N.C. Non-Profit Animal Rescue

Give a Freedom Ride

In the rescue world, a “Freedom Ride” is that magical car ride out of an animal shelter for a dog. At first they are nervous, but there is a moment when they realize they are safe …. tongue out, tail wagging, a new chapter for them.

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About Us

About Our N.C. Rescue

We are proud to be the crazy dog lovers who skip out on work to transport dogs from all over the state to their excited fosters’ homes; who stay up late searching shelter pages for that next “Freedom Ride” potential; who spend countless hours making rescue a reality!

Freedom Ride Rescue brings together individuals who share a love for dogs and a dream to see a no-kill state. Our foster-based network is in the Raleigh/Clayton, NC, area. We bring in dogs of all ages, sizes and breed mixes. We help to rehabilitate these animals – providing security, love, medical, and behavioral training as needed – until they can be adopted to their “fur-ever” homes.

We are foster based: we have no facility and every one of our adoptable (and not quite ready to be adopted) animals are in homes where families are teaching trust, love, basic manners …. preparing your future dog ready to be the best addition to your family that he can be!

As fosters, we are willing to have our heart break after we love, rehabilitate and nurse an unwanted, unloved animal until they prance away with their fur-ever person – often never looking back – as they start their most life’s wonderful chapter: the one as a cherished pet.

So join our road to making freedom rides happen! We are a wonderful, tight-knit family needing volunteers, fosters, donors – basically caring people willing to help in any way they can!

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Stay up to date with current adoptable dogs, available fosters, events and more.

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FRR Alumni Atlas is HOME AND SAFE!

Our network ROCKS! A biker had a random dog running after him and then he saw an "ATLAS IS LOST" sign!! Thank you to the FRR volunteers who put out signs, to @April Allen who helped mom and @Erin Eaton and Kai for their amazing tracking skills!

114 shares on our FB post - not sure how to track IG shares! BUT you all helped us get Atlas home safe!
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See us on Instagram

Browse our dogs in foster care and available for adoption!

FRR Alumni  Atlas is HOME AND SAFE!

Our network ROCKS! A biker had a random dog running after him and then he saw an "ATLAS IS LOST" sign!! Thank you to the FRR volunteers who put out signs, to @April Allen who helped mom and @Erin Eaton and Kai for their amazing tracking skills!

114 shares on our FB post - not sure how to track IG shares! BUT you all helped us get Atlas home safe!
October is National Pet Wellness Month! 🐾💙

A happy, healthy pet starts with everyday care. This month, take a moment to check in on your best friend’s wellness routine:

🩺 Keep up with veterinary visits and recommended vaccines.
🦟 Stay consistent with heartworm, flea, and tick prevention.
🦷 Make dental care part of the routine.
🥣 Serve balanced meals and keep treats in moderation.
🎾 Make time for exercise, enrichment, and rest.
💕 Watch for changes in appetite, energy, or behavior.

Our pets depend on us to help them feel their best—through every age and stage. A little attention today can make a big difference in their tomorrows! 🐶
Your forecast: more cuddles and a little Sunshine! ☀️🐾

Sunshine is an affectionate girl looking for people to share all that love with. A home with older kids could be a great fit for this sweet cuddle buddy!

Could Sunshine brighten your days? Apply to adopt through Freedom Ride Rescue, or share to help her find her people! 💛

www.freedom-ride.org
Two years in her foster home. Still a queen. Still waiting for her kingdom. 👑💜

Peggy just marked TWO YEARS in foster care, making her Freedom Ride Rescue’s longest foster resident. Please don’t let that make you scroll past her. Peggy is amazing—she’s simply waiting for the RIGHT home, and Queen Peggy knows what she wants!

Her royal wish list? Cozy blankets, snacks, bedtime under your covers, and people who are home most of the time. She’s affectionate on her terms, full of sass, and perfectly happy to supervise your snack preparation. 👀🍪

Peggy needs a home without children, cats, or shared walls. She’d prefer to be your only dog, though a carefully matched, calm, respectful canine companion may work. She can be trusted loose in the house, requires a muzzle for vet visits and nail trims, and will need continued dental care.

She likes things the way she likes them—and that’s okay. The right person will appreciate her personality, respect her needs, and love the little queen she is.

