Redemption Ranch K9 Rescue

08/29/2026

FINAL FREEDOM RIDES! Today two of our dogs took their final freedom rides to be with their forever families and start their partnership of dog/human team!

We would like to say a deep and heartfelt thank you to Jason Cornewell and his family in their efforts today, as he and his wife did one ride and his daughter did the other. Two dogs needed to go home, and without hesitating they stepped forward and gave up their weekend to do it.

They drove to Memphis and Columbus (OH) to help ease the transition for these shelter pups into their new homes. They got to meet their new handlers, talk through the program and welcome these soon to be pups on patrol to their new life.

While many of you saw our post introducing Aether from a few days ago, our other dog going home this weekend was Java. We'll give you his story in another post, but we want to thank our good friend Erica and her family for fostering this too skinny, but super sweet good boy. They opened up their home, made him feel safe and he and their daughter became instant best friends- peep the pic below to see how much their personalities matched. Erica has fostered numerous dogs for us, almost all of them labeled "too much"'or "unadoptable" and they always leave her house knowing what it feels like to be both safe and loved.

This whole project takes a village. From the incredible people working or volunteering at shelters, to the veterinarians and vet techs, the foster homes, the police agencies and our volunteers. We have been incredibly lucky to have found these people, and want them to make sure they know how appreciated they are.

08/27/2026

We have a deep and sincere thank you to say to someone. So today when we went to pay for Aether's veterinary bill we found out that an anonymous donor had taken care of a huge chunk of it

We are a small nonprofit and we have been around less than two years. To build this we have relied on t-shirt and hat sales, dine to donates and people who have believed in us. While we would have done whatever we had to do to get one of our shelter pups treated, this treatment was substantial and this is an incredible gift.

I believe in this mission down to my bones. I have fought for it, bled for it and sometimes sacrificed my sanity for it. I have seen what shelter dogs can and have done and will continue to do. So have our handlers that have gone through the program. To the anonymous donor who was moved by Aether's story the words "thank you" seem so small, but as deeply as I can say them- THANK YOU. This dog is going to do amazing things

08/26/2026

Welcome to the Ranch, Aether! This dog is special and exactly why we founded this group.

When I met him it was immediately obvious that life had not been kind to this good boy. He had spent his entire life outside in a backyard. He was heartworm positive. Both of his ears had been ravaged by fly strike, leaving him without the tops of either. Once our veterinary team examined him, they also found evidence of an old, healed fracture in one of his legs that suggested he had also been abused. His ribs look like a trellis someone stretched fur across.

And somehow, after all of that, Aether is still one of the sweetest dogs I’ve ever met and had one of the best screeners we’ve seen since starting this program. No bitterness or hesitation. Just a ridiculously sweet dog who was all about a tennis ball.

This week, Aether received his first heartworm injection along with the other medications and veterinary care he needs to get healthy. Heartworm treatment isn’t som**hing we take lightly. The injections are painful, the treatment carries real risks, and these dogs need careful monitoring throughout the process.

That’s why we are incredibly grateful for the people who stand beside us when one of our dogs needs more than just training.

That is why we want to give a massive thank you to some people starting with incredible friends at the Humane Society for Hamilton County (Indiana). They didn’t look at Aether and see another difficult case who between energy and medical diagnosis was "unadoptable". They truly care for and fight for every dog in their care and it shows. They made sure we saw Aether.

Next to the entire team at Healthy Paws Animal Hospital — thank you doesn’t begin to cover it. You guys don’t just patch these dogs up and send them down the road. You care. You take the time to figure out what happened to them. You treat the injuries they carry. You manage the difficult medical cases and you stand beside us when the treatment is painful and dangerous. And you do it for every dog we bring through your doors. Aether was a dog who needed you, and you did what you always do. You showed up.

Lastly to our donors and supporters- because of you we are able to take the hard cases. The damaged, the sick, the abused- and not hesitate to say yes to get them what they need. Without your support, none of this would be possible.

