The Sato Project, Inc.
We fight for the dogs of Puerto Rico so they don't have to.
Programs and results
What we aim to solve
Abandoned and abused street dogs are a sad reality of life in Puerto Rico. The Sato Project is working to address both the individual suffering of hundreds of animals through rescuing, veterinary care, and rehoming dogs, as well as addressing the underlying problems leading to animal overpopulation and abuse on the island. A combination of economic hardship and limited spay/neuter practice and lack of animal shelters leads to a never-ending population of strays. Since Hurricanes Irma and Maria hit in September 2017, and the stray problem on the island has exploded. Families have been forced to abandon homes and many have also abandoned their pets. The Sato Project has responded to this crisis by expanding our geographic reach to help the many animals left behind in the storms' aftermaths. In addition, we are working to address the underlying causes of abandonment, overpopulation, and abuse through our ongoing community outreach and Spay, Neuter, Vaccine and Microchip Program.
Our programs
What are the organization's current programs, how do they measure success, and who do the programs serve?
Rescue and Rehabilitation
The Sato Project works differently from any other rescue organizations on the island of Puerto Rico. For our team, rescue and rehabilitation means much more than ushering dogs off the streets or beaches. After all they have been through, we never want them to suffer again. We have unprecedented quarantine and vetting procedures in place to ensure that every dog we rescue is spayed/neutered, completely disease-free, and behaviorally assessed before any adoption placements are made. We want to prepare each sato to become a permanent fixture in their new families, to prevent them from cycling in and out of the streets. Our standards are therefore the highest in the Caribbean.
Spay/Neuter and Community Outreach
The Sato Project has a long history of sterilizing and vaccinating stray dogs and cats on the island through mass spay/neuter events and drive-up vaccine clinics, as well as a free spay/neuter voucher program for owners living on the island. In 2023, in partnership with BISSELL Pet Foundation, The Sato Project hosted a massive 6-day spay/neuter event called Operation Sato in Gurabo, PR. Over the course of 6 days, 1200+ dogs were spayed/neutered, vaccinated, microchipped, tested for disease, and treated for fleas, ticks, and heartworm - all completely free of charge for the owners. Around 500 additional vouchers for free spay/neuters at a local clinic were distributed to whoever did not secure a spot. It was a massive effort and even more massive success. The Sato Project hopes to host more Operation Sato events in 2024 and beyond, continuing the tradition of educating Puerto Rico on how crucial spay/neuter services are to making a dent in the extreme stray overpopulation crisis that pl
Sanctuary by The Sato Project
Sanctuary by The Sato Project is officially 1 year old, and it has completely changed the landscape of our rescue program. This facility serves as a temporary home for every sato we take on, providing them with much needed safety and a space to heal while they complete their vetting protocols and rehabilitation. During their time at Sanctuary, our dogs are properly socialized and their behavior needs are assessed so each can receive customized training before they are flown to their forever family. Sanctuary by The Sato Project is the first of its kind in the Caribbean, and we couldn't be more proud of it.
Freedom Flights
Freedom Flights are the triumphant, life-changing journeys that our rescued and rehabilitated dogs take to travel to their new homes. To date, The Sato Project has connected more than 8,000 dogs to loving adoptive families on the mainland through these flights. Our goal with each Freedom Flight is to place as many healthy dogs as possible into new, happy homes. It is because of our supporters and #SatoStrong community that we are able to charter flights anywhere from 40 to 300+ dogs at a time.
Disaster Relief
The Sato Project has become the go-to organization in Puerto Rico when natural disasters occur, which unfortunately now seem to be taking place more and more frequently. Hurricane Maria made landfall in September 2017 in Yabucoa, PR, the epicenter of The Sato Project's rescue efforts. Another devastating hurricane, Fiona, hit in 2022. The Sato Project transported over 1,700 dogs in the wake of Hurricanes Maria and Fiona combined and distributed over 170,000 lbs of dog and cat food and supplies to local organizations, shelters, and families in need. The week after Hurricane Fiona in 2022, we hosted five evacuation flights within 1 week. Hurricanes are unfortunately not the only threat to the island: in 2020, we organized an evacuation flight to fly more than 140 dogs 72 hours after earthquakes shook the island and left more than 20,000 people living in tents, holding pet food pantries to ensure that families could feed their pets. Through the fallout from these past disasters is far fro
Adoption & Shelter Placements
Each one of our rescues is thoroughly vetted, spayed/neutered, vaccinated, microchipped, and quarantined prior to adoption. Our adoption team puts great care into matching each dog with the best family fitting to their unique personality and needs. All adoption applications are carefully reviewed and extensive interviews are conducted with potential adopters. No stone is left unturned when deciding whether a dog and a family might be a match. Because of this exhaustive process, our dogs have a 99% success rate when placed with their forever families.
