Dogs rescued from Kuwait find new homes in Baltimore

Flight attendant took notice of neglected animals on streets

people are eager to adopt the purebred Yorkies and Malteses, affable Labrador or German shepherd mixes, and the rangy dogs who, like Eutaw, have recognizable features common to Salukis or “desert dogs” from the Fertile Crescent.

“They have that long, lean look and the curly tail,” Yoon said. “They’re tough dogs, and they tend to be very bright . ... They’re viewed as being just stray dogs in Kuwait, and here they look exotic.”

In fact, Maryland now pops up as the third location (after Dubai and Kuwait) with the largest population of “Arabian village dogs” based on DNA tests on Embark, a genetic profiling company for dogs.

Would-be adopters are vetted and matched with dogs that seem to be a good fit, spending a week or two with a dog before the adoption goes through. The fee is $500, which helps pay for some of the cost to transport one dog. The all-volunteer organization fundraises to offset costs. It operates on a budget of $100,000 a year; Riska has spent over $25,000 of her own money.

At a recent adoption event, dogs from the latest shipment milled around with their fosterers as potential adopters got to know them.

Suzy Ganz came with her husband after seeing one of the dogs, Zina, on the Wings of Love website. Zina had just been adopted a half-hour earlier, but Yoon asked Ganz what she liked about Zina so she could try to find a similar dog.

“First of all, she has a sweet face,” Ganz said. “And reading that she was very, very kind and had a sweet personality.”

Prospective owners typically have a trial period with a dog for up to two weeks. With so many Kuwaiti dogs living in proximity to one another, there are play dates and reunions, along with a Facebook page. Some dogs are related — a few pregnant mothers have had puppies and some of the siblings continue to see one another.