Opinion: In defense of Herding Dog Rescue

This week, Deborah Miller's Herding Dog Rescue facility in Yaphank was raided, and numerous animals were removed. I recently adopted a very sweet and loving Shetland sheepdog from Miller, and I've adopted other dogs from shelters and been involved in greyhound rescue.

It is hard for those who've never been involved in animal rescue to truly grasp how difficult and noble a task it is.

There are so many dogs and cats left homeless and so few funds to go around to take care of them, especially in a faltering economy, and yet Miller had managed to keep her group operating and to find the best homes for these poor creatures.

Millions of dogs and cats a year wind up in animal shelters. The recession and housing foreclosure crisis forced an inordinate number of otherwise well-meaning people to give up their pets to shelters because they could no longer afford to care for them. Five out of 10 dogs and seven out of 10 cats in shelters are destroyed, simply because there is no one to adopt them, according to statistics from the ASPCA.

The grassroots movement by nonprofit rescue groups literally plucks strays from the brink of death from kill shelters. These are animals who otherwise wouldn't stand a chance. When Miller got these animals, many were already in pretty rough shape - which could explain the poor condition of some of the animals found in her home. As do other rescuers, Miller then put in her own time, energy, money and passion to place the dogs into the right homes.

When we adopted Chester, our Sheltie, from Miller's organization, he had anemia and was scrawny, but she had been able to get him basic medical care.

Through her connections with New York City shelters, Miller found Chester at a Staten Island shelter and added this handsome 6-year-old black, white and brown dog to her stable of animals. Miller makes home visits, follows up with adoptive families and answers all questions from new owners like my family - spending the time necessary to make sure the animals are doing well. Now, months after we adopted Chester, she remembers every little detail about him. That is called love and devotion to these animals.

Chester now spends his days relaxing by my side as I work, showering my 6-year-old son with unabashed kisses when he comes home from school, playing catch with an beat-up soccer ball - and very soon he will probably need to go on a summer diet to shed some of the excess weight he has put on since becoming part of our family. He looks at me with his sweet brown eyes, as if to say "thank you" for making him a part of the family.

And, I say "thank you" to Miller for rescuing this dog and for all the other animals she's given a second chance to. She deserves our praise, and a second chance herself.

Laura Koss-Feder lives in Oceanside.