November 2025 Newsletter
Pug-O-Ween T-shirt & wristband pickup
Dear Friends and Supporters,
We’re thrilled to share that this year’s Pug-O-Ween, held on October 26th at Heritage Park in Flower Mound, Texas, was an incredible success! Thanks to all of you—our community of pug lovers, sponsors, and volunteers—the event was filled with joy, laughter, and plenty of wagging tails.
We were blessed with beautiful weather and received an overwhelming number of messages from attendees who loved the vendors, activities, and the wonderful park location. It truly was a celebration of community and compassion.
Here’s a quick look at the numbers from this year’s event:
• 44 generous sponsors donated a combined $17,700 to help cover event expenses.
• More than 40 volunteers helped set up, staff activities, and tear down at the end of the night.
• Thanks to countless donations, we offered 40 Silent Auction items and over 100 donated items for sale.
• Over 100 attendees joined us for Saturday’s kickoff, and more than 400 people came out for Sunday’s main event.
• Together, we raised over $30,000 to support our ongoing rescue efforts!
We also want to extend a big congratulations to all of our costume contest winners—you and your pugs truly brought the spirit of Halloween to life!
Finally, a heartfelt thank you to our sponsors, vendors, and every single person who attended or volunteered. Your generosity and enthusiasm make this event possible year after year, and we couldn’t do it without you.
If you had a great time and want to help us continue rescuing and caring for pugs in need, we’d love your support. You can make a donation here: https://give-usa.keela.co/pug-o-ween-donations
With gratitude and pug hugs,
Bertha Santellano (she/her)
Fund Development Director
DFW Pug Rescue x CuppaPug T-shirt
Make sure you grab your tickets for our 2nd Annual Pug Trot on Saturday, November 22nd from 8AM–11AM at Epic Central in Grand Prairie (Epic Central 2960 Epic Place, Grand Prairie, TX 75052)!
It’s like the Turkey Trot… but with pugs (and pug imposters , all dogs are welcome). Bring your pup, your friends, and your family for a fun morning walk (about ⅞ of a mile) to support DFW Pug Rescue!
First 100 finishers get a medal + certificate
Finish line photos for every family
Local vendors & samples
Kid & dog-friendly
Outdoor event. Dress warm!
Bathrooms halfway around the walk
Adult tickets: $10 | Kids 12 & under are free!
Vendors:
R&B Dog Bakery
Devil Dog Brew
LIX Pet wellness
Gentle Radiance
Lazy Dog Arlington
Welcome Back, MJ — Our New Foster Director
Every now and then, someone returns to the rescue family in a way that reminds me why this work matters so much. Today, I get to share some good news: MJ McKenna is returning as our Foster Director for DFW Pug Rescue.
MJ’s story with us goes back to 2011, when she adopted her first Chug from DFWPRC. From that moment on, she jumped in with both feet—transporting, fostering, pug-sitting, and eventually serving as our Foster Director before taking a well-deserved break. Her heart for rescue never truly wavered.
Like so many of us, she’s had her fair share of “foster failures,” and she understands that familiar moment when a pug locks eyes with you and silently says, “You know you’re not sending me anywhere.” That kind of experience gives her a deep understanding of the families and foster homes she’ll be supporting.
Let’s welcome her back to the greatest pug rescue around—where “we rescue ALL pugs, regardless of age or medical condition.”
Welcome home, MJ.
CuppaPug Play Days
Dear DFW Pug Rescue Family,
We’re excited to reach out to our amazing volunteers and past adopters with another special invitation this week to participate in CuppaPug Play Days!
Our partnership with CuppaPug has been an incredible opportunity for DFW Pug Rescue. Together, we’ve been able to share the joy of pugs with even more people in our community — and the impact has been remarkable!
Thanks to your continued support and the visibility this partnership has brought:
Adoptions and foster applications have soared.
Rescue awareness has expanded, helping us reach new supporters and pug lovers.
Long-term residents have found their forever homes, with spotlights helping them connect with the perfect families.
