Transitioning out of his Marine Corps service, Wesley Swainston has been exercising the dogs at a shelter, combining two of his passions: training dogs and running.
But the impact of what the 28-year-old Marine has been doing goes way beyond just pursuing his hobbies. Running the dogs and training them also helps the shelter find forever homes for these needy furballs.
So, how did Swainston go from being an air traffic control officer to volunteering at an animal shelter?
“I initially took up running to become a Marine officer, but along the way, I fell in love with it and started racing for fun,” Swainston told The Epoch Times.
He has continued to run for the last 8 years, competing in marathons and even in one 60-mile ultra-marathon.
As he balanced his personal life and military duties, he found a way to connect two of his passions—passions that also inspired him to do good.
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In November of 2023, he started approaching local shelters with the idea of taking the dogs on runs and posting videos of them online to help get them adopted. He was turned down by the first two shelters he spoke to, but the third, Adoption First Animal Rescue, in Jacksonville, North Carolina, said yes.
“Adoption First gave me a chance, I began running the shelter dogs and then training them afterward,” Swainston said. “This approach not only provided them with physical exercise but also helped more fearful dogs open up. I would often bring fellow Marines to volunteer with me, allowing them to play and run with the dogs, which was a rewarding experience for everyone involved.”
As a dog trainer, Swainston also convinced other trainers to include shelter dogs in their programs, increasing the chances of these dogs getting adopted as well.
With the success he saw at his local shelter, he decided to post one of the videos on his personal Instagram account to showcase how good it was for the dogs. The video “unexpectedly went viral” and inspired many people to visit their local shelters and volunteer.
“Other content creators joined in, sharing their own experiences of running shelter dogs, leading to millions of views and many dogs finding forever homes,” Swainston said.
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“I worked with Bruno’s foster mom for six weeks and now, his adopter sends me pictures of him playing fetch off-leash,” he said. “Bear was a special case—he had been returned to the shelter, and we trained together for 200 days before he finally found his forever home.”
He encourages others who want to help dogs at their local animal shelters to start by building trust with the shelter before they offer to take them on runs.
“Don’t just ask to run the dogs—offer to help with tasks like laundry, or anything else the shelter needs,” he said. “Build trust with the staff, and soon you’ll be running with the dogs that need it most, making a real difference in their chances of finding a home.”
