I created National Dog Day in response to a lack of acknowledgement I
found, about the selfless service of Search & Rescue dogs at Ground Zero.
I was perusing a pictorial book about September 11th, which was published
by a famous book series and not one photo of a Search and Rescue dog was
included in this book. It literally brought me to tears. I then began to
think of all the other dogs that give of themselves so selflessly every
day for our safety and our freedom; police dogs, bomb and drug sniffing
dogs, military dogs, guide dogs, therapy dogs, fire dogs and even dogs
that can predict seizures.
My heart swelled, thinking about how much better my life was, because of
thousands of dogs that I had never even had the honor of meeting. And
then, of course, taking into account, the unconditional love that our own
dogs give us every day of our lives, the silent reverie and devotion they
can never tell us about....if only through their eyes. It was in
this moment that I knew they needed their own day of glory. A day for us
to say "thank you" for their unconditional love and devotion.
Then, the heart that had swollen just minutes before, now stopped in
mid-beat, at the thought of so many scared and lonely, injured and ill
dogs awaiting a last miracle before their light is extinguished forever.
The amount of pain they suffer at the hands of man is incomprehensible and
excruciatingly sad. I find every day, so many people I am ashamed to share
the same air with on this earth, because of what they do to our precious
animals. It is a constant battle to fight for a better world for
them...but I will never give up. Never.
I decided, on a chilly and windy day in 2003, that I wanted to do more
than just help the dogs in my local shelter, where I found my girl, Sailor
{pictured above}...emaciated, beaten and terrified of everyone and
everything. I wanted a bigger voice, to speak for dogs like her, to reach
what some people would think an impossible goal. And many told me
it was, but I am not one to listen to the word "impossible". Since the
first National Dog Day, August 26th 2004, 100,000 dogs have been saved
through adoptions nationwide and we are now expanding to other countries,
making NDD an international goal to save dogs around the globe.
We will never meet a human who will love us without condition, without
expectation, without someone, at some point, disappointing us, breaking
our heart, abandoning our side....casting to the wind, promises we
believed in with all our heart. No, dogs will never do this to us. They
are steadfast.... and short, fat, tall, skinny, any race, any religion,
there is no discrimination - we are perfect in their eyes.
They deserve so much more than they get.
A big thank you from the bottom of my heart
to the millions of animal lovers out there who have supported this vital
day and continue to help my fight by spreading the word.
"The world would be a much better place.... if we saw one another, as
dogs see us. I don't expect that to ever happen...but it's a beautiful
dream."
With undying gratitude,
Colleen Paige
Founder - National Dog Day
www.colleenpaige.com
www.facebook.com/official.colleenpaige
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