The Dogs of Sanctuary

By Rachel Tulloch

My three year old informed me excitedly the other day that he “shpeaks to dogs and they shpeak back to him!” I got to see this in action last Sunday at our church service, where he went up to one of our beloved community canines, Mary Jane, and ‘woofed’ right in her face. M.J. responded with a gentle ‘woof’ of her own.

If you were to visit Sanctuary these days, you might notice that an abundance of four-legged friends have joined our big boisterous family dinners. It makes the space a little more crowded, but the dogs of Sanctuary - big and small, friendly and tough – play a big role in our community. While people from all walks of life and all levels of privilege find companionship and comfort in their pets, many people in our community really depend on these bonds to help them make it through the exceptionally difficult circumstances they face in their daily lives. Dogs provide emotional support, friendship, and protection —things we all need in life, and need all the more if we have to cope without our basic material needs for safety, shelter, stability and decent food being met.

If only we could see each other the way our dogs see us —without judgment— perhaps we would not allow so many of our fellow human beings to live under such unjust conditions. Perhaps we would see one another first as a person, worthy of respect, dignity, and care.

Dogs (and toddlers) remind us, if we are open to it, that we are all connected —we earth creatures of various kinds— all looking for friendship and loyalty and care, all trying to get by in a world that doesn’t make it easy.