Sasha Aghili is a Texas woman who runs a streetdog rescue shelter that saves several dogs daily. Her efforts to save these vulnerable animals have reached a number of 1,000 rescued dogs.
The Jack Jack’s Pack is a non-profit street dog rescue organization based in Central Texas. “It is our mission to help rescue, rehab, and reunite/rehome lost, dumped, and abused dogs,” said Aghili, who along with her family, the volunteers, and the foster houses have done an impressive rescue operation, saving more than a thousand animals over the past years, as first reported by KXAN.
“I literally cry with every single dog, because I watch these dogs that have been so abused and so neglected, and they learn to be part of a family,” she said. “It’s so beautiful to see how they evolve.” The dogs that Sasha rescues are found completely left behind, and have endured abuse, often in a critical condition in which, if not for Aghili, they would face a painful death.
Back in 2021, Aghili experienced the significant loss of her beloved 17-year-old rescue Chihuahua named Jack-Jack.
After several months of searching for Jack-Jack, Aghili’s path intersected with dozens of other vulnerable dogs. She took as many of them as she could out of the street; some she gave back to families that were looking for their lost pet. Aghili even adopted many of them, including one that was fortuitously named Jack.
Aghili became a full-time dog rescuer. “I tell every single one, ‘You thank your Great Uncle Jack-Jack,’” she confessed, wiping away her tears.
According to her, the stray dog issue is increasing in Texas, and her efforts to decrease this number are highly important and well appreciated in the area.
Jack Jack’s Pack has provided over $222,000 in medical care for its rescues, excluding certain emergency expenses. The organization relies mainly on donations, so it’s crucial for Texans to support the cause through their generosity. “If you don’t want to give me money, if you just call the vet and call in a credit — that’s so helpful,” Aghili said.
“My phone is constantly going off, so I get calls all day about dumped dogs: dogs that are on the corner of a highway, dogs that are in dangerous neighborhoods, dogs that are on the back of a country road where they’re not getting anything from anybody,” Aghili said. The number of animals in need of saving is so high that she is forced to make tough decisions, such as, prioritizing the rescue for the most critical cases which are referred to as the “911s”, and having to leave behind other dogs.
“If I had four 911s in a day, I could bring four 911s in and not wait for someone to say yes to foster,” she said. “Unfortunately, some dogs do die waiting. So, that’s very hard for me.”
Aghili’s vision involves building “doggy condos” where the animals can de-stress in a comfortable household-like environment. The project intends for the dogs to readjust to these favorable conditions while learning to live with a family.
“I will never stop this,” she said. “We’re going to make [the safe haven] happen because I can’t keep saying no to so many dogs, and I know we can get them adopted out. I always tell people, they don’t stay with us forever, but they can stay as long as they need to.”
She has been nominated by several people for KXAN’s Remarkable Women contest, a nationwide initiative that celebrates the significant contributions women have made to our communities and recognizes their impact on public policy, social progress, and overall quality of life.
