Couple Rescues Over 13,000 Dogs and Gives Pets 'Lifetime Promise' that They'll Never Be Unhappy

Courtesy of Danny & Ron’s Rescue / Photographer Michael Schofield Danny Robertshaw and Ron Danta on the garden bench in their garden at The Doghouse in Camden, SC.  They are joined by some of their personal family members, all rescue dogs of course. Lola, Humphrey, Buttercup, Isabel, Busy Bee, Blizzard

Ron Danta and Danny Robertshaw have devoted their lives to dogs.

Based in South Carolina, the couple first connected over a shared love of animals. Danta and Robertshaw, equestrian trainers by trade, met at a horse show and tell PEOPLE that when they first got to know each other, "there was a gradual awareness that we had a lot in common when it came to feelings for animals."

"I would bring a couple of puppies from the pound to a horse show," Robertshaw says, "and Ron would be one of the first people to come over and hold them, talk to people about adopting them."

This mutual appreciation for helping animals and a self-described tendency to "jump in with both feet" led the couple to rescue dogs and save around 600 canines caught in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina.

After this heroic effort, Danta and Robertshaw officially dedicated themselves to dog rescue and founded the nonprofit Danny & Ron's Rescue.

"There wasn't ever a moment where one of us had to say to the other, 'Are you up for this?'" Danta says of the decision.

Julie Prickett / JP Photography Danny Robertshaw and Ron Danta in the infamous D&R Rescue Golf Cart seen around the horse shows.

Before founding the nonprofit, Danta and Robertshaw funded their rescue dogs' care with their own money, taking out home equity loans and pulling from retirement accounts to get the canines the care they needed.

Thanks to donations to Danny & Ron's Rescue, the couple expanded their life-saving work and have now helped close to 14,000 dogs get a second chance at enjoying life.

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The story of Danny & Ron's Rescue was highlighted in the 2018 Netflix documentary Life in the Doghouse; now, the nonprofit's founders are giving animal lovers an even deeper look at their rescue's unique story.

Danta and Robertshaw's new memoir Forever Home: How We Turned Our House into a Haven for Abandoned, Abused and Misunderstood Dogs—and Each Other gives readers an inside look at how the couple cares for hundreds of dogs at once in their own home and why each canine's story is special.

Danny & Ron's Rescue gives each dog a "Lifetime Promise," the couple explains, "which is that they will never be in a shelter again, loose on the streets, hungry, or unhappy. They will never again be alone. Each dog is rescued into our own home — not in a facility away from us. We embrace them as our own, even as we try to find them forever homes where they can receive more individualized attention than we are able to give at our house since we have so many there."

Danta and Robertshaw allow their rescue dog residents free roam of the house, where the pets can be in any room they want and enjoy time on the home's couches and beds. The canines the couple takes in stay under their care until fitting adopters are found. Pooches that can't find a forever family because of their medical needs or behavioral issues spend the rest of their lives with Danta and Robertshaw.

RELATED: 'Very Calm, Gentle' Rescue Dog Still Waiting for a Home After 6 Years at California Shelter

Currently, around 128 dogs are living at Danny & Ron's Rescue, arriving at the nonprofit from abuse cases, overcrowded shelters, abandonment, and other upsetting situations. When the canines reach the rescue, the dogs lives become about joy.

Courtesy of Danny & Ron’s Rescue / Photographer Michael Schofield Ron Danta and Danny Robertshaw on the sofa in their living room surrounded by rescue dogs at The Doghouse in Camden, SC.

Danta and Robertshaw hope that their passion for animal rescue is contagious and that those who read their book Forever Home are inspired to help shelter pets and follow their dreams.

"Hopefully, by reading Forever Home, people will realize that it doesn't matter what your passion is," Danta says. "Just go for it. Try to make a difference in the world through what moves you. I don't think anyone has the right to try to talk us into doing something we don't want to do. People should encourage other people's passions, not try to mold them with their own passions. Ours happens to be saving dogs, but we hope our book shows that anyone's passion is worthy and that, in its own way, will help them give back."

To learn more about Danny and Ron's Rescue and how to support the nonprofit, visit the organization's website and read Forever Home — available now.