Arlington CEO Rescues More Than 200 Dogs Around The World

ARLINGTON, VA -- The chief executive officer of an Arlington business improvement district sure loves our four-legged friends: she's rescued more than 200 dogs from around the world, and brought a dozen more to Northern Virginia on Monday.

Tina Leone, CEO of the Ballston BID, rescues Brittany dogs in Spain, Green, France, Serbia, and South Korea that would otherwise be put down. Leone is a board member for American Brittany Rescue, and she returned to Dulles Airport Monday from her 14th international rescue mission with 12 dogs from France.

The Brittany is a breed of dog that has been bred primarily for bird hunting. They are named for the Brittany province in France, where the breed was first developed a few hundred years ago.

American Brittany Rescue has been rescuing these dogs for the past 28 years, and Leone estimates that as many as 20,000 have been rescued over that time span here in the United States and Canada. However, it has only been for the past 18 months that the organization has expanded its reach outside of North America, and a total of 220 dogs have been rescued from outside the continent.

The number of Brittanys that need assistance has declined in recent years, but there is still a great need, Leone said in an interview with Patch.

"Our current purpose will always be to rescue Brittanys in the United States and Canada, however we've been able to expand with our resources to rescue these dogs overseas," she said.

In Greece, Spain, and Serbia in particular, there is a high rate of euthanasia for this breed, and they don't have a spay and neuter program. The breed is favored for its hunting abilities, but dogs that don't prove to be effective hunters or just fall out of favor with their owners are often abandoned or even killed.

It was 18 months ago when Leone made her "maiden voyage" to Greece, where she developed important relationships and learned the logistical hurdles to transporting dogs overseas. She returned with three dogs on that first trip, and has made 13 trips since then, bringing back a dozen Brittanys on her latest trip.

Leone doesn't do it all herself. The organization has about 1,200 volunteers and a growing presence in Europe. She said anybody can help out by contacting them if they're traveling to one of those countries for vacation or business so they can arrange for up to two to three dogs to travel back per person.

"We have a passion for this particular breed," Leone said. "This is our breed of choice. A lot of people don't understand why we're breed specific, but it's a win-win, because it allows people to adopt the breed of their choice."

Leone said the organization's goal in 2019 is to raise more money so they can continue to do their work while expanding in Europe and South Korea.

"We have more and more requests coming out of South Korea," she said. "We really just want to keep expanding our presence and our ability to rescue this wonderful breed where we can."

Leone is optimistic about the future for the breed. She says the treatment and regard for dogs in those countries is different than in the United States, and they are "about a generation behind."

"But things are changing," she said.

If you would like to donate, visit AmericanBrittanyRescue.org.

Images courtesy Tina Leone