Mark is always saving the lives of dogs and cats. In the past, I occasionally found time to involve myself with his efforts.
It has come to my knowledge that various Kern County animal shelters kill between 500 and 1,000 animals every month; the highest euthanasia kill of any California county. At the end of every month there is a lot of activity generated by pet adoption agencies to get as many animals out of the shelters as possible. The rest of the dogs and cats, including nursing mothers and their babies are euthanized. The people of petmatchmaker.org perform lifesaving work by taking dogs and cats ...mostly dogs… out of shelters at the very last minute and drive them to foster destinations such as in; Los Angeles, San Ramon and Sacramento.
On one opportunity for me to help, a van with 37 dogs rescued from Kern county shelters was transported north to Sacramento. Mark rented a van for the engagement, and I drove my own car to Sacramento, where we met the van transporting its precious cargo of dogs at a place along highway 5 in Del Paso Heights. I was able to take 2 dogs in my car and drive them to the Sonoma County Humane Society, where they would be taken care of and looked after. Mark transferred the 35 remaining dogs into his van and drove them all the way north to just below Eugene, Oregon. There, he met two women who had driven south from Seattle, Washington. The women put all the dogs in their own van, and headed back to the Humane Society in Seattle with their lucky dogs.
There are a lot of unsung heroes saving the lives of animals at personal cost. Yes, compassion lives. And there are people out there who are not afraid. People who really care, who not only give a like to a post on Facebook, or talk the talk, but people to be admired who take that step up to defend and do their best in the name of decency and love.
Attached (below) is a photo I took of the 37 occupants of the van we intercepted at a point along Highway 5, in Del Paso Heights.
If you are curious about ways you can defend or rescue pets of all sorts, please consider investigating one of the following organizations.
Animal Legal Defense Fund: www.aldf.org – (This organization files lawsuits to benefit animals, and supports prosecutors in their efforts against various animal cruelty cases.)
NEVADA COUNTY ORGANIZATIONS
The Animal Place: www.animalplace.org
Rescue For Pet Sake: www.rescueforpetsake.org
Scooter’s Pals: www.scooterspals.org
Sammie’s Friends: www.sammiesfriends.org
