The Misadventures of a First-Time 'Puppy Mule'

I’m always up for an adventure, so I said yes when my friend Michele Rizza asked me and another friend to be “puppy mules” for her Panamanian rescue start-up.

Not in our wildest dreams could we imagine what that meant.

Sue Lamy, from Dallas, and I would fly to Panama City, pick up two puppies each and fly home. The incentive: Sue and I would get to lounge around our friend’s beautiful water-front condo for a few days.

Simple, right?

Michele, a former Rancho Palos Verdes resident, currently lives in Las Vegas. She is still the vice president of San Pedro’s Animals Rule Pet Foundation. It’s a group that helps rescue animals around the peninsula. She also started her own nonprofit, Amore 4 Pets, to rescue animals throughout the United States.

Last year, Michele and her husband bought a condominium in Coronado Bay, Panama. She’s aiming to work with Panamanian veterinarians to rescue the strays she encounters. Central Americans typically do not spay or neuter their pets. So, starving dogs and cats are a common sight on city streets and in the countryside there.

Michele’s quest is a self-funded, sacrificial calling not many would understand.

“I don’t like seeing animals suffer,” Michele said as she boarded the plane to take her two pups back to Las Vegas. “They are God’s creatures, too, and we are commanded to take care of them.”

We three former flight attendants can’t decide who is the craziest: Michele who had the bright idea to bring six, just weaned puppies to the US, or Sue and me – the two lunatics who went along with the plan.

Sue said the whole thing sounded like fun when she agreed to help, but she said it was challenging.

“What I did take away from it is: I was crazy and my friends are crazy,” Sue said, “and I wouldn’t change a thing.”

Michele handled the bureaucracy including mounds of paperwork, exorbitant Panamanian exit fees, food, toys, travel supplies, vet bills, cleaning materials and airline tickets.

Before the six pups are adopted, Michele said she will have invested about $3,500.

The plan was for Charlie Mosquera, Michele’s personal assistant, to keep the puppies at his house in Panama Bay until out departure dates, but he had to turn the litter over to Rizza because he was moving to a new place.

The early arrival of the six puppies in the condo presented a vastly different story from “simple” and definitely cut into our lounging time.

For five days we spent every waking hour cleaning up after the pups contained in a wire pen in the middle of the tile floor.

By day three, we were intermittently hysterically laughing or laughing hysterically while silently counting in our heads whose turn it was to swab the floors with Clorox or bathe puppies.

Then, the runt started to get sick. Sue, Charlie and I took “Bandit” to the vet who found he had parasites. All six puppies needed to take the liquid medication, too.

On our last night, Michele slept on the couch because Sue and I had early departures. When we opened the air-conditioned bedroom door at 3am to peek at Michele, a sirocco of puppy stench wafted over us.

Bye, sorry, no time to chat.

Amazingly, my puppies were angels on the plane, but the minute we got to the customs line, “Blue” and “Max” let loose with the rage of hell. Not only did I have to refresh their carrier while moving along in line, I felt I had to apologize to people who were laughing at me.

Finally home, after a few days this puppy mule turned her charges over to the care of Animals Rule, where foster teams and new owners are strictly vetted.

At writing this, Michele is finally on her way home to Las Vegas with “Mugsy” and “Bandit.” Sue is still babysitting “Brutus” and “Panama Jack” in Dallas, waiting for Michel to retrieve or adopt them out, whichever comes first.

Nevertheless, knowing our collective can-do spirit saved six puppies from potential starvation is a great testament to our friendship – and our ability to tolerate just about anything.

For more information on pet adoption, visit adopt.animalsrule.org.