Rescue Dogs: We Benefit Them, Just As They Benefit Us

According to the organization ASPCA, also known as American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, 6. 5 million animals are rescued each year, 3. 3 million of those animals being dogs. Many of those dogs come from horrible places, whether they were abused or abandoned. Luckily, there are people in this world who are kind hearted and help take care of these animals and put them in new homes.

My family is a part of an organization that helps out a specific breed of dogs, boxers. The organization we support and are a part of is the NPBR, Northern Plains Boxer Rescue. We’ve adopted our three dogs from that rescue, and have gone to several events that help the rescue. Having rescue dogs affects my family’s and my health triangle. Having rescue dogs affects the mental side of our health triangle. All dogs support their owners through thick and thin, but it’s on a completely different level with rescue dogs. Many rescued canines come from abused homes, which causes them to lose trust in humans. But when they finally find a home that’s perfect for them, they end up loving their owners with their entire beings. They are more trusting and dependable. They make you feel better when you’re upset and stay with you longer to comfort you. Whenever I’m upset, my dog Freya always comes into my room and sits with me and comforts me. These rescue dogs will always be there for us when we need them. Having rescue dogs don’t just affect us mentally, but also physically. Obviously, having a rescued dog can require more things that have to be done physically than having a usual dog, but that can end up benefiting the physical side of the health triangle.

Certain rescued dogs may have had traumatic experiences before being rescued, so many of them need to be walked more often to feel safe and comfortable. For example, before my dog Thor was our dog, he was found in an abandoned RV, with little food or water. He had been so skinny that his ribs were showing. Him being stuck in a small space for a large amount of time made him hate being in a kennel when we weren’t home, so we started taking him on frequent walks to make him adjust better into being in his new home. Those frequent walks helped us stay physically active, which benefited both us and the dogs. Finally, having a rescue dog affects the social side of the health triangle.

Being a part of the Northern Plains Boxer Rescue community has helped us meet many new people (and dogs). We go on annual boxer walk every year to help raise money for the rescues. There are lots of people that come to support and donate money to the foundation. As well as the annual boxer walk, just walking around our neighborhood, we’ve met new friendly people who our family has ended up becoming friends with.

In conclusion, having rescue dogs benefited my family in many ways. They benefit all three sides of the health triangle. I think that instead of buying dogs from breeders or puppy mills, everyone should adopt dogs from rescues, because we will benefit them, just as they will benefit us.