A few times a month, in the early morning, a shiny white van pulls into the garage of the Animal Humane Society in Golden Valley. The driver hops out, swings opens the back door and out pours a wave of noise: the barking, yapping and whining of 40 dogs demanding to be let out.

The dogs have been in the van for 17 hours, making a journey north toward their second chance at life.

All of them were rescued -- sometimes just hours before they were scheduled to be euthanized -- by the Puppy Pipeline Rescue of Georgia. The nonprofit transportation service shuttles unwanted dogs from shelters in the South, where they're likely to be euthanized, to shelters from Maine to Minnesota, where they'll be put up for adoption.

The pipeline got its start in 2006, when Atlantan Mike Dougherty went to a shelter in rural Georgia to pick up two dogs for rescue. Just outside the shelter, he saw animal control officers throwing euthanized dogs into a Dumpster.

"I witnessed the aftermath of 'kill day,'" he said. "And that day changed my life forever."

After researching and networking with other dog rescue operations, Dougherty concluded that many Southern dogs were being euthanized primarily because of supply and demand.

The South, he said, is full of dogs, many of which spend their lives outdoors. "The animal population down here, especially in rural areas, is epidemic."

Perhaps because of that, funding for shelters is scarcer than in other parts of the country, he said, and spay/neuter programs are much rarer.

His solution was to get as many healthy dogs as possible to the North, where dogs are fewer in number, cherished as companions and often treated as a member of the family.

Since it was founded, the pipeline has transported thousands of dogs a year and has acquired three vans, which are specially equipped with individual cages, state-of-the-art climate-control systems, and sanitary pads for long-distance travel.

An anonymous foundation provides much of the operation's funding, with individual donors contributing smaller amounts. "We could easily double or triple this business if we had more vans or more money," Dougherty said.

The Puppy Pipeline makes sure the dogs it transports have their shots and health certificates. It also requires that the animals be spayed or neutered and that the receiving shelters agree not to euthanize older dogs to accommodate new additions -- especially puppies -- from the pipeline.

While 80 percent of the pipeline dogs end up in Northeastern states, several Minnesota shelters, including the Animal Humane Society (AHS) system, also contract with Puppy Pipeline to bring in rescued dogs.

AHS chief operating officer Ray Aboyan said the society has been contracting for dogs and puppies from the pipeline since 2008. "By taking these dogs in, we're saving lives," he said. "Otherwise these dogs would be languishing and eventually euthanized."

But he's quick to point out that animals from the pipeline don't displace local dogs. By the end of the year, AHS will have taken in nearly 1,000 pipeline dogs, just a fraction of the 8,000 dogs the shelters take in during the average year.

"With dogs, we will first take care of our community here," he said. "If there are rescues or other organizations in Minnesota that want us to accept their dogs, they're our first priority. Minnesota dogs come first."

But because the demand for dogs and puppies is so great in the Twin Cities, Aboyan said dogs from the pipeline help society shelters remain a draw for potential adopters by providing a wide variety of animals.

"The dogs are needed in this community," he said.

Longtime cat owners Dan and Mary Sullivan had been thinking about getting a dog for a while. So when they went to the Humane Society in Coon Rapids, it probably didn't take much for Samantha to charm them. After a few hours playing with the year-old yellow terrier mix, the Sullivans decided that Samantha was the one.

Before she went to the adoption floor, Samantha had medical and behavioral exams. She was spayed the day after the Sullivans adopted her and two days after they met, Samantha came home. (Not before a name change: She's now Abby, a name Dan said "seemed to fit us better.")

Although they didn't know it at the time, Abby was the 6,000th dog that the Puppy Pipeline had transported.

Dogs from the Puppy Pipeline don't carry a special designation, but society staff members tell potential adopters as much as they know about a dog's history. That's how the Sullivans found out about Abby's long journey to their Coon Rapids home.

The couple say they're thrilled to be the owners of a rescue dog, especially one from halfway across the country.

"We are very happy with our decision and very glad to give her a second start on life," said Dan. "Pets bring so much to a home. With all the love -- and sometimes craziness -- that an animal brings to a home, you know, it's really like having a kid, and you have to watch over them. We don't have any regrets on that, and we love her to pieces."

Alex Gaterud is a Minneapolis-based freelance writer.