Katherine Heigl’s Foundation Saves Lives Of 25 Chihuahuas

Katherine Heigl and her mother run a foundation that they started in her late brother’s honor, called the Jason Debus Heigl Foundation. It is dedicated to helping animals and shelters in a variety of ways. So, when the Humane Society for Greater Nashua of New Hampshire executive director Karen Bill and Kinder Rescue director Laurel Kinder had been trying for about three months to move a surplus of Chihuahuas from Hollywood to the northeast, they decided to contact the foundation for help. They couldn’t afford the long trip via land or air for the 25 dogs.

The organization offered $25,000 to fly the pups from the West Coast. “It was amazing,” Bill tells PEOPLEPets.com. “The ideal situation come true.”

If it hadn’t been for the foundation’s generous donation, these chihuahuas would’ve been put to sleep, says the HSGN director.

All 25 would have been euthanized if we didn’t take them,” she says. “We’re just so happy to be saving their lives.”

She also shared the phones have been ringing off the hook with potential adoptive families.

The humane society is putting together a thank you for Katherine and her foundation:

“We’re putting together a photo CD of all the dogs, from the time we met them at the airport to the moment they go home with their new families,” says Bill. “We want her to know how grateful we are.”

How sweet! I bet Katherine’s foundation feels really good knowing they were able to save the lives of so many dogs. Apparently these dogs are in over-abundance in the Los Angeles area but not so much in the northeast?

While Chihuahuas are seemingly everywhere in Los Angeles, they’re somewhat more scarce in the northeast. “It’s a Hollywood-made crisis,” Bill says. “From Beverly Hills Chihuahua to Paris Hilton, people see these dogs and think they’re cute accessories, but they’re not. They’re living beings that need attention.”

Photos by WENN