Words that warm our hearts
Center for the Human-Animal Bond
People in contact with animals
experience a decrease in blood pressure, reduced anxiety
and a general feeling of of well being.
Purdue University School of Veterinary Medicine
http://www.vet.purdue.edu/chab/
The sense of accomplishment and joy that comes from helping even one animal
is the reward that encourages further action.
Jane Goodall
Speaking Out for Animals:True Stories about Real People who Rescue Animals
Edited by Kim W. Stallwood
If I can stop one heart from breaking
I shall not live in vain
If I can ease one life the aching
Or cool one pain
Or help one fainting Robin
Unto his nest again
I shall not live in vain
Emily Dickinson
Before you get a dog, you can’t quite imagine what living with one might be like;
afterward, you can’t imagine living any other way.
Caroline Knapp
“The Color of Joy” from Dog is My Co-Pilot: Great Writers on the World’s Oldest Friendship
Caring has no endpoint. Compassion is on a continuous loop. When we ask animals to serve, protect and comfort people, the people have an obligation to serve, protect and comfort them. When we do that, everyone wins. When we don’t, we put both animals and people at risk Joanne Hubal http://AmericaHelpsAnimals.com
and undermine the intended benefit of the relationship.
From the elephant on the African plain, to the grace of dolphins,
to the dog or cat dozing in your living room,
our fellow creatures are sources of both amazement
and unconditional love.
Karen M. Jones
The Difference a Day Makes: 365 Ways to Change Your World in Just 24 Hours
A Horse's Prayer
To Thee, my master, I offer my prayer.
Feed me, water and care for me, and when the day's work is done,
provide me with shelter, a clean, dry bed and stall wide enough
for me to lie down in comfort.
Always be kind to me. Your voice often means as much to me as the reins.
Never strike, beat, or kick me when I don't understand what you want,
but give me the chance to understand you. Pet me sometimes,
that I may serve you the more gladly and learn to love you.
Make sure that I am properly shod that I may serve you in comfort.
And finally, Oh My Master, when my useful strength is gone,
do not turn me out to starve or freeze or sell me to some cruel owner
to be slowly tortured and starved to death;
but do thou, My master, take my life in the kindest way and your God
will reward you here and hereafter. You will not consider me irreverent
if I ask this in the name of Him who was born in a stable.
Author Unknown
A merciful man is merciful to his beast.
Edward Wetherill (1821-1908)
Inscribed on a public fountain for animals in Philadelphia.
It is time for all of society to see animals as more than mere commodities,
property or things to be bought or sold, exploited or killed on an ‘owner’s’ whim.
I am proud to be the guardian of my animal companions.
Gretchen Wyler
Passionate animal advocate and the name behind The Wyler Award an annual HSUS Genesis Award
honoring a celebrity who has made news on behalf of animals
When we work together, more lives are saved.
[Volunteering at the shelter] has taught me to love my family more,
taught me to appreciate people more. It’s changed my life 100 percent.
Jarrod Cooper
Oakland Raiders safety
If there are no dogs in Heaven, then when I die I want to go where they went.
Will Rogers
"Our goal is to bring about the day when every dog and cat
has a happy and loving home. Sound ambitious?
It is, but kindness is a powerful force.”
Michael Mountain
Director of Best Friends Animal Society in Kanab, Utah.
There is always laundry to be done. The washers and dryers are never quiet.
All bedding from the day before is washed. Maybe you are the type that enjoys
the smell of fresh clean laundry as it comes out of the dryer. You can always pet
a few furry heads in between loads.
Food bowls, plates and water bowls are washed by hands. These things are all
much more fun when they are not done at home. It can be hard work,
but there is something so rewarding about giving a newcomer a fresh bowl
of food and a nice fluffy blanket.
From an ad for shelter volunteers on www.animalrescueinc.org
“I had no reason to think that I wouldn’t continue to live the solitary life
that I was accustomed to, but one day this little animal walked in from nowhere
as though she had been invited and my whole existence has changed.”
I laughed. “She adopted you. Cats do that. And it was a lucky day for you.”
James Herriot
James Herriot’s Cat Stories
The dogs in Dog Heaven who had no real homes on Earth
are given one in Heaven. The homes have yards and porches
and there are couches to lie on and tables
to sit under while angels eat their dinners.
There are special bowls with the dogs’ names on them.
And each dog is petted and reminded how good he is, all day long.
Cynthia Rylant
Dog Heaven
Now every day for me is meaningful as an animal rescue worker—freelance,
self-employed, and unpaid. I am needed, as I was never before needed in my life,
by all the homeless and hungry mistreated animals. In my old life, I had plenty
of fun, but no real happiness. Now I know the true happiness of living for others,
and the true happiness of being surrounded by creatures I love.
Philip Gonzalez
The Dog Who Rescues Cats: The True Story of Ginny
Philip Gonzalez and Leonore Fleischer
Second-hand dogs give first-class love.
Tails of the Tundra Siberian Rescue web site www.siberescue.com
I believe compassion for animals is one of the most important
and vital human emotions that we can ever experience.
Kim W. Stallwood
Speaking Out for Animals: True Stories about Real People who Rescue Animals
There’s a wonderful unconditional love that comes from an animal.
When times came where I felt like I was no good to the world,
I knew that they needed me.
Kristin, diagnosed with lupus
www.petsnpatients.com Stories of love, laughter and healing one “tail” at a time
But ask the animals, and they will teach you,
or the birds of the air, and they will tell you,
or speak to the earth, and it will teach you,
or let the fish of the sea inform you.
Which of all these does not know
that the hand of the Lord has done this?
In his hand is the life of every creature
and the breath of all mankind.
Job 12: 7-10