March 2026 | Saving The Paws
Spring doesn't announce itself gently when you're an abandoned dog living outside. One day it's freezing. The next, the ground is soft and the air carries something different — a little warmer, a little lighter. But for thousands of dogs who have no home to return to, spring doesn't mean safety. It just means a new season of surviving alone.
That's where our volunteers come in.
Every single day in March, our field teams showed up. In back alleys and overgrown lots. Under highway overpasses and along forgotten fence lines. In the quiet outskirts of cities where nobody else was looking. They brought food. They brought water. And they brought proof that these dogs are not forgotten.
Here's what March looked like on the ground.
The Numbers Behind the Month
In March 2026, our volunteer network:
- Fed 11,340 abandoned and stray dogs across active feeding locations in the US and Canada
- Completed 847 individual feeding runs — every one documented with photos
- Operated across 14 states and 3 Canadian provinces
- Welcomed 9 new volunteers to the field team
These aren't shelter dogs. These are the ones who fell through the cracks — dumped, lost, or born outside with no human to claim them. They don't make it onto adoption pages. But they still show up, night after night, to the same spots where our volunteers leave food.
That consistency is what keeps them alive.
A Season of Change — and a Few Dogs Who Made It Through
March brought something we always hold our breath for: the dogs who survived the winter.
Our volunteers in Ohio reported that a small grey terrier mix — nicknamed "Biscuit" by the team — had been spotted regularly at the Columbus East feeding station since November. She was thin when they first found her, curled against a concrete wall during a cold snap. They didn't know if she'd make it.
In March, Biscuit was waiting at the station when the team arrived. Tail moving. Eyes bright. Not thin anymore.
Stories like hers don't make headlines. There's no rescue, no viral moment. Just a dog who lived because someone showed up with food — again and again, through the worst of it.
That's the work.
Where Your Support Goes Every Month
When you purchase one of our handcrafted bracelets or join the Hero VIP Club, here's what actually happens on the ground:
Every bracelet funds 15 meals for abandoned dogs at active feeding locations. Hero VIP Club members collectively fund hundreds of additional runs each month — your $29.99 membership keeps a location stocked and staffed for weeks.
In March, our care package supporters directly funded:
- New feeding runs opened in two underserved rural areas in Tennessee and Manitoba
- Emergency resupply at four stations that ran low mid-month due to a surge in new dogs at the location
- Volunteer coordination costs for 3 new team members getting trained and deployed
None of this happens without you. There's no corporate backer. No government grant. Just people who care, and a volunteer network that shows up because of them.
From Our Volunteers
"March was hard at the beginning — we had a late frost and a lot of the dogs we'd been tracking moved. We spent a week re-finding them. But by the third week, we had 6 new regulars at the East Side route. One of them, a big brindle boy, started following our volunteer Maria back to her car. He's not ready to be touched yet. But he's coming closer."
— Field Team, Detroit, MI
"We hit 200 consecutive feeding days at our Calgary location this month. No missed days. Rain, snow, whatever — someone showed up. The dogs know the schedule now. They're waiting."
— Field Team, Calgary, AB
Looking Into April
Spring means more dogs outside — and that means more demand on our feeding network. As temperatures rise, more owners surrender pets they can no longer care for. More litters are born outside. More animals are left behind.
April is one of our busiest months of the year — and we want to be ready.
If you haven't yet, consider joining the Hero VIP Club for $29.99/month. Your membership directly funds the feeding runs your support makes possible, and you'll receive monthly photo proof from the field showing exactly where your contribution went.
Because these dogs are still out there. Every day. Waiting.
And we're not going to stop showing up.
With love and gratitude, Rachel, Robert & the entire Saving The Paws volunteer family 🐾
Want to see more from the field? Follow our feeding updates and volunteer stories on our blog. Every photo, every recap, every dog — documented and shared because transparency is something we believe in.