Alaska Rural Veterinary Outreach, Inc.

06/19/2026

Another successful day in Yakutat!
We are so thankful for the community support and entrusting your 4-legged family members to our care.

06/18/2026

Our clinic in Yakutat is underway!

06/14/2026

We just got back from Nome so this is close to our hearts! Please consider helping if you can! PAWS of Nome works tirelessly to be available for the people and pets of the Bering Straits region!

This week, PAWS received so many requests for dog food that fulfilling the needs of a single village would have nearly depleted what remains from our Spring Dog Food Drive.

That's the reality of animal welfare in rural Alaska.

Food isn't something people—or their dogs—can wait for. Animals suffer in the meantime. By the time many families realize their dogs are beyond what they can personally provide, it's often already a crisis. Not because they don't care. Not because they aren't trying. But because they have been doing what rural Alaskans have always done: making do with what they have available.

The problem is that "making do" only works when there are resources to make do with.

Throughout the day, we worked with our WAAGA partners to troubleshoot how we could meet the growing requests coming from villages across the region. Before we could even put together a post asking for help, Best Friends Animal Rescue, Alaskan Animal Rescue Friends AARF , Northern Air Cargo, and Ryan Air, INC. stepped forward to coordinate and transport pallets of dog food to communities in need.

By the end of the day, we had a path forward.

Then we lost Barkley.

Many of you have been following the story of our Shishmaref 5. Barkley wasn't even the dog we were most concerned about. He was eating, interacting, and seemed to be moving in the right direction.

But the damage had already been done.

Barkley was only 7–8 months old.

He should have been enjoying puppyhood. Instead, his young body had already endured prolonged malnutrition and dehydration. Despite finally reaching safety and having access to food, shelter, and care, his body simply couldn't recover.

A puppy should not die because food wasn't available soon enough.

The pattern we continue to see is not a failure of village residents. It is not a lack of compassion. It is not a lack of effort.

It is a lack of consistent access to resources.

Communities cannot solve problems when the tools to solve them are unavailable. Families cannot feed dogs when food isn't accessible. Animals cannot receive care that doesn't exist.

We don't just want to rescue animals after they are suffering.

We want the suffering to stop.

The full story, and why we believe it's time to move beyond reactionary solutions and build proactive systems of support for rural Alaska, is available on the WAAGA Patreon.

Join our community of Good People and help us build access, awareness, and lasting change:

www.patreon.com/waaga

06/13/2026

Hello ARVO community! Our friends at KPAL have said it well here in their request...Bering Straits villages are running out of dogfood in some locations. PAWS of Nome is asking for urgent assistance! Please consider a donation or sending food. We can all help! Imagine if our stores had nothing for our pets.....THANK YOU IN ADVANCE for helping however you can!

‼️ DOG FOOD URGENTLY NEEDED FOR BERING STRAIT DOGS‼️
Last night we spoke with Emily Stotts of PAWS of Nome. Earlier, we saw a post from Emily and could tell her heart was heavy, so we reached out. She has been working tirelessly to help dogs in need, including several dogs recently brought into rescue in extremely poor condition due to malnutrition. The need is real, and it is urgent.

Emily with Paws of Nome works closely with community members throughout the Bering Strait communities, and they have been reaching out asking for help. The situation is urgent. Several communities currently have little to no dog food available in local stores, and many dogs are going hungry. The volunteers on the ground are doing everything they can, but they simply don’t have enough food to feed the dogs in their communities.

KPAL Rescue is partnering with PAWS of Nome to help send dog food to:
🐾 Savoonga
🐾 Gambell
🐾 Teller
🐾 Shishmaref
🐾 Brevig Mission

Our goal is to send 30 bags of dog food to each community—a total of 150 bags of food for dogs that desperately need it.

This is a community effort! There are volunteers ready to receive such large quantities and distribute them with immediacy to those who need it most.

If you would like to support this effort, every dollar helps purchase and ship food where it is needed most. You can donate directly through our website or through this fundraiser. Please make a note that your donation is for Food for Bering Strait Dogs.

If you would prefer to send food (Purina Dog Chow preferred) or support directly to PAWS of Nome, donations can be sent to:
Emily Stotts
PAWS of Nome Rescue
1415 Center Creek Rd -1216
Nome, AK 99762
(Or their Venmo is )

Please share this post to help fill empty bowls and support the volunteers who are working so hard to care for these dogs.

Thank you for helping us make a difference. We woof you!! 💜

Photo is of R***r, she is a 7-8 month old female.
Courtesy of Emily Stotts

06/08/2026

We had the opportunity to return to Nome, Alaska this past weekend for a rural clinic! It is a privilege and a pleasure to get to be a part of this group! THANK YOU to our DVMs, techs, and vet students from UAF and UC Davis. Thank you to PAWSofNome for inviting us and making us so welcome. Over the weekend, we saw 57 patients and completed 27 surgeries! We had last minute tech changes and flight delays but everyone rolled with it all and did an amazing job. We couldn't do it without our volunteers! We'd like to thank BluePearl Cares, Petco Love, the Endowment for Alaska Pets and the John and Carol Teeter Fund (Field of Interest Funds housed at the Alaska Community Foundation), Rasmuson Foundation, PAWSofNome and our extraordinary volunteer team!

05/31/2026

Big & handsome lug of a boy is searching for a special place & caring people. He is yearning for what every dog deserves…. HOME… where he can love and be loved always and forever! And in return, he will give his whole heart, beating faithfully for his family… He NEEDS and DESERVES this!!

Please SHARE to help this sweet fellow find his forever home!!

“Any BIG dog lovers out there? This sweet 3yr old 100lb malemute mix boy is still looking for a home.... housetrained, pretty good off leash, good w most dogs. Not good with small animals.” - Helper of Animals Jeannine Faulkner.

If interested in adopting this remarkably handsome fellow, please contact Jeannine Faulkner directly via facebook. If unable to do so, please write in the comments section. Facebook messaging is the fastest way. 🙂

05/16/2026

We will be in Cordova June 19-21

For appointment requests: https://www.akrvo.org/clinic/cordova/

05/16/2026

We will be in Yakutat June 17-18.

For appointment requests: https://www.akrvo.org/clinic/yakutat/

05/16/2026

We are heading to Nome!

For appointments, please contact PAWS of Nome or online at:
https://www.akrvo.org/clinic/nome/

05/11/2026

More information on the pending bill that would provide financial support to improve access to veterinary services throughout rural Alaska.

More access to veterinarian care, which is scarce in rural communities, would boost both human health and safety as well as animal welfare, bill supporters say.