SNAPSHOT
Six years ago, Eric weighed 340 pounds and was diagnosed with high cholesterol, high blood pressure, and Type II Diabetes. His doctor told him he had 5 years to live. Then he met Peety—and everything changed. … Mutual Rescue™ is an initiative that aims to change the way people see animal welfare. By sharing stories about connecting a person with an animal, Mutual Rescue™ hopes to demonstrate that when you support your local animal shelter, you’re not just enhancing an animal’s life—you’re also transforming a person’s life as well. The stories shared by everyday people through Mutual Rescue™ are testaments to the incredible impact that an animal and a person have on each other, and that “rescuing” isn’t in just one direction. (synopsis via Laughing Squid)
It almost goes without saying that animals make a huge difference in the lives of the people who know them.
Whether it’s a guide dog helping a visually-impaired person navigate the world, a cat who lives in a retirement home to give company and comfort to its residents, or a family pet whom the kids adore, animals profoundly the way we see the world and live our lives for the better.
I have never seen that more beautifully illustrated that in the deeply moving story of Mutual Rescue: Eric and Peety, an obese middle-aged man and an obese middle-aged dog who find each other at the Human Society of Silicon Valley and end up transforming each other’s lives.
It’s powerful stuff and testament to the utterly transformative role an animal can play in a person’s life.
As anyone who has ever had a pet will know, they affect you every bit as you affect them; so while rescuing a dog or a cat from a shelter is a wonderful thing to do, and it’s where I’ll be getting my next dog and cat, they honestly rescue you back every bit as much.
Mutual Rescue: Eric and Peety is proof of this most life-changing of truths.