Y RHODY

By: Paige Monopoli

“Men have forgotten this truth,” said the fox. “But you must not forget it. You become responsible, forever, for what you have tamed. You are responsible for your rose …”

“I am responsible for my rose,” the Little Prince repeated, so that he would be sure to remember.

One of the many important life lessons gleaned from the 1943 classic, The Little Prince by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry, is the importance of responsibility. Founder of Little Rhody Rescue, Kate Dubuque, beautifully references the metaphor when reflecting on 17 years of dog rescuing.

“You don’t need to be a millionaire to have a dog; it’s about the responsibility. There’s an issue with our society where folks do not follow through on things they say yes to without accountability.”

That mindset became the heart and soul behind Little Rhody as Kate miraculously poured 60-100 hours per week of unpaid work, taking care of up to 25 dogs per day, and helped rehome 13,500 dogs since 2002. This work is far more than cleaning kennels, giving belly rubs, and sending pups home to their happily ever after. There’s an underbelly to this industry that requires someone with motivation, grit, a strong work ethic, and endless compassion.

Kate has given her entire life to these dogs, and now it’s her time to rest. Little Rhody’s doors are closing in March 2023.

Little Rhody is a non-profit dog rescue and quarantine facility where Kate and her team strive to find safe homes for underprivileged or neglected dogs. All animals are rescued from shelters in Texas, Louisiana, and Tennessee that are considered to be “high kill.”

Rescue shelters such as Little Rhody are full of healthy, sweet and smart dogs who were surrendered not because of their behavior but generally due to the issues of their owners. The most common reasons animals are surrendered is because of a change in circumstances of their family: a divorce, a move, or because their family was not ready for all the responsibilities of having a pet and “no longer has time for them.”

In 2002, Kate and her husband Don (a recently retired firefighter), moved to Glocester, Rhode Island. Here, Kate began working for the state as an Animal Control Officer. She grew up with animals and her affinity for them never faded; it has always been a part of her to save any living creature she could. That is, until she broke her back lifting a 100 pound bag of cat litter. After surgeries and appointments, the doctor said she’d never work again.

“I told him, watch me,” Kate says proudly. Once she was healed, she began training and working as a vet tech in several hospitals across the state.

Along with the move, Don wanted a puppy. Kate was adamant that it must be a rescue, whether it was a puppy or not. After some online research, they found Guinness who was recently rescued by an organization, UCARE, based in Louisiana. Guinness’s story came to a happy ending with this new family in Rhode Island. However, this was just the beginning of a relationship that would evolve into something Kate could have never expected.

She continued working with UCARE and other rescue organizations in the south to help coordinate getting the dogs up north.

“You know, there’s a misconception about how animals are treated in the south,” Kate notes thoughtfully. “There’s a lot of awful stuff that happens down there, but based on the people I’ve worked with, for every person who commits a crime against an animal or abandons it, there are two people who will do what it takes to make it right.”

As this passion project rapidly grew, the adoptions demanded more of Kate’s time. Before giving up her part time gig as a vet tech and over 100 dogs coming up per month, Kate decided she was going to take on some of the dogs from the south herself. In order to work around both Massachusetts and Rhode Island animal restrictions, she designed her own quarantine station for the dogs transferred from the south for precautionary health reasons. All dogs transported are spay/neutered, chipped, tested, vaccinated, heartworm/flea/tick care.

“None of this [Little Rhody] would have ever happened without my rock, Don.”

Over the course of its 17 year run, organizations from the south are responsible for the success of Little Rhody.

Keri Toth of the UCARE Project based in Louisiana quickly became a close friend of Kate’s. She goes to shelters around the state, rescues dogs from high kill shelters, and helps ship them up north to safety. While working together, it was an incredibly difficult decision to exclude Pit Bulls from the program.

As Kate explains it, “There are way too many Pit Bulls here in New England that need help, too.”

Juanita Murphy of Natchitoches Humane, based in Louisiana, has worked with Kate for a decade and served as another crucial hand in facilitating these life-changing rescues. Natchitoches also has a wonderful program known as Happy Tails. Within the program, dogs in need of a home are cared for, fed, and played with by the incarcerated - both “lifers” and “non-lifers.” Lifers assigned to this program are given the opportunity for positivity and grace; they know more than anyone else, everyone deserves a second chance. Non-lifers who participate in the program leave prison and often find work within animal control based on their positive experience.

Then, there’s Heather from Wincester, Tennessee who works in animal control. Heather and Kate have adopted over 2,000 dogs together.

For the Little Prince, his rose's naïveté makes it important for him to return to his planet to protect her. For Kate, this is what it boils down to: take responsibility, protect, and love your new dog regardless of their previous circumstances.

The prospective adopter that applies for a dog at Little Rhody must show they have some experience with a dog and are clearly doing their research. Without these two simple, yet imperative qualities, it is impossible to trust a person understands the responsibility of taking on another life.

Through this philosophy, Kate has a lot to be proud of. In particular, over the course of 2020-2021, in the thick of the COVID-19 pandemic, she adopted over 1,200 dogs. Only two have been surrendered.

“Regardless of where I end up, I’ll always make sure a surrendered dog lands on all four feet.”

When asked what’s next, Kate keeps it simple: possibly a part-time gig with animals (who can blame her), travel, more time with her husband, and to just… live. She deserves the peace and rest, just like the dogs she’s given that very gift to over decades.

“Who the hell knows! I’m excited!”

Check out Little Rhody Rescue: littlerhodyrescue.com

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