Every year, countless dogs go missing in Brevard County—scared, injured, dumped, or fleeing danger. Many are too terrified to approach people. Some are injured. Some are hiding silently in wooded areas, marshes, retention ponds, or miles of undeveloped land.

Isla’s Journey Rescue specializes in lost dog search and rescue. We don’t just share posts—we go out, night after night, searching, tracking sightings, hanging flyers, setting humane traps, and following leads wherever they take us.

But there is one critical tool we are missing—a thermal drone.

Why a Drone Is So Critical

A thermal drone allows us to:

Locate dogs in total darkness using heat signatures

Search dangerous or inaccessible areas like marshes, thick woods, canals, and retention ponds

Cover miles of ground in minutes, instead of hours on foot

Reduce the risk to volunteers, who often search at night near roadways or wildlife

Find dogs faster, before exhaustion, injury, traffic, predators, or weather claim their lives

Without a drone, we are often searching blind—hoping for sightings, waiting for luck, and racing against time.

With a drone, we can see what the human eye cannot.

We’ve Seen the Difference

We’ve worked cases where drones were used—and the difference is staggering. Dogs that hadn’t been seen in days or weeks were located within minutes. Some were curled up, hiding. Some were injured. Some were dangerously close to roadways.

Time saves lives.

And a drone gives us time we don’t otherwise have.

What We’re Raising Funds For

We are raising funds to purchase or deploy a thermal-capable drone (or to cover repeated drone deployments until we can own one), including:

Thermal drone equipment

Batteries and safety accessories

Training and operational costs

This drone will not be used once—it will be used again and again for:

Lost dogs

Escaped adopters

Dumped dogs

Frightened shelter dogs who flee

Emergency searches after storms or disasters

Why This Matters

Every dog we search for is someone’s family.

Every call we take is someone begging for help.

And every hour without the right equipment is a risk we don’t want to take.

We are a 501(c)(3) nonprofit rescue. Every dollar raised goes directly toward saving lives—not overhead, not profit.

How You Can Help

Donate (any amount helps)

Share this campaign so it reaches the right people

Be part of the reason a dog makes it home

A drone doesn’t just find dogs.

It gives them a second chance at life.

Thank you for standing with Isla’s Journey and believing in what we do.

— Cortney

Founder, Isla’s Journey Rescue