Help us turn Peggy’s two-year milestone into the beginning of her forever chapter. Apply to meet her through Freedom Ride Rescue, or share her video to help her find her people! 🐾

www.freedom-ride.org
A little scruff, a lot of sweetness—Coal is ready to find his people! 🐾💙

This lovable boy enjoys being close to his humans and has been gentle with cats. He’s doing great with potty breaks outside and making progress with his leash and crate. New situations can feel a little intimidating, so he’s looking for patient people to help his confidence grow.

Could Coal be your perfect match? Apply to adopt through Freedom Ride Rescue, or share to help him find his forever home! 🏡

www.freedom-ride.org
Blonde dogs, black dogs & a puppy TEMP!!
FRR Alum Poshey is a Foster Win! Some dogs just need a family who understands that being a little spicy doesn’t make them any less deserving of a happily-ever-after. Poshey found exactly that! 

Poshey’s canine siblings are all foster wins! Her sister Tunie is an FRR alum and foster win from the Class of 2020, and her other sister was adopted through Cause for Paws in 2017. Three dogs, three foster wins, and one very lucky family! 

Poshey loves morning walks with her pack, belly rubs, lap naps, fetch, car rides, puppuccinos, fruit treats, her MAMA, and—of course—glamping! Her family bought an RV in December 2019 so their dogs could always have familiar accommodations when they traveled. Poshey joined them for 2.5 weeks in Maine and took to the glamping life like a pro! She’ll be joining the family again for their annual October trip to Four Paws Kingdom Campground in Rutherfordton, NC.

When Poshey was surrendered, she was believed to be about 10 years old. Her rotting teeth, bladder stone, and spicy personality certainly made senior status seem likely. But her love of walks and enthusiasm for fetching her stuffed Dalmatian prove that this girl still has plenty of pep in her step! Poshey’s story is also a great reminder that not every dog is the right fit for every family—and that’s okay. 

Her fearfulness sometimes resulted behaviors that made her a poor match for first-time dog owners, families with small children or very busy households. After consulting with two trainers, her family learned that her fear-based behaviors were unlikely to simply be “trained away” at her age. Instead, they would need to be understood and managed. And they were willing to do exactly that. 

 We can’t expect any human—or any animal—to be perfect. We can, however, love and appreciate them for exactly who they are, quirks and all. And Poshey is very much loved and appreciated as the spicy little addition to her family. 

That sounds like one pretty spectacular foster win to us. 
 
We absolutely love hearing about how our alumni are doing! Want to see your alum featured? Share their photos and stories on our alumni page—you could be our next spotlight!

Saving one dog will not change the world, but surely for that one dog, the world will change forever.”

~ Karen Davison

Services

What We Do

Rescue Dogs

We are proud to be the crazy dog lovers who skip out on work to transport dogs from all over the state to their excited fosters’ homes … who stay up late searching shelter pages for that next “Freedom Ride” potential …. who volunteer countless hours making rescue a reality!

Provide Medical Care

Freedom Ride Rescue provides all supplies (crates, food, bowls) and gets the animal in for a vet visit (for a spay, neuter and/or vaccines); we’ll also provide flea and heartworm preventatives. Anything and everything to make a happy and healthy pet!

Find A Home

We love, rehabilitate and nurse an unwanted, unloved animal until they prance away with their fur-ever person as they start their most life’s wonderful chapter: the one as a cherished pet.

Upcoming Events

Don’t miss our fun-filled line up of events!

help save a life

Donations cover vet expenses, shelter fees, continuing long-term care, and any other costs that arise treating dogs in great need. We prepare our dogs for success with a microchip, spay/neuter and make sure they are up to date on vaccines and preventatives. We are a 501(c)(3) organization making your financial contributions tax deductible.

foster

Join our tight-knit rescue family! We need fosters until dogs are adopted, for temporary needs, for medical cases and/or for end of life hospice care. Supplies and vet care is provided. You help your dog blossom and find his fur-ever home and in the process learn what a rewarding experience fostering really is!

Adopt

Adopting a rescue animal helps to save the life of an animal in need, through no fault of their own! And you get a new best friend out of the deal. Seriously, what could be better than that? We take in all mixes of breeds and all ages! You can meet adoptable dogs at our weekly adoption events or put in an application for specific dogs.

Lost a Pet?

Freedom Ride Rescue partners with Petco Love Lost to make reuniting lost pets easier using image recognition technology to search a national lost and found database. 

Report Lost Pet