Officials hope rescue operation is first of many at new facility

Always wanted a dog like Elle Woods’ pooch Bruiser in “Legally Blonde”?

Well, the Humane Society for Southwest Washington has a deal for you.

The society received 67 dogs from California on Sunday in what is being described as a “large-scale rescue effort based out of San Bernardino.”

Those dogs include Chihuahua, terrier, poodle and spaniel mixes, as well as a small number of German shepherd mixes and Labrador retriever puppies.

For the past month, the society’s Faye Smith has been working with the Oregon Friends of Shelter Animals rescue organization to bring in the dogs because of “overpopulation” in that California city.

“The rescue comes as a relief to the San Bernardino City Animal Shelter, as popular culture’s influence has led to an overwhelming overpopulation of small-breed dogs,” said Kate Goudschaal of the shelter on 192nd Avenue. “The large influx of these dogs has forced many California-based animal shelters to euthanize hundreds of dogs a week to account for the incredibly high number of animals received daily.

“All the movies and mainstream media, and the dogs in the purses … that makes small-breed dogs highly desirable and that leads to improper breeding,” Goudschaal said.

While there were too many small-breed dogs in San Bernardino, there aren’t that many in Clark County, Goudschaal said.

And while the society’s shelter now has about 60 dogs, there is room for 250.

“These are highly adoptable dogs,” Goudschaal said. “We get phone calls every day for dogs under 30 to 35 pounds. I think these guys will get adopted fairly quickly.”

The society here in Clark County is looking forward to helping.

“This is our first large-scale rescue effort in our new building. We’re hoping this is the first in a long line of rescue efforts,” Goudschaal said.

And while Goudschaal can’t promise a dog that will look exactly like “Bruiser,” she says the dogs are adorable.

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