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Prince's Adopted!

We’re so excited to announce that Prince has been officially adopted in New York!!!

Prince is one of the many rescue dogs that we saved from South Korea last summer. Due to his partial blindness, Prince required a dedicated owner that would be able to provide the right home for him. We’re so happy that Prince truly did find his “castle” with adopters that truly cherish and understand him. You can continue to follow Prince’s adventures at @princeandludlow on Instagram.

We hope Prince’s adoption story has inspired to join the dog rescue movement! ⁠Our adoption radius currently includes select areas within New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, Pennsylvania, Washington D.C., Maryland, and Massachusetts. For full details on our adoption radius and procedures, please check our Adoption Procedures. We’re looking forward to having you join our alumni, foster, or volunteer community!

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Learn about the Jindo Breed!

How much do you know about the Korean Jindo? Daily Paws has a new dog breed guide on their website (which we were interviewed for) on the Jindo! This is an incredibly helpful resource for new Jindo parents and longtime Jindo worshippers alike.

Disclaimer: The Jindos we rescue from Korea are mixed breed and come from all manner of backgrounds. We have found that our typical Jindo mixes are active, loyal dogs who thrive with structure. They need plenty of exercise, both physically and mentally, throughout the day. Working from home is perfect for Jindos, as they like to be beside you at every moment! They are also highly intelligent, making them great dogs for relationship-based training, and they need to be properly socialized to ensure good behavior around other dogs.

Another fun fact: Jindos are double-coated, meaning they will blow their coat twice a year and may do so when they first arrive at their new home. When you adopt your Jindo, be ready for some extra fur and brush your dog weekly!

Jindos are recognized as an important part of Korean cultural heritage. They are new to most of us in the United States, so it’s vital that adopters take the time to learn about them. As our Executive Director Gina Boehler says in the guide, “They are not going to just jump into your lap right away. It will take time, work, and a lot of patience. And a lot of training, too.” But ask any of our adopters and you’ll know that Jindos are well worth the work.

We hope Daily Paws’s article inspires to apply to adopt from us and join the rescue movement! ⁠Our adoption radius currently includes select areas within New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, Pennsylvania, Washington D.C., Maryland, and Massachusetts. For full details on our adoption radius and procedures, please check our Adoption Procedures. We’re looking forward to having you join our alumni, foster, or volunteer community!

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Mango's Adopted!

Happy New Year’s Eve!! We’ve got some AMAZING news to conclude 2021: Mango has finally been adopted after being with us for over 1.5 years!

Mango was an owner-surrender that came from an environment where he was not provided with the proper boundaries, structure, and leadership that he needed. Mango had some aggression and could be unpredictable at times so we knew we had to be careful about whom he was placed with. He needed to build a strong relationship with trust and direction, which he found with Andrew (@rescuetrainrepeat) and Ken who fostered him! Over time, Mango has developed a deep bond with his foster family and he is progressing remarkably well. His foster family has also fallen in love with him so they officially adopted him!

Mango feels right at home with his pack that consists of Loui, Jolie, Ruby, Miro, and their dads, Andrew and Ken! All the pups are rescues (three KK9R alum in total) and thriving together. We want to thank Andrew and Ken, as well as everyone else that has rooted for Mango. Congrats to Mango and his forever family! You can see more photos by checking our Instagram post and by following Mango on Instagram. (Thank you so much to Jen from @thewaysofthedog for taking these beautiful photos to celebrate Mango’s adoption!)

We hope Mango’s adoption story has inspired to join the dog rescue movement! ⁠Our adoption radius currently includes select areas within New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, Pennsylvania, Washington D.C., Maryland, and Massachusetts. For full details on our adoption radius and procedures, please check our Adopt page. We’re looking forward to having you join our alumni community!

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We rescued dogs from Namyangju!

Three days ago in the frigid cold, we helped shut down an illegal puppy mill in Namyangju, Korea with our partners @we.a.c.t @youumbba. There were 200 dogs huddled together in rusty, filthy cages and they were forced to live in the cruelest conditions. Everyone worked hard to remove all of the dogs and completely destroy and demolish the cages so their suffering could end. We took in 16 dogs, @youumbba took in 23 dogs, and our other partners took in the rest. We’re so glad that they will all be getting their second chances.

Check our Instagram post to see the photos from the rescue mission. We hope photos like these will make people consider the horrific reality of puppy mills. Most of the dogs we rescued are adults who have been bred repeatedly, over and over again, until the females’ uteruses become so badly infected they die a slow and painful death. We took many sick and older dogs whose ears were infected and teeth rotting. Sadly, none receive the proper care they need and the puppies still get shipped anywhere that there is a demand. It is important to do research before assuming a breeder or even a rescue group is reputable. Please also reconsider buying a puppy from a pet store this holiday season — you could be directly supporting a terrible puppy mill like this one.

We would love to take a break during the holiday season. But unfortunately, because of these cruel puppy mills, abandoned and neglected dogs don’t get that break either. Until they do, we will never stop advocating for change and making a difference in their precious lives. They should all live happy and free!

We hope this rescue mission inspires to join the dog rescue movement! ⁠Our adoption radius currently includes select areas within New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, Pennsylvania, Washington D.C., Maryland, and Massachusetts. For full details on our adoption radius and procedures, please check our Adopt page. We’re looking forward to having you join our alumni, foster, or volunteer community!

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"Christmas in Bundang" was a success!


Thank you to all of our amazing supporters that tuned into our “Christmas in Bundang” livestream yesterday evening! We’re grateful that so many people took the time to show their appreciation for our hardworking team and partners in Korea. We hope that everyone learned how much thought, effort, and love goes into rescuing and rehabilitating each dog. Together, we are making a real difference for thousands of dogs!

