NorthStar WI was founded in 2013 by a few good dog rescue friends in Madison, WI with several years of rescue experience. Specifically, German Shepherd Dogs, but with NorthStar, we wanted to broaden our range to include dogs of all mixes and sizes. Over the past 10 years, we’ve helped over 150 dogs find their new homes.
NorthStar has focused on its mission of providing medical care and fostering unwanted dogs of all breeds but special to our hearts are the herding and working dogs that often struggle in shelter environments.
Since we started our small rescue ten years ago, there has been great growth in local rescue and foster groups and to be honest, our little group is sometimes overwhelmed with recruiting and maintaining active fosters in a much more “competitive” field.
Starting in 2022, we made the decision to no longer offer fostering services. Instead, we focus on the advocacy side of our mission. This is where we most enjoy giving of our time.
Here are some examples of our advocacy:
- Helping the community with rehoming dogs due to no fault of their own.
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- We recently rehomed Benny. Benny was a beautiful exuberant puppy that a young man adopted from a roadside adoption and he was told it was a pure-bred German Shepherd. Low and behold it was a mix, maybe had a smidge of shepherd in him but none the less this dog needed to be rehomed as he didn’t have the time to care for a puppy. Benny’s family reached out to us and we were able to place him into a home within a couple of days. His new owners absolutely love him,
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- We have taken care of an elderly lab named Booker while his owner recovered from a broken elbow. Booker did well in his temporary foster home and is back living with his owner.
- We have pulled a Doddle from Coulee Humane Society and helped get the dog to her new owner in Michigan. The Michigan Standard Poodle Rescue was very appreciative of North Star’s efforts in helping to pull her and transport her to her new home.
- We have donated leashes and collars to a rescue shelter in Puerto Vallarta as well as the Dane County Humane Society.
- We have provided funds for an emergency surgery.
We continually look for other ways to serve the dogs in need and their owners. Please feel free to reach out and if we can help you with your situation, we will do our best.
NorthStar WI is a 501c(3) non-profit charity and follows the guidelines of the Wisconsin Department of Agriculture’s Division of Animal Health. As of 2022, we no longer foster dogs. We stay active by helping community members re-home their pets and raise funds for medical care for community dogs in need.