Some lucky dogs have a Vernon woman to thank for taking a marathon road trip to Alabama that likely saved their lives. Siobhan Abato drove 32 hours round trip from Vernon to Athens, Alabama, where she rescued six dogs from the Athens-Limestone Animal Shelter that recently lost all its funding and will close on September 30. “It was very last-minute,” Abato said of the trip down South with her own dog, Dugg, faithfully buckled up in the front seat.
“When I heard they were going to euthanize, I wanted to get as many dogs as I could.” Abato volunteered for the mission on behalf of JKRC Rescue, a West Milford-based animal adoption service that received dogs from the Alabama shelter prior to the announcement that Limestone County would not renew its contract. Jennifer Capalbo, the foster care coordinator for JKRC, said the rescue received an initial delivery of 20 dogs from its Alabama transporter, but volunteers wanted to do more.
So JKRC rented a U-Haul, and Abato stepped up with an offer to make the trip, which is 932 miles each way. “I said to Siobhan, ‘are you sure you’re up for this? That’s an awfully long drive,’” Capalbo recalled. “I give her all the kudos in the world.
” Capalbo estimated that between the U-Haul rental, gas, food, and a brief hotel stay, the Alabama getaway cost about $2,800. Abato said she left Vernon on Wednesday night around 10 p.m.
and drove all night. Around 5 a.m.
, she pulled into a motel in rural Virginia, slept three hours, .