A plethora of information and literature is available about animal welfare issues, but there is a problem: much of that literature is upsetting, overwhelming, and downright distressing even for adults, let alone for children. Kids are the policy makers, activists, politicians and world changers of tomorrow’s society, so it’s critical for them to learn about kindness to animals- yet there is an overall lack of resources geared towards teaching kids about animal welfare.
I decided to do my part in resolving this issue last year by publishing a children’s book about my friend’s dog, Oliver. Oliver’s story was oversimplified and made child-friendly in the book, but his true story is incredible. Oliver injured his leg as a puppy in Armenia, survived a harsh
winter on the streets, was saved by a kind animal rescuer who regularly assists street dogs, flew to the United States, had his leg surgically amputated under the care of the dog rescue Mutts in Need, and finally, was adopted by a friend of mine.
What was incredibly striking about Oliver was his resilience...within a few weeks of his amputation he was running and playing at the dog park, and after a few months he was hiking, playing in the snow, going on road trips, and running for hours at the beach. Most rescuers know this to be true: many animals tend to bounce back from both physically and emotionally traumatic events incredibly fast.
I decided to use Oliver’s story for my children’s book rather than simply writing about shelter and rescued dogs in general because emphasizing one individual animal’s story takes away the overwhelming nature of an issue. This rule applies to adults as well, which is why I tell stories of individual animals throughout this blog rather than simply overwhelming readers with a slew of facts about a daunting worldly problem. It also helps to “put a face” on an issue, similarly to how one might change their mind about Pitbulls after meeting a friendly one, or switch to Impossible burgers after petting a cow.
Oliver serves as an ambassador to less-than-perfect dogs in his book, teaching children that a dog need not be purebred and pedigreed to be deserving of love and kindness. "A dog doesn't need papers to deserve a human's loving touch, and a dog's breed or color really doesn't matter much. Whether young or old, whether three legs or four, a dog's heart of gold is what we ought to adore," reads one one of the book's final pages. The happy ending in his story leaves people with a positive feeling, but reminds them of the importance of choosing to adopt animals from rescue groups and shelters.
Oliver may not know it as he lives his carefree and joyful life with his two adopted siblings and human family, but he serves a role in the humane education movement that will shape how animals are treated by the next generation.
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