Life of an Animal Rescuer

This posting is dedicated to Jeanette Ferro and LInda Howard.  May they find eternal peace...

As a young girl I brought home a lot of animals.  Everyone thought I would end up becoming a veterinarian or a zoo keeper.  Never did I expect to champion wild animals from the Wild Animal Orphanage; I never dreamed I would spend my adult years trying to save lions, tigers, monkeys, bears, and so forth, from pain and suffering. But there I was, in mid-30s, working 20-30 hours a week, trying to make a difference, trying to save their lives.

I write this for all my fellow rescuers who understand what I am trying to say, and for those of you out there who think animal rescuers are simply nuts and cannot fathom why we put ourselves through so much pain and misery.

Animal rescuers are a different breed:  we live, eat, sleep, breathe our causes, and we wear on our sleeves animal rescue challenges everywhere we go. I know my co-workers must think I'm crazy for putting myself through so much sadness; I think most time they humored me when I gave them  "WAO updates"! Anyway, animal rescue is a calling, a gut reaction, a determination to right the wrongs of others, and to save innocent lives because we must speak out for those innocent animals that have no voice of their own.  Ask us how we are doing and we’ll tell you all about our latest battle; never will we talk about how the battle is affecting our lives, our health.

In the decade that I have been active with animal rescue, I have never known a rescuer who was actually able to pull away and stay out of animal rescue completely; it’s a struggle to stand back and let others do the job, so rescuers sometimes try to find a different avenues in which to apply their gifts.  Simply put, the urge to save animals never goes away.  Whether it is taking in a homeless dog off the street or care for a feral colony, the urge to help animals remains.

Why is it so difficult to leave all the craziness behind? Because for most, being a rescuer is not a conscience choice we make--it's something we are born with. Honestly, rescuers just don’t wake up one morning and say “Gee, I want to be an animal rescuer today.” It’s a drive that lives inside of us and not something we can switch on or off. To save the life of an innocent animal is just as natural as breathing to us.

Whenever we see an animal in distress, we try to fix whatever is wrong with it, and if we can’t fix it, we find someone who can--turning a blind eye is not an option in our case. When we see people abusing animals, instead of idly standing by, we jump into action, often times without regard to our own personal safety.  We have mental pictures of abused animals that never leaves our thoughts and minds, serving as a catalyze to motivate us towards our ultimate goal of righting a terrible wrong.

We’re a breed all our own. It’s an impulse for us and not something that we can shut off just because our hearts are aching and we just don’t think we can take it anymore. And even though we rejoice in those animals saved, we are continuously haunted by the faces we could not.

Life of a rescuer is mentally tough.  I've been told animal rescuers have a high suicide rate because of all the pain and despair we witness; we see the worse of what humanity has to offer animals and it breaks our hearts on a continual basis to see all types of horror inflicted upon the most innocent.  Often times, rescuers get burned out and need help re-stabilizing their lives.  The lucky ones can heal and move on; but we are not all so lucky; some of us never recover from what we have witnessed.  So if you know an animal rescuer, please give that person all your love and support; help keep them grounded and let them know that the world is be a much better place because of their life-saving efforts.

We should never lose hope to sorrow, so please reach out and hold the hands of animal rescuers because they are truly doing the Lord's work...blessing and protecting the innocents...righting some very terrible, terrible wrongs...

"Never Let You Go"

When you're awake and you can't believe your eyes
Cause all the truth that you knew has turned to lies
When you're scared and you can't see past a day
Remember who holds tomorrow
Know his love will light your way

Hold on when everything is shaking
Stand strong when the ground is falling through
Reach out to my hand in the darkness
That's holding you

I'll be your peace in the waiting
Your strength when you're broken on the floor
Hold on, it's all worth fighting for
Cause I will never let you go
I will never let you go

When you look in the mirror and you run away
Cause all you see are the scars from yesterday
When the parade goes by and you feel alone
Never lose hope to sorrow
You're closer than you know

Hold on when everything is shaking
Stand strong when the ground is falling through
Reach out to my hand in the darkness
That's holding you

I'll be your peace in the waiting
Your strength when you're broken on the floor
Hold on it's all worth fighting for
Cause I will never let you go
I will never let you go

When the road is hard and your faith is shaken
Never look back on the steps you're taking
You're more to me than you could ever know

Hold on when everything is shaking
Stand strong when the ground is falling through
Reach out to my hand in the darkness
I'm holding you

I'll be your peace in the waiting
Your strength when you're broken on the floor
Hold on it's all worth fighting for
Cause I will never let you go...
I will never let you go
I will never let you go...

You're more to me than you could ever know.

Album:  "Fighter"

Artist:  Manafest