07/06/2025
The Seedy Underbelly of the Animal Rescue World
Iâve always enjoyed writing; itâs my way of sorting out my thoughts and emotions and trying to make sense of the world around me. Initially, I hadnât shared these thoughts because I did not want to make a beautiful human soul passing away about me in any way, especially when it was someone I never met in real life. But some recent things Iâve seen on social media have made me feel inclined to share.
When I first heard from a mutual friend about Mikayla from Saveafox Corporation taking her own life, it shook me up. As someone also involved with wildlife rescue, also with a young daughter, and also battling mental illness, as terrifying as it is to say aloudâIâve been there. Iâve felt that teetering of âbeing on the edgeâ. Of wanting to escape but feeling there is no other way. You could see and hear the burn out in so many of her videos the last couple of years, a feeling that is relatable to so many of us. A feeling that was one of many reasons I took a big step back from wildlife rescue recentlyâand I hope this message reaches the right people who may also need to take a step back. Even though it feels impossible, it IS possible. YOU matter. Not just the work you put in for the animals, you as a WHOLE matter.
Animal rescuers of all kinds are primarily empathetic. They are so sensitive to all the feelings of others, primarily animals. When you are constantly faced with watching animals suffer, emotional burnout and secondary trauma are a common side effect in this field. And as if that werenât a heavy enough burden to carry, as a director of a nonprofit, you also must keep up with the (human) public. You rely on the public for donationsâŚevents, socializing and networkingâŚitâs a full-time gig and for introverts (or introverted extroverts)âwhich many of us in animal rescue areâthis is another splash of burnout marinade added to the pot. Then, for a giant heaping scoop of social media. Put in endless hours staring at a screen because that is how you are going to get the most fundingâŚbut make sure you really scour everything you post. Did I write everything in a way that canât be misinterpreted by the public? Will my peers judge me? Did I do enough fact-checking? Is the DNR going to see this out of context and potentially get me into legal trouble? Am I in a gray-area of the law by posting this?
It is hard to find the time to care for yourself when you have dedicated your life to running a nonprofit caring for animals. But you must keep going now, right? Youâve made it this far, and if you donât keep going, where will all the animals that need you go? You feel like you arenât allowed to do normal-life things, like family trips. For example, I once took a vacation and someone said âmaybe if you didnât travel you wouldnât have to fundraise for money so muchââas if my own working wages from my day job should only be used for the rescue. Then, you feel like you must enjoy anything you do for YOU in secret. Your life should only be rescue work. And the public is counting on you, right? Theyâve donated and supported you at every request. You feel them watching every time you temporarily close for intakes. You canât let them down. Youâre too far in nowâŚjust keep swimming. Any time you express your compassion fatigue, burnout, or general exhaustion you are met with a flurry of supportive comments like âDonât give up!â âYouâve got this.â âThank you for all you do! Donation sent!â And the swimming continues. You express your exhaustion to friends and family and they produce you well-meaning suggestions. âYou need a bigger facility!â, or âLetâs do another fundraiser!â, or my personal favorite: âYou just have to get more volunteers.â
Iâve been there. I had/have amazing public support. I had donations that kept our organization growing. I got the bigger facility. It felt like a dream come true. I got the amazing group of volunteers. How much sweeter could it getâŚbut the goal post just keeps getting moved. Cages and enclosures fill just as fast as they are constructed. Thereâs never enough space, time, help, or money to meet the demands of animal rescue. Thereâs always more more MORE. You have kept swimming all this time, and now you are officially drowning. Your whole entire life is now enmeshed into this sense of moral obligation.
But waitâŚit gets worse.
Other people that are in animal rescue can be absolutely viscous in the worst way. These folks that you should be able to find comfort and community in are waiting to criticize you. And the more success you have in growing your organization, the more of these people you will face. These are the people who may do good animal rescue work and youâd love to collaborate with or learn fromâbut their ego makes it impossible. Iâve met my fair share of these types in the last decade. Iâve been bullied, harassed, and even reported to the DNR for doing things that arenât even wrong let alone illegal. It makes you so unbelievably anxious to talk to ANYONE in your field because itâs safer to just stay in your bubble. Thankfully, over the last couple years, Iâve been able to make healthy friendships with colleagues that are genuine and sometimes those friends were the only thing that kept me sane in my darkest hours. I know not every animal rescuer has that circle, though, and I know that lonely feeling.
I will be the first to admit, I am not Mother Theresa. I have scratched my head at other wildlife rehabilitatorâs protocols or general approach to rescue work. Just as I am certain that others have scratched their head at me. I am human, and judging has been scientifically proven to be natural human tendency. We all judge, period. I donât care who you are, youâve judged. Itâs what you do AFTER you allow that human moment of judgment that matters. Do you keep an open mind? Do you share your thoughts with them in a private, constructive and helpful way? Do you remind yourself that there are different ways to get to the same outcome and that doesnât mean one way is inherently wrong? Do you talk about it with a safe friend so you can process and move on?
Or do you bully. Do you start a smear campaign. Do you pick and poke and prod. Now, I want to make this abundantly clearâI am not condoning animal abuse. If animalsâ basic needs arenât met or they are being intentionally hurt, that is NOT OK and should be reported to the proper authorities. The internet and the high council of Reddit is NOT a proper authority. Itâs a safe place for bullies and egomaniacs, compiling those little human-moments of judgement to make it look like a big thing.
The saddest thing in the world is that even after these bullies saw a person who dedicated their entire life to caring for animals now take their own life, they continue to stand by what theyâve said and done. They claim that if they are only âspeaking the truthâ then it can not be called âbullyingâ. YOUR truth is not finite, and the way you choose to speak your truth is what classifies you as a bully.
One of these bullies in particular recently commented on dear friend of mineâs page and that is what prompted me to share these thoughts. My friend is a dedicated wildlife rehabber, and she had made a post outlining her exhausting day and requested compassion. The bully, a well-known wildlife rehabilitator, commented âI will never understand âbeing fullâ when an animal is in needâŚ..I will never turn one awayâŚ..Iâll die trying to keep babies healthy.â This type of thinking and those types of comments are incredibly toxic and damaging to those who are doing their best to rescue animals in any capacity. The author Brene Brown describes this flaunt as a type of âarmored leadership.â Someone who is attaching productivity to self-worth. Brown writes âwhen worthiness is a function of productivity, we lose the ability to pump the brakes.â
Exhaustion should not be worn as a badge of honor. Please do not compare yourself to other rescuers who boast they havenât ate or slept. Your capacity to help is entirely dependent on YOUR resourcesâwhich include mental resources. I donât care if you help one animal a year or thousandsâŚas long as they are well cared for and YOU are well cared for, too. WE need you. Not just the animalsâŚbut your family. Your friends. You are needed and your self-worth is not tied to what you do for animal rescue. Please take a break if youâre feeling drug through the lake. Enjoy the resident animals that you have. Take a bubble bath. Read a book. Is it hard to step away for any length of a hiatus? Absolutely. But YOUR life is just as valuable as the work that you do.
And there will always be animals to come back to help when you are well again.
Xoxo,
Erica
