The heart and soul of our rescue is our motto “We Rescue Pets to Rescue People” and never has it been more important than now. Rock n’ Rescue's (RNR) primary focus is to assist families looking for a pet that is not only happy and healthy, but a pet that can provide a therapeutic solution for emotional and physical ailments.
We were originally established as a partner to other rescues helping with harder to adopt, and often older cats and dogs. By the time we incorporated as a 501c(3) in 2017 we were saving animals, mainly from the south, that were to be euthanized. Our main focus is cats which accounts for over 80% of our 2200 adoptions in 2021. What we realized early on is that not only were we rescuing the animals, but our adopters told us about how their animal had actually rescued them. Based on this we made RNR's purpose twofold and incorporated it into our motto, “We rescue pets to rescue people.”
We have community outreach programs for people of all ages. Our programs are designed to help people cope with factors that make their situations difficult and/or to enhance the quality of their lives. One example is our nursing home recreational therapy program. We bring older cats and kittens (and sometimes bunnies and puppies) to nursing homes to interact with the residents. This program involves a visit where residents can both cuddle with kittens and discuss specific cat-related topics. Others that cannot hold the animals play with kittens that are contained in a playpen and they try to “catch” the kitten with a toy. We've held read to kitty classes for those that need extra help in a setting designed for learning but provide comfort at the same time. It is open to children of all ages and any type of learning difficulty. For people that are looking to shed some of their excess stress we have kitty yoga classes. Regular yoga instructors, the yoga class and a bunch of kittens all working in semi-unison. The people get a good and healthy workout and the animals provide the entertainment and the invention of their own yoga moves. Another program is our monthly journey to Ann's place. There we provide animal assisted therapy sessions to cancer patients and their families. The intuitiveness of the cats really shows here. They really seem to know who wants to play and who can only manage to cuddle.
Further, many of our animals have been adopted out as therapy animals providing comfort to army veterans with PTSD and other ailments, Cancer sufferers, people with suicidal thoughts, depression and much more. In some cases we have provided kittens and older cats with extensive vet bills we have had to cover, but providing the right animal to the right person is worth it.
The area we are seeking help in is expanding our community outreach programs enabling us to help more people. We are planning to host more in our very own “home” classroom and using animal assisted therapy & community gathering spaces to help more people. We have enlisted therapists who will work with us and their patients using the animals as part of the healing process. We aren’t just talking about a sterile building full of pets in cages that get adopted. We are talking about a healing destination for rescue animals and people to interact with anyone that wants to visit, lift their spirits or anything else that can help them through their day. So yes, we will still be an animal rescue but with so much more to offer patrons of all ages.
What we have seen over the last 2+ years is an increasing need for some sort of help or treatment for people of all ages. It has been especially acute among teens and twenty somethings, and we know that covid has been the catalyst for much of it. We have seen a great increase in animals adopted for therapeutic reasons for young people that have problems relating with people and many other difficulties. So the programs we have in mind are needed now more than ever before. When individuals experience the positive emotions brought on by an interaction with an animal, anxiety subsequently decreases, moods lift, and defense mechanisms are lowered. What we are doing is creating the atmosphere where this healing can take place for a multitude of people. Our new therapy programs will touch more lives. It will reach people that may not be able to adopt for whatever reason but can still come to us and reap the benefits that the animals can provide. Our biggest reward is it will allow us to save more animals, which in turn will help us save more people.
