We’ve been forced to suspend all new rescue operations
Our rescuer, Kim
This is a heavy update to share. Due to mounting veterinary bills, we have been unable to rescue a new dog since February.
Our rescuer, Kim, works a full-time day job and devotes every single free hour to feeding, medicating, transporting, and rescuing these pugs. She literally gives up her entire personal and social life for them. Because she always puts the dogs first, her own needs—including reimbursement paperwork—come last.
When we finally sat down to tally our outstanding bills, the reality was staggering.
Between Kim’s out-of-pocket costs and what we owe our vets, our debt is $25,500.85.
We want to be transparent: 100% of this amount is for life-saving medical care covering the 11 pugs with the highest vet bills. To be responsible stewards of your support, we cannot take in new rescues until we repay Kim and our veterinarians.
We want to get back to saying "yes" to pugs in need, but we can’t do it without your help.
Kim’s modest life
Kim lives an exceptionally simple life by choice, so she can dedicate her space, time, and resources to rescuing pugs. At any given time, her apartment serves as a foster home for up to 10 dogs.
Instead of a bed, Kim sleeps on mats on the living room floor alongside her foster pugs. Many of these new rescues have never lived indoors, requiring constant nighttime supervision, training, and cleanup. She never gets a full night of uninterrupted sleep.
To maximize space for the pugs, Kim’s living room contains no traditional furniture or decor. Instead, it is filled with dog beds, pens, toys, and pee pads. Her preferred interior design colors? The black, gray, and silver of dog pens and newspapers lining the walls to prevent damage from dog urine.
Her three-bedroom apartment is fully utilized for the pugs: bedrooms are set up to quarantine healing dogs or separate rowdy pups, and even her kitchen is used for isolation when a dog's medical needs require it.
Waste not, want not. To stretch our budget, Kim even cuts away the unused sections of soiled pee pads so that not a single centimeter of clean material is wasted!
When she comes home from a full day at the office, she spends her evenings preparing the pugs’ meals and administering the array of meds, eye drops, skin ointments and other medical treatments. She also comes home at lunch for a midday check to tend to the pugs.
Why is pug rescue so expensive?
As you know, pugs can be a medically complex breed, and our adoption fees ($350–$1,150) don’t cover the full cost of their care and rehabilitation.
Here’s what it takes to save just one dog:
🔵 $1,200–$2,500: Air transport and travel costs from Korea to the US.
🔵 $800–$2,000: Basic intake (vetting, vaccines, dentals, spay/neuter).
🔵$2,000+: Specialist care (BOAS airway surgery, eye surgeries, orthopedic care, heartworm treatment).
Note: If a foster pug requires veterinary care after arriving in the US, these medical costs instantly double.
RIP: May 2019 - Nov 2025
Mica's Story
We tragically lost Mica to GME, a progressive inflammatory brain disease.
Because she had been severely neglected before coming to us, the disease went untreated in its early stages. We fought for her for a year and a half, ensuring she finally knew love and comfort.
While we still deeply mourn her passing, we don’t regret a single penny spent on her care. Her total medical bills reached $8,936.42, and we still owe $4,235.05 of that balance.
How are we ensuring this won't happen again?
We never want to stop saving pugs from puppy mills, euthanasia, and the dog meat market. Our main obstacle was the inability to accurately forecast expenses due to the grueling manual process of compiling international receipts, performing currency conversions, and translating receipts.
Moving forward, we are using AI tools to handle this paperwork quickly and efficiently. This will allow us to track expenditures in real-time and fundraise proactively.
How can you help us resume rescuing?
If you can make a direct financial donation today, please click the link below.
If you can’t donate directly (totally understand!), here are other ways you can help us clear this debt:
Milestone Celebrations: Getting married or having a birthday? Ask guests to donate to us in lieu of gifts.
Turn Hobbies into Help: Crafty, creative, or hosting a yard sale? Sell your wares or baked goods and donate a portion of the proceeds to us.
Donate a Service: If you offer services such as fitness instruction or bookkeeping, consider donating the proceeds from a session to our cause.
Corporate Matching: Check if your employer has a donation matching program. You can easily double your impact!
Support Our Events: Attend our upcoming events (NYC meetup in September!), buy merch (new drops coming soon!), purchase raffle tickets.
Fall Silent Auction: We are hosting an online silent auction this October. You can help by donating products/services or by bidding!
Thank you for standing by Kim, our vets, and the pugs!