Advocating for Coonhounds & Foxhounds as Family Companions

Long Ears Alive!

LEA is our lifesaving veterinary fund for homeless coonhounds, foxhounds and hound mixes, who have treatable medical conditions.

Donate Now to Help More Hounds

Created in 2012, our Long Ears Alive! (LEA) fund has helped hundreds of sick, injured, and senior hounds with common medical conditions (e.g. heartworm, emaciation, mange, skin tumors and cherry eye), in addition to more serious injuries such as broken legs and shotgun wounds. We also fund pregnant and nursing hounds to offset the costs of maternal illness, nutritional support, and puppy immunizations.

LEA pledges range from $100 to $500 per dog and may be used anywhere in the continental United States. We pay directly to the vet.

Please complete this form if you know of a coonhound or foxhound who needs medical attention, in a shelter or is a stray.

The Long Ears Alive! Process

  • A dog with brown and white fur behind a metal cage, standing on its hind legs and holding the bars with its front paws.

    Step 1

    Our LEA team searches for Facebook posts about homeless sick, injured, senior, or pregnant/lactating coonhounds, foxhounds, and mixes, located in shelters and pounds across the country. Occasionally, we get referrals from individuals who have discovered an abandoned or stray hound. Finally, anyone can use our website form to apply for a pledge.

  • A dog with black, white, and tan fur standing on a patchy grassy ground, looking up at the camera. The dog's owner is partially visible, wearing jeans and sneakers, with shadows cast on the ground.

    Step 2

    After verifying the dog’s health status and location by contacting the poster, we make a pledge in a Facebook comment, ranging from $100 to $500. This pledge will encourage a rescue to "pull" the dog from the shelter, by offsetting the cost of veterinary care for treatable medical conditions. The rescue contacts us about their new dog.

  • A brown hound dog with floppy ears and amber eyes lying on a wooden floor, wearing an orange harness, looking up at the camera.

    Step 3

    Once a dog has been pulled by a rescue or adopter, we coordinate with the rescue and their veterinarian to ensure direct payment. Should a dog's condition change and require additional funds, we can increase our initial pledge amount. We ask that the rescue keep in touch and let us know about adoptions.

We sponsor up to a dozen Project Hounds (PH) each year, when we have a foster home available in the region.

While some of these dogs do receive LEA funds, the majority of their care costs (pull fees, food, vetting, transport, etc.) is covered by fundraisers and the generosity of generous hound lovers. When our Project Hound is healthy and adoptable, we search for appropriate placement with a rescue partner and we help set up transport to them. (Coonhound & Foxhound Companions is not a rescue. We don’t offer dogs for adoption.)

If you would like to foster a Project Hound, please let us know! We sponsor all costs.

Project Hounds

Success Stories

  • A hound dog standing on a green lawn in front of a large decorative planter with red flowers, in a backyard with a wooden fence and a gravel border.

    Buckley

    A Project Hound from south Kentucky, Buckley was found as a starved and mangy stray with diseases and parasites. A kind and generous foster mom cared for him as he endured vetting appointments and surgeries totaling nearly $1,000.

    Gentle Jake's Coonhound Rescue accepted Buckley and found him a loving family in Ontario, Canada.

  • A mother coonhound dog with and puppies nursing outside near a chain-link fence.

    Ruby

    Sweet Ruby landed at Southampton County Animal Control and Public Shelter (Virginia) with five puppies, heartworms, and cherry eye.

    Our LEA fund paid $400 towards her heartworm treatment and the entire family was rescued by Isle of Wight County Humane Society in Smithfield, Virginia.

  • A large, brown and black hound dog with droopy ears and a white snout, wearing a blue harness and leash, standing on a speckled gray floor in an indoor setting, looking at the camera.

    Elvis

    Suffering from malnutrition, skin issues and an old leg injury, big boy Elvis quickly caught our attention at Lee County Animal Shelter in South Carolina.

    Our LEA fund paid $200 towards Elvis’ veterinary care and he was rescued by the folks at Helping Hearts Healing Tails Animal Rescue in Stahlstown, Pennsylvania.

See More Hounds We've Helped