Because of YOU this weekend Aether is going home. His forever family and human partner are waiting for him. Think about where this dog started: a backyard, no proper care, seriously underweight, fly strike, a broken leg, heartworm and a lifetime of being overlooked.

And now?

A home. A family. A couch. A future. A purpose. A community made safer.

What we do here isn’t just about redemption. It’s about resurrection. Because our dogs don’t leave here with a new name. They leave here with a new life.

We can’t give Aether his ears back, and we can’t erase what happened to him. But we can make damn sure the rest of his life is nothing like the first part.

So this weekend, when Aether walks into his forever home, we’re going to call that what it is: a resurrection.

Welcome to your new life Aether. You made it.

08/25/2026

DOG DAYS OF SUMMER!

K9 Echo of the Plainfield Police Department at training last week showed exactly why Belgian Malinois are known as “fur missiles.” Huge thanks to our good friend Beth Hibschman for capturing this amazing photo.

While this may be a fun training evolution for this good boy, Echo wasn’t always a confident dog living his best life at a lake.

He started out scared, starving, and nearly frozen to death before coming into the care of the Hendricks County Animal Shelter. The shelter reached out, not quite knowing what to do with such a ball of fire. From the first time I met him, I knew he was meant for greatness—and he became the very first shelter-to-shield dog I ever trained.

I didn’t know it at the time, but Echo would become the dog that opened the door for everything Redemption Ranch would eventually become.

His name comes from the Marcus Aurelius quote, “What we do in life echoes in eternity". And Echo certainly has made a hell of a legacy for himself.

Because he showed that it could be done, more than 30 dogs have now gone from being abused, abandoned, surviving, discarded, or unwanted to standing proud and holding the blue line between chaos and order. Every dog that comes through this program walks a path that was first laid by Echo.

Not a bad legacy for being “just a pound dog.”

08/24/2026

K9 BLITZ — ANOTHER BIG HIT

K9 Blitz of the Orange County Indiana Sheriff's Department does it again! Due to the ongoing investigation of the case, we aren’t able to go into tons of detail at this time—but we can confirm that K9 Blitz’s exceptional detection abilities assisted investigators in locating a substantial quantity of narcotics, including fentanyl suggesting the possible manufacturing of the street drug "tranq” which can be an incredibly deadly combination of fentanyl mixed with m**h and prescription pills.

Blitz is a handsome, incredibly joyful and goofy boy who also happens to be one hell of a worker. But it’s easy to forget that this same dog came to us from an overcrowded shelter at the The Animal Protection League Inc., Indiana that simply isn’t given the resources they desperately need to save every dog that comes through their doors.

The reality is that the staff and volunteers at shelters like APL are overwhelmed. The animals just keep coming through the doors, often faster than they can be adopted or placed, while the people caring for them are stretched thin trying to keep up. They’re doing everything they can with the resources they have, but there simply aren’t enough resources to save every animal without help from the community.

Blitz was damn close to being one of those dogs. Instead, he got a second chance.

Today, he’s helping law enforcement get deadly drugs off the streets. But Blitz will always remember the volunteers at APL who fought for him, loved him, reached out, made calls and posts, and did everything they could to get him exposure and save his life.

When they were struck by flooding last week that jeopardized the lives of every animal there, Blitz’s dad dropped everything and rushed up there to aid in the evacuation. Helping the same people who saved his dog’s life save more.

We cannot say enough great things about the staff and volunteers up there and what they’ve done in this situation—getting their animals evacuated and into foster care, while neighboring shelters stepped up and opened their doors to help.

But this right here is what second chances look like. A dog that was once running out of time in an overcrowded shelter is now standing beside a major narcotics seizure, helping keep deadly drugs off the streets.

Good boy, Blitz. We’re damn proud of you, but not surprised. You were always gonna be a star.

08/23/2026

“When you’re on the right path, the universe winks and nods at you from time to time, just to let you know.”

