Feeding Perritos, Feeding Hope

(This article was written by Beth Marie Cantu Ensign and was featured in the July 2025 issue of Explore Harlingen Magazine.)

Photo courtesy of Feeding Perritos

What started with a few stray dogs and a single 20-pound bag of dog food has grown into a small, yet powerful grassroots movement known as Feeding Perritos, a volunteer-run nonprofit founded by Chris Gonzales and his family. Their mission is simple and deeply personal: to feed, care for, and give a second chance to dogs abandoned and forgotten across the Rio Grande Valley (RGV).

“I started off on a back road and I’m going to work and I saw a couple pups… they looked like they were starving,” Chris recounts. “So I called my wife… we went to feed them… and that’s how it started.”

What began as a simple act of compassion quickly grew into something much bigger. Chris, along with his wife Mary and their son Phillip, started by feeding stray dogs each evening along a 10- to 13-mile stretch. Before long, they were caring for sick and injured animals, opening their home to fosters, and answering rescue calls. “We really didn’t have a plan, honestly. We thought we were just gonna feed three dogs,” Gonzales says. “But then we got into a mini rescue.”

Photo courtesy of Feeding Perritos

Now, the family drives 50 to 60 miles after work daily, providing food, water, and medical care to dozens of dogs.

Unlike traditional animal nonprofits, Feeding Perritos operates as a unique hybrid — combining food distribution, medical outreach, and rescue efforts all in one mission. “It started off as a food bank... then we took in some [medically neglected] dogs… but the main mission [is] still to feed the dogs out there that can't be safe or can't be picked up.”

Working out of their garage, the family provides the basics many strays have gone without: food, medicine, and human kindness. “Water, food, and medicine we provide on the ground to the strays in the neighborhood,” Gonzales says. With the help of community sponsors like Murphy Nutrition, Sam’s Club in Harlingen, and Walmart Neighborhood Market in McAllen, the group has received enough donations to keep going — but it's not easy.

Photo courtesy of Feeding Perritos

“It's hard… it's mentally hard,” Chris admits. “But they depend on us now.” He says that while the organization has received some grant money and donations, most of the costs — including emergency vet visits and pen builds — come from the family’s own pocket. Still, they persist.

The biggest challenge, aside from money, is finding homes and fosters. “People don't understand dogs aren't wild animals. They're domesticated. They can't survive on their own.”

One of the most meaningful moments for the Feeding Perritos family came recently when the family found a litter of puppies with no mom. “There were only three [puppies] left out of this litter [we found], and the vet says they have a 50% chance of survival… every two hours, we were feeding them, giving them medicine,” he shares. After weeks of sleepless nights and racing home during work breaks, the puppies—now named Sophie, Troy, and Penelope—beat the odds and finally began eating on their own. “That was the best [experience].”

Photo courtesy of Feeding Perritos

And despite the heartbreak that also sometimes comes with the job, Chris and his family push forward, driven by compassion. And they remember each and every pup that has crossed their paths. “There’s a lot of bad days, but it’s the small wins that keep us going.”

Chris believes what sets Feeding Perritos apart is their commitment to both rescuing and continuing street outreach. “We're not only rescuing, but we're also out there feeding them… and if there's a call out there in need, I'll go respond.”

When asked how the community can help, Chris has a simple response. “All they have to do is either donate or open up their homes… fostering would be great,” Chris urges. “Spaying and neutering your own pets — that’s an important thing.”

To the people of the RGV and beyond, Chris Gonzales has a message: “Dogs [are] the only animals in this world that love you more than they love themselves… If animals can be kind, why can’t we?”

For more information about Feeding Perritos or to help, visit their website, https://www.feedingperritos.org/.