05/26/2026
Ten years ago today, MuttLove Dog Rescue was born. Ten years of saving lives, fighting impossible odds, surviving on caffeine and chaos, and somehow keeping the train on the tracks. In that time, MuttLove has helped around 1,100 animals.
What started as a small effort to help medically needy dogs in the community turned into something much bigger. MuttLove was never meant to be a “regular” rescue. The mission has always focused on the broken ones — the severely injured, malnourished, medically fragile, overlooked, and the animals most people give up on or simply cannot afford to save properly.
Many people don’t know how MuttLove began.
It started with Echo, a German Shepherd adopted from El Paso Animal Services in 2016. His adopter publicly shared that he was sick and needed help. After a situation filled with inconsistencies and heartbreak, Echo eventually ended up back at animal services. A request was made to hold him until medical help could be provided.
But it was too late.
Echo was euthanized due to medical issues before help could arrive.
That loss became the turning point. It highlighted the desperate need in El Paso for a rescue dedicated to underserved animals — the ones without a voice, the ones people stop trying for.
That’s when MuttLove was born.
What began with just three people trying to help animals in need eventually grew into a thriving nonprofit — and the “non” part of nonprofit is still seen regularly — with five admins, incredible foster homes, dedicated volunteers, and a team working every day to save lives.
Over the years, MuttLove has seen the worst imaginable: dogs hit by cars, severe congenital defects, starvation cases, critical medical emergencies, and cases that stay with you long after the day ends.
But the rescue has also witnessed the very best.
Families finding their perfect companions. Animals thriving after everyone counted them out. The scared and broken becoming happy, spoiled couch goblins living their best lives.
Looking back on this ten-year journey is overwhelming in the best way. The people who have kept MuttLove going through every challenge deserve endless gratitude. While leadership shifted away from daily operations in 2019, the team carrying the mission forward today has exceeded every expectation imaginable. They are extraordinary humans doing extraordinary work.
Rescue work is heartbreaking, exhausting, stressful, and soul-crushing at times. But then come the healing moments, the progress, the adoptions, and the second chances — and somehow every sleepless night feels worth it again.
Through it all, the community has carried MuttLove.
The supporters, fosters, adopters, friends, families, donors, volunteers, and every person who shared a post or believed in the mission are the reason MuttLove is still here ten years later.
MuttLove has never just been about dogs. It has always been about community, compassion, and people choosing to care. A decade later, the mission continues: still trying, still fighting, and still believing every life matters.
Thank you, El Paso and beyond, for believing in this dream and helping it grow into something bigger than anyone could have imagined.
Thank you for making 10 years possible.
