We are still learning ever more about the rescue world, reading interesting ideas, following law changes around the country, and developing our own ideas. We have found that perhaps the greatest source of education for us has been reading the many great rescue blogs out there. Some of them are very informative, while others are more inspirational-most are both. We do not know the people behind most of the blogs, but we feel connected to them as we are always reading their thoughts. Jen and I spend a great deal of time reading many different kinds of blogs, and we find them to be an often underestimated source of value. For instance, beyond rescue blogs, I read tons of venture capital, economics, investment, and general information blogs. My greater point is that whether your passion is animal rescue or education, the dynamic content on blogs is often more informative and entertaining to read then encylopedic websites that were created once upon a time.

With regard to the various rescue blogs we follow, some of them are posted on multiple times a day with incredible layers of depth and content. I am always surprised by how much people are willing to share online and admittedly I have to even push myself to write this small blog. It seems much more comfortable to keep to myself, but we have to start somewhere if we want to be connected in the new world. That said, as we have no followers, I suppose this is more of a “journal” than anything else at this point.

The efforts of the many in the rescue community who post on blogs, write articles, and call for action is already having a huge impact. Awareness is growing, laws are changing, and the euthanasia rate is decreasing. Incredibly, the animal rescue community has grown all over the world. We have found rescue sites in so many different countries, and we can easily see that the global rescue community has become unified in their pursuit of lasting change for animal welfare. A great deal has already been accomplished and the seeds for ending euthanasia have been planted.

In our time spent online, we have started cataloging websites and a list of rescues that we have found valuable so that if we are fortunate enough to launch Mav’s Friends as a 501c3 long term we will already have a running list of rescues that we hope to be able to help. For now, we will just continue learning and volunteering until we have the time to launch a larger effort, but if you are looking for places to donate there are tons of rescues out there who need your help!