When runner Debbie Scott took home her first foster dog from Stray Rescue St. Louis, she wound up with a lifelong friend and running companion.

“I fostered her for a week,” Debbie says. “Let’s just say she never went to an adoption event. I adopted her only one week from the day I got her.”

Debbie not only fell head over heels for Gustava, her new cattle dog mix friend, but she also fell in love with Stray Rescue and their mission to help homeless animals. She volunteered for the organization, which always needs dog walkers and also has a program for volunteer dog runners — Running Buddies. With Running Buddies, runners of all ability levels can drop by Stray Rescue’s Pine Street shelter and scoop up an enthusiastic four-legged running partner. What better motivation than knowing you will make a homeless dog’s day by running with them? And what better running companion than an enthusiastic four-legged friend?

“Stray Rescue is more than a shelter, it is a home for lots of dogs,” Debbie says. “They don’t just throw the dog in a crate and wait for them to get adopted. They spend time with the dogs — with the Running Buddies Program, hiking programs and more.”

Debbie says she goes on short runs of a few miles with her two dogs, Gogo and Gustava, and Gustava has made a name for herself in the long distance running scene, completing two half marathons and several shorter races with Debbie’s boyfriend, Blake Taylor.

Debbie will be running to raise money for Stray Rescue on April 15, 2012, at the Go! St. Louis 5K race. Debbie and other Stray Rescue Running Buddies will run to support Stray Rescue’s mission and the Running Buddies Program, which allows homeless dogs and human companions to improve their qualities of life, one run at a time.