SALEM — An American Airlines jet was scheduled to land at Logan Airport last night with an unusual cargo: street dogs from Puerto Rico.

The Northeast Animal Shelter planned to send a van and a car to pick up more than a dozen of the little dogs, or "satos" as they are called in Spanish slang.

The dogs may be far from Puerto Rico, but they should feel right at home today. From 11 a.m. to 3 p.m., the Highland Avenue shelter is hosting its 10th annual Sato Reunion.

"It's a big thing for us," said Laurie McCannon, the nonprofit's development director.

Since this rescue program began in the early 1990s, an estimated 3,500 satos have been placed with families on the North Shore.

"They're everywhere," said Jim McAllister, a Salem resident who adopted his dog Goofy about six years ago.

"It's amazing how many you see ... and you almost always recognize them," he said. "A lot of them have big ears."

The Northeast Animal Shelter sent out 1,200 invitations to today's event, the most ever for a sato reunion. It also invited some of the rescuers from Puerto Rico, who have flown in to take part.

Anna Geraghty, who works at the shelter, is going with her two rescued dogs, Rufus and 3-feet Peet, who lost a leg after an accident in Puerto Rico.

"The dogs seem to really get a kick out of it," she said.

This long-range adoption program began in 1994 when a woman from Gloucester brought some of the street dogs to the shelter.

She was responding to an animal crisis in Puerto Rico, which has thousands of dogs roaming free. Rescuers find them on the streets, get them shots and medical attention, place them in foster homes, and then ship them to shelters in the United States.

Northeast Animal Shelter was the first in the Northeast to take part, according to McCannon.

"There are dogs roaming around everywhere down there," she said.

The reunions are held as both fun events and fundraisers. It costs the shelter $75 per dog to have them flown here from Puerto Rico.

The public is invited to the event, which will have music, raffles and food vendors.

The reunion will give the rescuers a chance to see the end result of their hard work on the streets.

"We invite all the (families) to come to the shelter with their dogs to show the rescuers how great the dogs look," McCannon said. "Somehow the rescuers know who all these dogs are. It amazes us all the time."