A Colorful Cause

Ruth Ellen’s The Paws Cause Raises $60,000 for Dog Rescue & Adoption

By Delores Kuhlwein

Ramblin’ through the Maasai market in Kenya on one of her countless jaunts to the heart of Africa, renowned African trip planner and horseman Ruth Ellen spotted several displays of beautifully beaded dog collars.

At the time, approximately six years ago, Ruth Ellen was thinking of getting involved with dog rescue, so she seized the opportunity to purchase the collars.  “I thought I would get some of those collars, take them to the horse show, sell them, and donate the money to dog rescue. So I went to every stall and bought their dog collars, and I brought home 33 dog collars,” she explains.

The philanthropist at heart mistakenly predicted it would take her a month or so to get them sold, so she posted photos on Facebook, and in her words, “I was like Petco. In three days, they were all gone.”

She messaged her ground handler in Nairobi, and said, “You’re not going to believe this – I need more dog collars.”

Fast forward to March 2025, and $60,000 has already been raised for dog rescues and adoptions thanks to The Paws Cause, and largely due to the big hearts and love of dogs in the horse industry.  “It just blossomed – I don’t advertise, and I take them to horse shows, and I’ve started a little art fair vendoring, which does well, but the horse show people have supported this, and supported this, and they keep buying more collars,” Ruth explains.

When a customer buys a collar, or a leash, or any of the expanded product line, Ruth Ellen sends 100 percent and more to the rescue of their choice. She says, “If you buy a $40 collar, I’ll send 100 percent to the rescue or shelter you love.”

The Women Behind the Vibrance

As one might imagine, the benefit of the project reaches much farther globally – it has given much needed business to the women of the Maasai tribe.  The traditions of this semi-nomadic warrior tribe of Africa include dressing in vivid colors, reflected in their hand-beaded leatherwork.

Many of the collars and leashes sport incredible primary colors of blues, reds, and yellows, which are Maasai colors, says Ruth. “Each Maasai woman has a different design, and in the beginning, I realized they never see where their work goes, so when someone would buy a collar, I’d take a picture of their dog, develop a 4 x 6 print, and put them in little photo albums.  When I knew I was going back to visit, I took the little albums, and most of them don’t speak English, so it was so interesting watching them look through the albums and gasp when they recognized their work.”

The products offered through The Paws Cause have hand-beading, as well as cowhide on the top, calfskin on the bottom, and brass fittings, and dog owners can also order custom work.  She also says once a young dog outgrows a collar, the owner can bring it back for a discount on the next collar, and they pass the used collar forward to a shelter dog.

For the Love of the Dogs

As Ruth Ellen spoke about this important work at a recent horse show, the Arizona Sun Circuit, she revealed the dog accompanying her, “Frankie,” was also a shelter puppy.   “One of our other dogs was a shelter puppy, and then the third dog (we never intended to be a three dog family) was a foster fail,” she says.  “When you volunteer to foster a dog for a rescue, and when it’s time to write the bio for the dog to be adopted so the prospective adopter knows what they’re getting, and your husband says. ‘We’re not letting anybody take her, are we?’, you think – what are we doing?”

They live in a small house in a neighborhood, and she explains two dogs are a good fit.  “So, like children, we got paper and pen, and we wrote down pros and cons of adopting Poppy. There were about two pros and 92 reasons why we shouldn’t, and we threw that in the trash, and we adopted her, so now we’re a three dog family.”

At the Heart of the Matter

The motivation behind Ruth Ellen’s quest is simple: because she loves dogs, and of course, because the Maasai women are amazing, and she wants to make a difference for them. She says she also loves to sell things, but there’s a catch.  “I owned the Horse Source for many years, and I can sell anything I love; I cannot sell something I don’t like.”

She asks her customers to provide the mailing address for their rescue of choice when they make a purchase, or she chooses one for them, and almost all are local rescues.

All in all, she credits the horse show community for their generosity.  “It wouldn’t be successful if it wasn’t primarily for the horse people. It’s really not what I do, it’s what they do.”

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See the products of The Paws Cause, as well as photos of the Maasai community, and contact Ruth Ellen for your order here: www.thepawscause.us.

More about her unique African safari experiences can be found on the “Ramblin’ with Ruth” website:  https://www.ramblinwithruth.us.