Where we work
Awards
Inspiration to action award 2017
Variety Magazine Power of Women
Affiliations & memberships
Veterinary Medical Association of New York 2018
External reviews
Photos
Videos
Our results
How does this organization measure their results? It's a hard question but an important one.
Number of animals rescued
This metric is no longer tracked.Totals By Year
Related Program
Rescue and Rehabilitation
Type of Metric
Outcome - describing the effects on people or issues
Direction of Success
Increasing
Context Notes
In 2022, we cut back on rescues for a six month period to prepare for the opening of Sanctuary by The Sato Project.
Goals & Strategy
Learn about the organization's key goals, strategies, capabilities, and progress.
Charting impact
Four powerful questions that require reflection about what really matters - results.
What is the organization aiming to accomplish?
The Sato Project aims to make permanent change in Puerto Rico through a threefold mission: 1. rescuing, rehabilitating and rehoming abandoned and abused dogs, and 2. addressing the underlying causes of overpopulation, abandonment, and abuse through community outreach and a low-cost spay, neuter, vaccine and microchip Program. 3. bringing national attention to the problem of abandoned and abused dogs in Puerto Rico.
There are over 500,000 stray dogs in Puerto Rico. We know we cannot rescue them all. Our goal is to improve the quality of life for as many dogs as possible. Every single dog we take in gets individualized care. Those undergoing treatments stay as long as it takes to get them healthy, free of communicable disease and ready to travel to new homes in the continental United States to vetted adopters. Each and every dog is socialized, handled and gets plenty of love every day at our Sanctuary.
Our education and outreach initiatives aim to address two of the underlying issues that cause Puerto Rico's stray problem---overpopulation and disease. Through the sterilization of owned animals, we will begin to see reductions in abandoned animals. Vaccination will reduce the circulation of diseases that endanger the health and well being of the animal and human populations of the island.
By drawing the public's attention to this crisis, we aim to change policies and perceptions. We dream of a day when there is adequate funding and political will to address the crisis across the island.
What are the organization's key strategies for making this happen?
The Sato Project aims to make permanent change in Puerto Rico through six main programs: rescue and rehabilitation, freedom flights, adoption and shelter placement, Sanctuary by The Sato Project, disaster relief and community outreach.
Rescue and Rehabilitation: Among rescue and shelter operations in Puerto Rico, The Sato Project works differently than any other organization. For our team, rescue and rehabilitation means much more than ushering dogs off the streets or beaches. We want to prepare each sato to become a permanent fixture in their new families, to prevent them from cycling in and out of the streets. Our standards are therefore the highest in the Caribbean.
Sanctuary by The Sato Project. Sanctuary by The Sato Project is officially 1 year old, and it has completely changed the landscape of our rescue program. This facility serves as a temporary home for every sato we take on, providing them with much needed safety and a space to heal while they complete their vetting protocols and rehabilitation. During their time at Sanctuary, our dogs are properly socialized and their behavior needs are assessed so each can receive customized training before they are flown to their forever family. Sanctuary by The Sato Project is the first of its kind in the Caribbean, and we couldnt be more proud of it.
Freedom Flights. Freedom Flights are the triumphant, life-changing journeys that our rescued and rehabilitated dogs take to travel to their new homes. To date, The Sato Project has connected more than 8,000 dogs to loving adoptive families on the mainland through these flights. Our goal with each Freedom Flight is to place as many healthy dogs as possible into new, happy homes. It is because of our supporters and #SatoStrong community that we are able to charter flights anywhere from 40 to 300+ dogs at a time.
Adoption & Shelter Placement:Each one of our rescues is thoroughly vetted, spayed/neutered, vaccinated, microchipped, and quarantined prior to adoption. Our adoption team puts great care into matching each dog with the best family fitting to their unique personality and needs. All adoption applications are carefully reviewed and extensive interviews are conducted with potential adopters. We have a 99% success rate among our matches.
Disaster Relief. Each year seems to bring a new wave of complications from natural disasters for Puerto Rico. Hurricane Maria made landfall in September 2017 in Yabucoa, Puerto Rico, the epicenter of The Sato Project's rescue efforts. Five years later, the crisis is far from over. The power grid remains unstable, with neighborhood-wide outages still a weekly occurrence. An estimated 20,000 residents are still living under FEMA-distributed blue tarps instead of roofs.
