fosters and volunteers.

“It’s getting harder on us taking care of all these dogs and we need help,” a recent Rescue Pals Facebook post read.

To volunteer or for more information, send an email to rescuepals85268@gmail.com, send a message to Rescue Pals on Facebook or call 602-550-1330.

“This community is so good to us and we’re very blessed to be in a community like this,” Dawson said.

Rescue Pals is a non-profit organization helping dogs find their forever home. Rescue Pals is located at 11669 N. Saguaro Blvd. and is open daily from 7 a.m. to 6 p.m.

Pal’s Inn Pet Resort is a pet sitter serving the Fountain Hills community. They are open Monday through Friday, 7 a.m. to 6 p.m. and Saturday and Sunday, 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. They can be reached at 480-837-0069 or by visiting their website at palsinnpetresort.com.