This past May, a devastating fire in Moses Lake killed 25 dogs.

The property owners were hoarding animals, many of which were unable to find a way out of the house during the blaze. A total of 19 dogs were rescued by responders.

The terrified animals, described as being “totally shocked,” began the slow process of rehabilitation at the Chelan County organization Okandogs, based in Cashmere, Washington.

The Orcas Animal Shelter is one of Okandogs’ transfer partners and happily accepted four of the small dogs rescued from the fire. Brie is a young chihuahua mix, Havarti is a young miniature pinscher, Colby is a young mixed breed and Romano is an adult chihuahua mix.

“They really are a sweet bunch of littles. They are so resilient and we can’t wait for them to find their forever homes on Orcas,” said shelter director Kristina Snyder.

While arranging transport from Eastern Washington to Orcas, Jill Servais, wife of Seattle Mariner’s manager Scott Servais, offered to make the trip. She and her husband have previously helped with animal shelter transfers to the San Juans.

Trying to avoid a quick round-trip ferry ride for Jill, Snyder reached out on Facebook to see if anyone was heading to Orcas and would be willing to take the dogs on the last part of their journey. Islander Fletcher Dae was the first to offer.

“They were so accommodating. They worked with Jill to find a meeting place that was easy for her and loaded all the kennels into the car. We were thrilled when they delivered all four dogs to the shelter. Fletcher gave them lots of pets and encouragement on the trip,” Snyder said. “We are so thankful to everyone who has been a part of their journey. Now a month later, three of the dogs are ready for homes. The tiniest female, Brie, is still waiting for surgery. We have saved her for last as she will be having dental work done at the time of her spay.”