I’m very passionate about saving dogs.
It became clear to me that I love dogs when I was seven.
I was in the province, and I’d go out of the house if my parents were arguing, and so there was this neighbor’s house. She took care of multiple dogs, like five at the time, and there was a hole in the fence.
There was this little dog that was brown, short-haired, but long. She wasn’t a specific breed, but she was the cutest thing I’ve seen, and she was named Chrissy – or at least so I thought.
So even though when I would call her by her name “Chrissy” and she would come through the fence, the neighbor would correct me and say her name is “Krassy.” I really didn’t like it, but I said okay, and so I continued to call her Chrissy. We had a bond.
One day, we were playing. My parents were always freaking out about germs, so they were like, “Oh, you know, you’re gonna catch a disease if you touch dogs and don’t wash your hands.”
So I was trying not to touch her. I took a stick and I was trying to pet her gently and slowly, and at some point something amazing happened – she actually grabbed the stick with her mouth and she started pulling.
I was like “What?” and then I started pulling back, and we were in this super fun game of tug of war. I didn’t know it was called like that back at the time, and I enjoyed it so much. I forgot everything else.
I was just so mesmerized that she was so into it, and that she was playing. I really had no idea dogs could do that, so I was fascinated, and I continued to play with her ever since.
Because of her, I formed a deep bond with dogs, and they have a special place in my heart.
I consider dogs as friends, and I don’t want to see them suffer. That’s why in my adult life, when I’ve seen dogs suffer, I took it very much to heart and I started helping them in any way I can.
Currently, I volunteer at two dog shelters outside of my city, and I walk dogs there.
I socialize dogs by petting them or brushing them – basically touching them and getting them accustomed to human contact so that they can get adopted in an easier way.
I think that having a mission is crucial to one’s well-being because we’re our best selves when we care for someone outside our world, and for me, that’s dogs.
They bring happiness, they bring me in the moment, they remind me of what’s worth it.
Most importantly, unlike humans, they cannot ask for help directly, or if they do, it’s not very clear to humans because dogs communicate mostly through body language.
So I’ve made it my mission to help dogs in any way I can – be it petting a stray dog if I’m traveling, or giving water, or just being kind to them, and going to the dog shelter and meeting like-minded individuals.
Because even though at shelters, sometimes you see very extreme cases, you still meet a lot of people who mean well. And as I’ve put it one time when speaking to a long-time volunteer: “I love going to the shelter because here is where good is centered.“
And so I stand behind the principle and I will continue to support dogs in any way I can – be it by being physically there and giving them my time, attention, energy, and love, or getting supplies for the shelters such as blankets and towels. They can always use that because there’s a shortage of these, and they wear off pretty quickly.
And I also support them financially.
So this is what I stand behind, and thank you for reading about my mission.
What’s yours?
If you haven’t found it yet, we can talk and we can figure it out together. 🐾❤️🐕
