A lot of time has passed since my last blog post. Mostly because of my husband's cancer, rescue, and caring for my own dogs. I have always been relentless in my passion for our breed rescue, putting everything on the back burner. I resigned myself to "making it up to you later...", when it involved my family, and even my own dogs...burning the candle at both ends so to speak. Then a catastrophic event forced me to prioritize my life.
When years go by, and a rescue goes through the stress and change such as ours, you really have to stop and ask yourself if someone or something in the universe is trying to tell you something. When is it enough? There are always dogs, mail boxes full of emails from owners with the same old excuses, actually there have been some new excuses that have been quite creative. Some have been comical, like the bird dog refusing to stop eating the free roaming chickens. I felt a bit bad for the chickens, but shaking my head for the poor dog that had to be pulled out of the arms of a crying child, when rescue picked her up. And the child....how will this effect a young child that was obviously bonded so deeply to his friend?
Scenarios such as these evoke emotions from we rescuers, but especially the dog loving public. We have become hardened, we have seen and heard so much...we have cried enough tears to fill an ocean, and now we trust no one. What is happening to us as a society? Where is the responsibility? I truly see a trend of not caring, and evidence of a "throw away" society. We're lazy, we're uneducated, and I do not see light at the end of the tunnel. So I ask myself, "what" am I doing? Life is passing me by, year after year, after year. I see young rescue individuals that were 20, and in a blink of an eye are now in their 30's. They are not married, they are not getting on with their lives, but instead are totally engulfed in this never ending cycle of abuse and rescue.
So what are the answers? Do I start to care less about the dogs needing help? Do I let go of many to trust in others to save them? I am told by my friends that have been around the block in the rescue mobile, to hang in there.....they know exactly where I am coming from. Other's have died so young, and the stress involved with the frantic and overwhelming involvement that is 24/7 in this business. Google "stress and animal rescue", and you will have an entire page of articles to support the above. Heck, my husband was having a surgical procedure for his cancer, and my phone was ringing off the hook...this is after I had emailed the same individuals stating I would be off line for several days. Guess that wasn't what they wanted to hear...
Many of my most incredible volunteers, and foster homes have taken on tasks I would never have imagined anyone willing to do, so I could have time that is short with my husband. He always was supportive of all the time I took from him to do rescue. That says so much of his character, and the dogs we share our lives with, all being rescue dogs are the glue that hold together a very big portion of our relationship. We enjoy being together with our dogs, and we are so grateful for just a bit more time together.
So, the answer for me at this point is to continue to do rescue, but on a smaller scale. No one has to be the biggest to be the best, and many hands make for light work. We had I think....15 dogs we were responsible for even just a couple of months ago, and now we are down to maybe eight? We are cross posting more, as I have found out many dogs with little time left will get rescued if we network heavily enough. The ones that will require multiple surgeries, broken bones, ect., we can take...or those in our own back yard.
The networking with many groups, especially the GSP groups to the south and Midwestern regions have been long standing friendships, and one in particular...Meg with GSP of Texas got me my doll baby Gretchen. Gretchen is a one in a million rescue dog, that came to us at a time we most needed a ray of light in our lives. I am convinced she is an angel in a wire suit. But she had an angel in a human suit that answered that email when Gretchen needed help, making it all possible.
I guess purging this post has made me realize all the blessings rescue dogs and rescue itself have brought me. I see so many friends on our social networking sites being so engaged with each other, sharing experiences with their dogs, and families. This brings me tremendous joy. We have been given support emotionally and monetarily from many of our friends and adopters, whom we would have not had the pleasure to meet and establish forever friendships without the rescue. And my bucket list of meeting my mentors has been fulfilled.I have met Cesar Millan, Sue Sternberg, Emily Weiss, Gina Spadafori, and her writing partner Dr. Marty Becker. Without rescue and my passion for dogs, this would have never been possible.
I would like to attend a workshop with Martin Deeley someday. But really think that is about it. So when I start to feel overwhelmed, or possibly a little resentful, I just need to prioritize, count my blessings, and know that rescue has been responsible of all that is positive in my life.
Dwelling on the sliver of the pie that has indeed gone bad, is my responsibility to throw out...and being a glutton is indeed not good for me either.
Now excuse me while I get out of my Pj's on this beautiful Saturday afternoon and go for a walk with my rescue dogs, for they are the positive, and a priority. Not to mention the K-State vs Oklahoma game, and a bowl of popcorn with my husband!
Rescue can wait til Monday...
