The Parence Family fosters dogs through Spot’s Last Stop. (These lucky pups have all been adopted!) Photo: Spot’s Last Stop
A Prior Lake dog rescue opens a new community resource center this summer.
When Casey Adams started Spot’s Last Stop in 2015, it was a grassroots operation born of necessity and passion. “I started with me driving my tiny Honda Accord to high-kill shelters, stuffing the back of my car full of dogs from the euthanasia list and bringing them home,” Adams says.
She’d take the pups to the vet and get them ready for adoption, all on her own. Though she spent most of her career in corporate roles, Adams says she was always drawn to helping animals, especially after growing up on a hobby farm. “I was born an animal lover,” she says.
But what began as a solo effort has blossomed, 10 years later, into a vibrant nonprofit rescue organization based in Prior Lake—and as of this writing, Spot’s Last Stop has saved more than 9,500 dogs. The organization works primarily with canines (and the occasional feline) that are rescued from shelters or have been abandoned. The foster-based organization relies on a network of around 500 foster families across the Twin Cities. “Some take dogs back-to-back; others might foster once or twice a year,” Adams says.
Adams and her volunteers make sure fostering is accessible to everyone. “It’s completely free, and we provide all the supplies. Plus, there’s a built-in support system,” she says. “Our volunteers, trainers and other fosters are there to guide you every step of the way.”
The organization also encourages a foster-to-adopt model. Families looking to adopt a dog can foster various breeds, sizes and ages to help find the best fit. “And in the process, you’re saving multiple lives,” Adams says.
Spot’s Last Stop has mostly been operated out of Adams’s home office, but that’s about to change. Last June, the organization received a large grant from the Prior Lake Rotary, which offered up to $1 million to a local organization with a compelling mission. “Our proposal was to open up an animal community and resource center in Prior Lake and to double as a location where we can store our crates and food, do intake and things like that,” Adams says. Spot’s Last Stop purchased a Prior Lake building for the center and hopes to open by late summer.
In addition to administrative space, the center will offer a place for lost pets to be reunited with their families; to intake animals who need short-term care after their humans fall on hard times; and to offer low-cost spay/neuter referrals and microchipping.
While the rescue will remain foster-based, the new center will also offer educational opportunities and a place for local groups to gather. “We’re creating a space where youth organizations, church groups or anyone can volunteer,” Adams says. “They can make tie blankets for foster dogs, help with tasks or even interact with the animals. It’s all about community.”
When asked about the high rates of dogs currently needing rescue help, Adams acknowledges that the landscape has changed dramatically. “For years, we mainly pulled dogs from Southern states where shelters were overwhelmed,” she says. “But now, shelters in Minnesota are full, and euthanasia rates are higher than I’ve ever seen here.”
Despite these challenges, Adams remains hopeful. “We’re really trying to get creative to get more people to adopt and sign up to foster,” she says. “We’re doing everything we can.”
Learn more—and see a list of current dogs up for adoption—at spotslaststop.org.
Spot’s Last Stop
6025 170th St. E., Prior Lake
Facebook: Spot’s Last Stop Canine Rescue
Instagram: @spotslaststop
