I am writing you this letter in hopes to get a few answers to questions that have burned my mind, my heart. The questions that bring raw tears to the eyes of every rescuer. Dear Liars, please be honest, or at least as honest as you can be. When you walked into that pet store, pet adoption agency and/or pet rescue, what were you thinking? When that loving animal looked longingly into your eyes, begging for you to take them home and love them with all your heart, was that your intention? Did you really plan to love the creature that needed you or did you purchase/adopt them on a whim? Was there a well thought out plan or were you planning to only take one day at a time? You see Dear Liars, when you planned your move, you forgot about the promise of love and loyalty to your beloved pet. If you have children, would you look for housing in an adult only community and toss your children aside? If your son or daughter developed a disease that required a little extra love and attention would you dump them off on someone else? When you found out that you had another child coming, would you send your first born away? I am sure that for most of you the answer is no. Why should it be any different for a pet that you promised to love and take care of? Since when did loving another, be it human or animal become such a burden? Dear Liars, you are responsible for the broken hearts of many. Another thing I would like to bring up, Dear Liars, is the economy. The economy is hard on everyone. I understand that you need to make some changes Dear Liars. Some things are just going to have to go. Are you going to give up your children, Dear Liars, in order to afford that McDonalds meal? That pack of cigarettes or keg of beer? Instead of breaking your promise to the helpless animal, why couldn't you give up those instead? Do you realize, Dear Liars, that rescue people have to give up a lot of luxuries to care for your "burden"? Do you realize that rescue people give up their lives, their savings and pieces of their hearts to care for the animal that you lied to? Dear Liars, I hope you sleep well at night while your animal suffers the loss and confusion brought on by the decisions that you made, the promises that you have broken and the broken hearts that you have created. And just remember, one day you will need the love and extra care that you promised to give but failed to deliver. May God be with you. *A former rescue For years I have wanted to ask these questions. I used to run Michigan Ferret Rescue. My doors were open for 3 1/2 years but the heart break was too much for me. In the 3 1/2 years that I was open, I took in over 400 ferrets, I heard every excuse that you could possibly hear and then some. I am bitter. I am bitter at those that chose to dump their pets instead of working out a way to deliver the love and care that was promised. I have taken in babies, oldies, sickies and biters. In spite of the financial strain that was put on my family, the anger I felt toward those dumping their pets and the distance that was put between myself and my children, I still cared for those animals. Why? Because I made a promise when I started rescuing to love and care for them until they found homes. Not all of them found homes. I still deal daily with the heartbreak of a sick ferret, I still deal daily with the pain of knowing that another will pass away soon. These ferrets are the ones that were dumped due to age, illness, can't afford vet care...yada yada yada. I can't go into pet stores anymore. I can't keep my mouth shut when I see a child begging the parents for a pet that will likely end up in one of our homes. I can't bear to see the young couple purchasing animals on a whim. I have tried to educate people like that back when I was active in rescue. I still try to educate, but a lot of times, it seems to fall upon deaf ears. It is painful, too painful for me. I feel in my heart of hearts that if you love someone or something enough that you will find a way. I feel that if you make a promise, you should honor that no matter what you have to give up. When I closed my doors, I closed them with 60 ferrets still in residence. The 60 ferrets I had here were special care ferrets. I chose to care for them until their day of passing came. That was in 2006. With 60 ferrets here, I still cared for my family, I attended college full time and still MADE time for the babies that trusted every aspect of their care to me. I didn't let them down. I held them in my lap while I studies for difficult exams, I cleaned and medicated them in the wee hours of the morning before I left for class. I recruited people to watch over them while I was at school. I cut back on expenses so I could afford the needed vet care, the food and other needed supplies.I borrowed money from loved ones that I am still paying back when I couldn't afford food, vet bills and such. I supplemented my family time, put vacation plans on hold (they are still on hold) and cared for my charges. Now, I have 17 furkids here. I go to college still, work, care for my family and still care for my ferrets. The point in telling you this isn't just to pat myself on the back, but to show that life CAN be rearranged. Sacrifices CAN be made, I know, I have made them and still do. I just don't understand why we can make those sacrifices but the original owners wont. There are cases where surrenders were justifiable, but for every one that can be justified, there are 20 that can't. This post might tick some of you off. I don't care. This is how I feel, what I think and I own it. Lori Blaisdell [Posted in FML 6224]