Living Amongst the Pack

Owning and rescuing dogs has been a massive part of my life. My family has owned, raised, and cared for over 20 dogs, and we even had 7 of them at once. I was essentially just a member of that pack at the time, and learned so much about compassion through ample interaction with my furry companions. Dogs were the first thing I learned to take care of, as at the same time I gained the trust to stay home alone was the moment when I started to be tasked with making sure they are cared for while my parents were gone. It did not stop there, as my family became more and more involved with rescuing dogs. They actually got so involved that my mother helped found a rescue called A Second Chance for Ziva. This became a reality when I was about 16 years old, and is present still today. I was thrown into the life of a rescue family, which for me meant making sure our own dogs were taken care of, and then heading down to our puppy room in the basement where we often held either a litter of puppies, or a grown dog, both of which looking for homes. My life became surrounded by dogs in all different stages of their life cycles, and it has brought me so much joy to know that I assisted in caring for them until they found a forever home. Each step of the way from feeding to bathing to cleaning up after them, my love for animals and the people who save them grew stronger. Today, I can confidently say that growing up surrounded by loving animals has taught me so much about responsibility, patience, and most importantly, compassion. I would not be the person I am today without each four-legged friend who entered my life, and I do not see a life ahead of me in which I would live without one.