You can continue to support our team and partners in Korea by following them here: @koreank9rescue.kr, @animal_kara, @beaglerescuenetwork, @youumbba, @oukjae96 and @yuhengsa_official .

We hope that “A Christmas in Bundang” inspires to join the dog rescue movement! ⁠Our adoption radius currently includes select areas within New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, Pennsylvania, Washington D.C., Maryland, and Massachusetts. For full details on our adoption radius and procedures, please check our Adopt page. We’re looking forward to having you join our alumni, foster, or volunteer community!

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We rescued dogs from Heongseong City!

We rescued seven lives from Heongsong city, where there were two moms and six babies wandering around the rural countryside with no place to go. We decided to rescue them, which is no easy task when the dogs are unvaccinated and need immediate care. But thanks to a generous donation of $6,000 in cryptocurrency from @pawthereum and @shibashelternft, we were able to board them at a vet, where these precious dogs have been fully vaccinated, and spayed/neutered. We’re looking forward to them being adopted once they’re ready!

The support we receive leads to dogs like these finding their forever homes in NYC, Massachusetts, Pennsylvania, Connecticut, Washington D.C., and Maryland. We’re so grateful to Pawthereum and Shiba Inu NFT for helping us give these dogs a second chance to be adopted!

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We have two Petco Love Story Winners!

We were honored to have two KK9R dogs’ stories chosen as winners in this year’s @petcolove Stories. And now, we’re even more excited to announce that we are being awarded a lifesaving $11,000 grant from Petco Love!

Special thanks to Hyun Jin & Chris, who adopted @goodest.boy.paju, and Alyssa, who adopted @adognamedminami, for sharing their stories. Your essays were beautiful, and we’re so grateful to have you as part of our community. Also, thank you to all the KK9R alumni who submitted their stories. You’re the best!

If you are not part of our alumni network, then it is not too late! Our adoption radius currently includes select areas within New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, Pennsylvania, Washington D.C., Maryland, and Massachusetts. For full details on our adoption radius and procedures, please check our Adopt page. We’re looking forward to having you adopt from us!

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Happy Thanksgiving!

Happy Thanksgiving from KK9R! We’re thankful for some many things and have wonderful updates to share.

Our director recently returned from Korea. In addition to her trip to the Pocheon shelter, she got the chance to visit our Bundang rescue and rehabilitation center. It was in Bundang that she was able to see our Korean team’s hard work and commitment first hand. The staff, volunteers and trainers provide our rescue puppies and dogs with the best possible experiences they can have before coming to New York for adoption locally and in Massachusetts, Pennsylvania, Connecticut, Washington D.C., and Maryland. This is accomplished through the best possible medical care and rehabilitative training, followed by the dogs’ transport to the US. We have so much gratitude for every member of the Bundang team, along with the volunteers who carry out rescue missions in Korea and the various Korean animal welfare organizations we’ve been lucky enough to partner with. And, as ever, we are so grateful to our amazing community of alumni, fosters, and volunteers. We couldn’t do what we do without you!

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We rescued dogs from Pocheon!

Our Director just got back from her trip to South Korea, where she visited our Korean facilities. This included a trip to the Pocheon shelter. In the three years since Pocheon City shut down the shelter (previously known as Aerinwon), we’ve rescued 800 dogs. Our rescue has taken in almost 300 dogs personally. Thank you also to our collaborators Beagle Rescue Network and Korean K9 Rescue Korea!

Now, we’re facing the challenge of rescuing and rehabilitating the 382 dogs still remaining at Aerinwon. Given their negative experiences with humans in the past, the dogs won’t accept a human’s touch or gaze. But the volunteers in Korea work hard every day to improve every dog’s perception of people. When our Director was at the Pocheon shelter, she evaluated and selected the 14 puppies and dogs with the highest chance of rehabilitation. It will still take time and effort for these dogs to gain trust in people, but we believe in them.

We’re currently trying to raise $2,500 to cover the costs of medical care and rehabilitation for these 14 dogs, who are now at our Bundang facility. You can donate to the fundraiser via our Instagram (https://www.instagram.com/linking/fundraiser?fundraiser_id=673556730295530) or through Venmo (@koreank9rescue; code 0333). Your support leads to these dogs finding their forever homes in NYC, Massachusetts, Pennsylvania, Connecticut, Washington D.C., and Maryland. We’re so grateful to you for being a part of our amazing community and participating in our efforts to give these dogs a second chance!

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Our SYM & Howl-o-ween Recap!

We celebrated Halloween this year with our Strut Your Mutt walk and 5th Annual Howloween Party at McCarren Park Dog Run in New York City! Both Strut Your Mutt and Howloween were virtual events last year, so we were excited to see everyone in person and very pleased with the turnout. We had over 150 attendees join us, including 71 pups, all KK9R alumni, that participated in our costume contest! The winners were:

1st Place – Gilly as Monty Python’s Rabbit Killer
2nd Place – Hannah as “Work-From-Home Hannah”
3rd Place – Wilbur as a Starbucks Puppuccino

Thank you to NYC Pet for sponsoring the costume contest and donating gift cards to the winners! We’d also like to thank Rescue Train Repeat for leading the Strut Your Mutt walk and Jen at The Ways of the Dog for taking photos, which you can see here: https://jenhillenga.pixieset.com/kk9strutyourmutt/.

From these two awesome events, we raised $7,246 and it’s all going towards the rescue and adoption of even more dogs who will find their forever homes in NYC, Massachusetts, Pennsylvania, Connecticut, Washington D.C., and Maryland. We’re so grateful for our amazing community that supports our mission! If you’re looking to adopt a puppy or older dog from our rescue, please check our Adopt page. We can’t wait for you to be part of our alumni, foster, or volunteer community!