Life is fleeting....

Rescue folks are stereo-typed by the general public as being 'too out there' or too touchy-feely... And maybe we are to a certain extent... We deal with life and death on a day-to-day basis... The only difference is that it is a cat's or a dog's life we are trying to save, which does not have as much value as human life... Our laws make these gentle souls into property and somehow de-valuates them... 

Every day of my life I am reminded that No-Kill is not a sprint or a part-time hobby, but a marathon... And in most cases, it is a triathlon that requires all different types of folks which varying purposes and mindsets to be successful... You might fall into rescue accidentally but you do not fall out of, nor do you retire if you truly care about stopping the killing of healthy, adoptable pets in our communities... 

And you do whatever it takes unless it is illegal or immoral... You do it when you are tired, hungry or mentally exhausted from the struggle... You become a bad person when you tell someone they have 3 children under the age of five years old and a four pound Chihuahua is not a good adoption, nor is it safe for the animal... You struggle constantly with vet bills that exceed any adoption donation you might ask for... And there are not holidays and vacations when you are committed to No-Kill and rescue... 

A pet is furever... And if we threw our children away when they became inconvenient or had behavior problems, there would be a huge dumpster at the end of every Walmart cash register in America - for the number of temper tantrums I have seen while waiting in line!  <grin>

Twice last night I was up with Atom2, and he reminds me by the hour of what I do and why I do it... Finally at almost 5:30AM this morning, I saw him (at 8 weeks old) get out of the doggie bed, trot over to the pitty pad, whiddle and poo... I was SO very proud of him... Like any good foster mom would be... 

Three hours later, he is crashing on me again... 

And for those who have never had a crashing puppy, no level of 'calm, assertive' mindset is going to keep your blood pressure lowered... You do everything you can to save the puppy's life... Maybe this teeny, tiny puppy is not supposed to make it, but you continue on with the mindset that until THEY are ready to give up and cannot continue the fight, neither do you.

And when your pet is healthy and alive, you celebrate each and every hour from the time they arrive into your life until they breath their last natural breath... We do not give up and we do not kill healthy pets... We spay and neuter our pets so there are not unwanted litters of puppies and kittens being born with a home to go to and be loved furever... 

Yes, No-Kill is measured, one dog or cat's life at a time... And it is not a sprint, but a marathon that all humane-minded individuals need to be a part of if we are to succeed as a species on this planet who care.