Sometimes som**hing happens that is just too perfectly timed to ignore. You see last week, the kids in Walker’s family did som**hing that stopped me in my tracks.

When Walker had to go through heartworm treatment those kids were right there loving him and taking care of him through it. They know what this dog has been through, and they know how much he means to their family. And they saw first hand just how much work it took for him to get healthy.

So they took their own allowance money, combined it and donated it to Redemption Ranch so we could help another dog.

Their own money.

Because they love Walker and they have seen what a second chance looks like. And because of that they wanted another dog to get one, too.

Cut to today, I pulled a dog from a shelter. Heartworm positive. The EXACT kind of dog these kids were trying to help. I mean, come on...

Maybe it’s coincidence or what some call synchronicity. Maybe it’s just the universe giving us one of those little winks to remind us we’re doing what we’re supposed to be doing.

Whatever it is, we’re going to listen.

To Walker’s family: THANK YOU, To his kids: you have no idea how proud you should be of yourselves. And to Walker’s dad: You’re raising some pretty amazing human beings.

And lastly to our newest Redemption Ranch dog: You don’t know it yet, buddy, but some kids you’ve never met just decided you were worth helping. We're gonna get you feeling a whole lot better starting today. And while your people haven't met you yet, they will soon. And until they do- you've got us, and we've got you.

08/22/2026

Ellie Mae has been found safe! So relieved to hear she is safe and thank you to everybody who kept an eye out for her and helped get her home safely!

❤️ ELLIE MAE IS HOME AND SAFE! ❤️🐾

After countless hours of searching—walking fields and wooded areas, deploying drones, following up on sightings and leads, checking properties, and refusing to give up—our beloved Ellie Mae is finally home!

Thank you to everyone who searched, shared information, offered support, and most importantly, prayed for her safe return.

Last night she was found at Mt. Olive Church and those prayers were answered.

Welcome home, Ellie Mae! ❤️🐾

08/20/2026

K9 Knox of the Brown County Sheriff's Office - Indiana wants to remind everyone to go vote for him for the American Humane Society's "K9 Hero of the Year" award! We'll post a link in the comments- super easy and you can even vote daily!

As you may remember K9 Knox led rescuers straight to two missing children in the Hoosier National Forest, one of whom was experiencing a medical emergency. Not bad for a dog who was once a barely surviving stray dog living under a semi trailer! Knox has come a long way and accomplished a whole lot- but I think if you could speak dog and ask him what's his biggest accomplishment I think this picture says it all:

A family, a home, a purpose and knowing how loved he is every day. You're a good boy Knox, you're gonna win this thing!

08/18/2026

Remi's gonna be on TV! Thank you to FOX59 News and Angela Ganote for telling Remi's story! Tune in tmrw at approximately 8:40 AM to watch this team make their news debut!

08/17/2026

K9 REMI SAVES A LIFE, REMI TO THE RESCUE!

On Friday 8/14 K9 Remi of the Delphi Police Department was called to help locate an autistic person who had run away from home and into the woods. With the City of Delphi, Indiana and all of Carroll County currently designated as federal disaster areas because of the catastrophic flooding, this was a situation where every minute mattered and this person’s life was in very real and imminent danger.

On scene Remi’s handler deployed him from a neighboring residence that called and stated they believed they saw him in their woods. That neighbor is approximately 1.5 miles north of missing person's address. Remi immediately took off in a completely different direction of where rescue efforts believed the missing person had gone.

His handler followed the first rule of canine handling. He trusted his dog. He followed Remi into the brush and woods no questions asked, and where he was taken straight to the missing person. They were found without injury and were taken to safety.

Look at the picture of Remi afterward and you’ll still see the burrs in his fur. But more importantly you’ll also see the look on his face—a dog who knows he did his job.

Remi came to us after he'd been labeled "too much". Too much drive, too much energy. Just too much dog. I'd say for the person Remi found and the family waiting for him Remi was not too much, he was exactly enough. Because that dog that was "too much" made all the difference.