I grew up with a dog (to be precise, the dog was already there when I was born). Going through our family photos, our dog was like a family member, always around me. It didn't matter if I was still a baby in the pram, he was joining us for walks, and as a toddler, when I was trying to chase him and pull on his tale. Later when I was at school, he was patiently waiting for me to return. I’ll never forget his joy when I came back home from school. The dog was pretty much my best friend, giving and showing me his unconditional love, affection and teaching me that even when we’re friends there are boundaries to be respected. This positive childhood experience was deeply engraved in my DNA which has stayed with me for my entire life.
When I look back, I have always had a connection with dogs, regardless of where I lived. When I used to live in India, where stray dogs were a common site, I volunteered at an NGO animal shelter which was accommodating hundreds of dogs rescued from streets and fully depended on donations and volunteers. I took my children there and let them spend time with these animals. Eventually we ended up adopting a dog from the shelter. I wanted my children to be able to build up affection, love and respect for animals as I had. During my further years in China, I was rescuing stray dogs, fostering them and trying to find them permanent loving families. These dogs were adopted by same minded people like me. Some of them stayed in China, others were adopted by new families to different parts of the world. I couldn’t rescue all of them, but this was a small contribution of my affection and respect as an animal lover during my years in Asia. It was very rewarding and totally worth it!