Cinco Satos

Kevin and I were living aboard two boats in a small marina in Salinas, Puerto Rico.  We were managing the catamaran (for it's owners) that I was living aboard while it was for sale and Kevin was staying on his boat (in the Air Conditioning - Lol).  Every time we went through the parking lot, we noticed lots of dogs.  Many of them seemed quite ill.  Kevin started buying dog biscuits and made a habit of feeding any we saw.  One December evening we were hanging out, feeding any who approached and ran out of treats quite quickly. But all of a sudden there was this itty bitty puppy a couple feet away, then right next to him and then in his lap... So cute - and brave!  I said "how are you going to put that one down and walk away?" and he said, "I would have till you said that!"  So she was whisked away to his boat and given a bath in the galley (kitchen) sink.  She was a little scared, but also seemed to know we were helping her... And so our lives were changed forever!  The next day we took her to a vet and found that she had worms, of course, but also that she had been eating rocks!  The vet didn't even want to start her vaccines until she got a little stronger. She recovered quickly and thrived. She went everywhere with us in a little doggie shoulder bag that we bought for her.  She got so excited to jump in it every time we put the bag down to go!  She was so smart and quickly learned how to manage the big steps on the boat and the names of her different toys!  We named her Buttercup, from the movie the Princess Bride (Read about how the Cinco Satos got their names in future blog posts).  Well, all was going great and we were in love with our little Buttercup when one day about a week later I was out in the parking lot and saw 3(!) more pups that were very obviously little BC's siblings! Oh no!! Now what? There just wasn't room on Kevin's boat and the catamaran was up for sale and could not have little puppies running around.  As it turns out, the other three were not like BC at all... they were very afraid and we could not get near them.  So, I took it upon myself to be a surrogate mom for them in the parking lot.  I was out with them at all hours, feeding them, giving them a blanket at night, buying them toys and protecting them from all the other dogs in the lot.  One by one they came around and allowed me to touch them all by week six!  They were so cute and they became known as the blonde, the red head and the brunette.  I tried so hard to find homes for them, but no rescue groups would even respond to my pleas, which I later found out was because they were all so inundated with stray dogs - or Satos - as they are called in Puerto Rico. (Please read about this heartbreaking problem at our non-profit site:  www.SouthCoastSatoRescue.org).  Time marched on and they became Blondie, Red and Salina (since Brunette seemed a silly name for a dog) and by February I had accepted that I was desperately in love with them and could bear them in the lot no more.  And so started the search to live ashore again after ten years of living on a boat!  Around this same time, one of the other dogs we fed regularly in the lot had puppies.  Of course in the worst possible place... under a rock right next to the entrance to one of the docks.  She, Sofie, started attacking everyone who approached the dock and I found myself running interference between her and kids especially.  People seemed to understand that she was just a new mom protecting her babies, but it was obvious that the situation was not tenable and something would have to be done before someone got hurt and Sofie and the pups might be killed.  So under the rock we squirmed and brought out three little pups which we put in a large dog crate that we purchased. Sofie happily went right in and then began my heavy involvement.  We found a great spot under some trees and Kevin strung up a tarp for protection from the rain.  Sadly at four weeks, we lost two of them after spending over $1000 at the vet to try and save them... But Christopher survived and then thrived and was living on the catamaran now because he initially needed round the clock care when they became sick.  I already knew he wasn't going anywhere... and so then there were five.  

Our Cinco Satos!