Animal Rescue Videos

 

I can’t decide whether animal rescue videos are good or bad for me.

Sometimes, they make me feel warm and fuzzy.

Other times, they make me sob uncontrollably.

Sometimes, I watch with calm anticipation.

Other times, I watch with agitated worry.

 

In one particular video,

A woman dumps her dog out of the car,

Which, unfortunately, is a common practice.

But instead of leaving the dog,

She goes a short distance away and films what the dog does in response.

He runs back and forth, frantically looking for his owner,

Getting more and more frenzied as he can’t find her.

Here is this dog who knows nothing but being taken care of by his owner,

Left in the middle of nowhere,

With no warning, explanation, or understanding,

Scared, and

Alone.

Thankfully, because the video is meant to be educational,

The dog is reunited with his owner in the end.

But how many animals aren’t?

And how many animals suffer because of the abandonment?

 

So that’s a video that makes me weep.

I actually talked about it in therapy to understand why it was so emotional for me—

Blindsides, cut offs, broken trust, and feeling scared and alone were a few themes that emerged.

 

But then there are those who make me smile…

 

Like the one where a very pregnant stray dog has 15 puppies and they’re each labeled with a different colored collar to keep them straight and they all find forever homes,

Or the one where a dog with disabilities gets a wheelchair,

Or the one where a stray dog goes to the groomer and comes out looking like a different dog all together,

Or the one where a kitten is rescued and grows up to be a champion biscuit maker and cuddler,

Or the one where an eel is relieved of three hooks stuck in its mouth,

Or the one where a black goldfish is rescued from a sickly tank and transforms into a happy orange fish,

Or the one where a wayward sheep is shorn and is released from an 80 pound burden.

I actually really like the wayward sheep videos because the sheep are so trusting of the people who help them.

They’re flipped over and turned around and worked on for a long time because their wool is so matted and full of dirt and sticks,

Yet underneath the outer coat of filth,

They are beautifully soft and white.

 

There’s a lesson in there on that one.

I’ll let you figure it out.

 

So yeh.

I can’t determine whether animal rescue videos are good or bad for me.

I blame Facebook for putting them in my algorithm.

And I blame Annie the Cat for being a real-life rescue story that has caused me to put all kinds of human emotions on animals!

 

God: Thank you for animals. And help us, God, to take care of them. Forgive us when we neglect your creation and abandon your creatures, and help us, as a whole, to be more responsible stewards and to do better. Amen.