Last October, we celebrated 22 adoptions — this year, we’re thrilled to share that number has more than doubled to 50 adoptions in October alone!
Some of our favorite success stories include:
Dougie Boy, who spent over 400 days in foster care, is now happily adopted and thriving in his forever home.
Tilley, after 300+ days in foster care, is now living her best life surrounded by love.
We’re currently working with a few adoptable pugs this week, but as of now, approximately 10 pugs are waiting to be released from the clinic for assessment before heading to CuppaPug, 10 are pending adoption, and 8 are on heartworm rest. That means our number of available pugs for play days is smaller than usual — but what a great problem to have!
Because of this wonderful adoption success, we’d love for our past adopters to bring their pugs to CuppaPug Play Days to help show off those happy endings and continue supporting DFW Pug Rescue’s mission. Your adopted pugs are living proof of the love and joy that rescue makes possible!
Please let us know if you’d like to participate with this week’s upcoming CuppaPug Play Days by signing up on the link below. We’ll follow up soon with details on dates, times, and ways to get involved. No need to sign up again if you are on the list from last week, thank you for your support!
https://form-usa.keela.co/cuppapug-play-days
Thank you for being such an essential part of the DFW Pug Rescue family — your love, time, and support truly make all the difference.
With pug hugs and gratitude,
The DFW Pug Rescue Team
Volunteer Spotlight
Our Volunteer Spotlight features Emma Nalbantov's story:
My name is Emma, and I’m a newer addition to the DFW Pug Rescue Volunteer/Community Event Team. I absolutely love pugs, especially senior ones. They have such a special place in my heart. I am a crazy pug lady, with dozens of pug items in my possession, ranging from mugs and magnets to slippers, clothes, and decorations, including earrings.
My 15-year-old pug, who passed away in March 2025, was my entire world, best friend, and soul dog. She is the reason I fell in love with pugs and can't imagine myself adopting another breed. I got her from DFW Pug Rescue when I was 11 years old.
Sadly, I had no idea of all the pug events hosted whenever I had her; otherwise, I would have loved to attend many of them with her. I found out about the events after visiting the site (and noticing all the comings and goings), so I started attending pug events to fill my cup of pug time/adoration while I didn’t have one myself and wasn’t able to foster. Celia could tell that I genuinely love and have enthusiasm for the breed and asked me to be part of her team. I quickly became immersed in the community events and even thought of the end of summer “Bark to the 80’s” theme!
I hadn’t felt ready for a long time but fell in love with a fostered DFW pug at a CuppaPug soft opening event. Now I have another sweet pug friend to give/receive love, and he is a precious senior! Anything pug-themed makes me extremely happy, and I’m so grateful for DFW Pug Rescue.
From the Heart of Our Founder
Honoring our past, celebrating today, and looking forward to our 30th year of pug love.
What a fantastic Pug-O-Ween this year! Our 29th celebration was one for the memory books. Bertha and her amazing team of volunteers truly outdid themselves, keeping the tradition alive, raising much-needed funds for our pugs, and giving everyone a chance to show off their wild and wonderful creativity. Just when you think you’ve seen it all, another costume comes along that leaves you smiling and shaking your head in pure amazement.
For 29 years, this incredible pug community—our pug family—has kept the spirit of Pug-O-Ween going strong. From those early days with just over fifty people to the hundreds who joined us this year, the love, laughter, and loyalty have only grown.
Thank you to everyone who came out, donated, volunteered, or simply shared in the fun. Because of you, our pugs continue to get the second chance they deserve. Here’s to next year—our 30th anniversary! I can’t wait to see what Bertha and her wonderful crew have planned for that milestone celebration.
DFWPRC October Numbers
Intake: 39
Adoptions: 50
Hospice: 32
Deceased: 3
Returned to Owner: 3
In Our Care During October: 156
Without our volunteers we could not keep our commitment to Rescue ALL pugs regardless of age or medical condition! Thank you all for your support!