Spay/Neuter Community Outreach. As of 2023, The Sato Project teams had successfully spayed/neutered and vaccinated 8,000+ dogs and cats in total, through community outreach programs. We have also implemented a drive-up community vaccine clinics.
What are the organization's capabilities for doing this?
We are fortunate enough to have a dedicated rescue team that patrols the beaches of Yabucoa daily to track stray packs of satos, their litters, and the dogs that are frequently abandoned there by their families. We also frequently pull dogs from local shelters and respond to inquiries to save satos individuals may come across on the streets. We have a close relationship with vet clinics on the island that allow us to quickly vet and rehabilitate these dogs to the highest veterinary standards once they have been rescued, as they are often in very poor condition; typically, our satos suffer from malnourishment, fleas, ticks, blood-borne illnesses, and even very grave injuries. We are proud of how our close local relationships make us a trusted emissary for our outreach initiatives. Our foster network and shelter partners both on the island and in the Northeast of the mainland U.S. help us in all stages of the rescue process.
In addition to our incredible team that rescues and rehabilitates dogs on the island and operates our Sanctuary, The Sato Project has a core support staff based in New York, and an incredible volunteer corps. These remote teams coordinate fundraising, media outreach, adoptions, and transports. Throughout the years, word of mouth has led to partnerships with U.S. organizations such as the Humane Society of the United States, BarkBox, Kuranda dog beds, BISSELL Pet Foundation, and Wings of Rescue - just to name a few; these organizations have been crucial for the expansion of all facets of our program.
What have they accomplished so far and what's next?
In its twelve years of existence The Sato Project has rescued, rehabilitated and found homes for over 8,000 dogs. We have spayed or neutered over 9,700 owned dogs in Yabucoa since launching our community voucher program in 2016. We were a proud coalition member and ground team of Spayathon for Puerto Rico, a historical and groundbreaking initiative that spayed/neutered and vaccinated over 55,000 animals. Building on that success, we launched our own mass spay/neuter event, Operation Sato, in November of 2023, which sterilized, vaccinated, microchipped, and treated 1200+ dogs in just 6 days. The Sato Project continues to raise awareness of the approximate 500,000 stray and abandoned dogs on the island through many high-profile media pieces, including major coverage by the New York Times, NPR, CBS, Animal Planet, ABC, NBC and many more. Our small but mighty team never stops. In its twelve years of existence The Sato Project has rescued, rehabilitated and found homes for over 8,000 dogs. We have spayed or neutered over 9,700 owned dogs in Yabucoa since launching our community voucher program in 2016. We were a proud coalition member and ground team of Spayathon for Puerto Rico, a historical and groundbreaking initiative that spayed/neutered and vaccinated over 55,000 animals. Building on that success, we launched our own mass spay/neuter event, Operation Sato, in November of 2023, which sterilized, vaccinated, microchipped, and treated 1200+ dogs in just 6 days. The Sato Project continues to raise awareness of the approximate 500,000 stray and abandoned dogs on the island through many high-profile media pieces, including major coverage by the New York Times, NPR, CBS, Animal Planet, ABC, NBC and many more. Our small but mighty team never stops. In the years coming, we hope to expand the common definition of rescue to include all the work that is done for these animals; rescue is a 360 process that does not start and stop with adoption, but must also include systemic reforms and mass educational initiatives to stop the cycles of abandonment and overpopulation that ravage the island of Puerto Rico. In the years coming, we hope to expand the common definition of rescue to include all the work that is done for these animals; rescue is a 360 process that does not start and stop with adoption, but must also include systemic reforms and mass educational initiatives to stop the cycles of abandonment and overpopulation that ravage the island of Puerto Rico.
Financials
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Operations
The people, governance practices, and partners that make the organization tick.
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Connect with nonprofit leaders
SubscribeBuild relationships with key people who manage and lead nonprofit organizations with GuideStar Pro. Try a low commitment monthly plan today.
- Analyze a variety of pre-calculated financial metrics
- Access beautifully interactive analysis and comparison tools
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The Sato Project, Inc.
Board of directorsas of 01/25/2024
Christina Beckles
The Sato Project
Devin Shanahan
Houlihan Lokey
Tracy Warren
Bobby Beckles
Action Man Bob, Inc
Annya Ramirez
Marvel Designs
Gannon McMorrow
Morgan Stanley
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