Marleys Mutts Dog Rescue

Our Mission

Marley’s Mutts rescues, rehabilitates, trains and re-homes death-row dogs from Kern County’s high-kill animal shelters. In addition, we utilize the rescued dogs to transform people’s lives. Through the power of the human-canine bond, we empower dogs and people to live healthy, happy and productive lives.

 

Our Story

Zach Skow was diagnosed with end-stage liver disease in July of 2008.

He was constantly drunk; constantly numb. He needed alcohol to drive, to work, and certainly to interact with people, especially if those people were new faces. Without alcohol, he was vulnerable and scared—much like the dogs he now rescues from shelters every day. In October 2008, facing death, Zach resolved to get sober and take on life without alcohol. It was then that Marley's Mutts was born.

When Zach walks into a shelter, he sees himself in the destitute dogs, and they in him. He knows first-hand what it feels like to be a “throwaway human being,” and to most people, the dogs in the most hard-knock shelters are “throwaway dogs.”

Having worked some with the Humane Society, Zach saw a hole in the rescue world: no one was taking on the really tough cases. The giant Mastiffs, the mangled and mangy mutts, the aggressive and the fearful. . . Marley’s Mutts would bring hope to these “undesirables.”

Zach and the Marley’s Mutts crew are changing the conversation surrounding these "hopeless" cases. We relentlessly educate and inform followers and fans (500,000 and growing!) that no dog or human being is a “throwaway.”

Now, Marley's Mutts works with prisoners, addicts, and the mentally challenged through various initiatives. Zach knows that he owes his life to the dogs, and through Marley’s Mutts, he makes good on a daily debt of gratitude that is truly a labor of love and his life’s highest calling.

 

 

Our Programs

Miracle Mutts:

Miracle Mutts is Marley’s Mutts’ Community Outreach & Education endeavor, through which *rescue dogs earn Certified Therapy Dog certification while providing comfort, emotional and social enrichment, educational programs and job-skills training to diverse populations of children, teens and adults across Kern County.

Pawsitive Change:

Through this innovative 14-week program, inmates are coached to rehabilitate and train rescue dogs from Kern County. Not only do the dogs get a second chance, but the individuals, who will likely be released, gain valuable skills–social and professional–to help them live a meaningful life outside of prison.

Spay/Neuter:

Our mission is to not only empower the community with knowledge and insight but give them the confidence and ability to be part of the solution. To that end, we have partnered with Kern County Animal Services and Critters Without Litters to provide low-cost spay and neuter to county residents. 

Illegal Dog-Meat Trade Rescue:

The Thai/Vietnamese illegal dog meat trade is a practice through which millions of dogs are born, bred, stolen, trafficked and eaten. Marley's Mutts is proud to partner with Soi Dog Foundation to bring these mutts to the United States for adoption.