After the welcome reception on Thursday evening, I was feeling pretty good about returning to BlogPaws on Friday. I wasn’t disappointed. The day started out with a pretty great keynote speaker. Or, more accurately, a duo of speakers:
Meet the men of Rescue Ink. These are some pretty tough customers from Queens. If you’re looking for peaceful conflict resolution, they may not be your guys. (Although I have a feeling they’re the type that can solve problems without knocking heads together if the situation allows it.)
In any event, they’re tough customers who care about animal welfare, as the dedication on their website makes clear. They’re extremely committed to stopping animal abuse – you could really feel the emotion behind their words and their passion for this cause was evident. That commitment was inspiring.
Rescue Ink is an international animal welfare organization dedicated to defending the defenseless. (They joked that their lawyers wouldn’t let them go into too much detail about how they actually do that.) Our two speakers are actually two of the founding members of the group.
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| Joe Panz (bio) |
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| Big Ant (bio) |
Rather than give you an exhaustive recap of their speech, I just wanted to share a few of the quotes I jotted down during the keynote:
- “A rescue isn’t a rescue until you take it out of a bad situation and find it a better home.”
- “You don’t send Boy Scouts to get rid of bad guys. You’re gonna run out of Boy Scouts real quick.”
- “They say that animals don’t have a voice. We don’t mind speaking for them.”
- “It takes 5 puppy mill puppies for one to survive long enough to make it to the pet store.”
- “Money shouldn’t get between you and your animal. Your animal is family.”
- “We defend those that can’t defend themselves.”
You can learn more about the guys from Rescue Ink at their website, including some of their success stories. I also recommend checking out this post at Kahuna’s K9s – Eryka did a great interview with them after their speech. This recap at the Pet Health Care Gazette is also fantastic and perfectly describes how I felt listening to these two. Finally, here’s a video of the interview that Miah from Start the Change did with Joe and Big Ant.
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| A shot of their logo on the big screen at BlogPaws |
Up next: the sessions begin, I learn some stuff, more friends are made, and a puppy movie is screened. In short… good times.
Those guys are intriguing…must have been fun to watch. They certainly subvert the stereotype of rescuers all being a bunch of (slightly crazed) women!
We love the guys at Rescue Ink! They are the kind of guys I think any rescue would want on their side!
Sam
Great post and thanks for the links, too! Be sure to put this on the linky post on the BlogPaws Community page, 'Want to Borrow or Share Notes from BlogPaws 2011?'
I'd like to see them go a few rounds in a back alley with Michael Vick…
Oh I would really love to meet these guys, I've been admiring them from a distance and love what they do!
this was fabulous! How did you take such great photos!!? I was sitting near the front and couldn't take any this good.
I enjoyed Rescue Ink too and was so touched by them, you did a wonderful job of describing their session.
You are also doing a wonderful job in keeping up with your follow-ups about BlogPaws. I still haven't done my second one yet and since everyone is describing their experiences far more eloquently I am not sure that I should!
xoxoxo
I'm seconding Life Student's comment! Sounds like a great keynote!
Great quotes!!! It sounds like they're funny in addition to doing great work.
I'll bet those guys were fascinating to listen to! I've read a lot about them, and they do really amazing work!
Kirsten, KB and houndstooth – They were great to watch! They were funny, yet clearly passionate.
Sam – I agree!
Teri – Thanks for the reminder! I almost forgot. 🙂
Life Student and Stacy – Can't argue with that!
Caren – It's all about the zoom lens. It was a gift from the in-laws when the hubby got me a new camera for Christmas. I love it – I was actually towards the middle of the room or a little farther back. And PS – you should post about it anyway. I love hearing everyone's perspective! 🙂
you are such a sweetie! I wish I could see you regularly!
Thanks!! You use a "normal" camera, I use my Android so that explains it! 🙂
I've always wanted to meet the Rescue Ink guys- too fun!
I am still not sure what I think of these guys. I have watched a few episodes of their television show and while it is very interesting, there is something very… odd about them. I think it's in a good way, though I can't really say. They definitely have their hearts in the right place! Listening to them talk would be an experience for sure. Their appearance may also help them reach a broader audience.
I've been wondering a lot lately about how we get people who aren't already aware about animal welfare concerns, to care about said concerns. Perhaps these guys are part of that solution.
Glad Pamela directed me over here. Great quotes. I especially loved – "A rescue isn't a rescue until you take it out of a bad situation and find it a better home." I think that's a great way to look at it. Realistic and honest.
I think their quote on puppy mills was a new one for me. "It takes 5 puppy mill puppies for one to survive long enough to make it to the pet store." I wonder if that's based on true stats or just something they said to make an impact. Not that I doubt it, but it's so impactful I would want to use it (but only if true).
I love Rescue Ink.
Caren – I know! How much fun would it be if we were closer?
Kristine – I know what you mean. I don't really condone violence, but listening to them speak you can tell that they are extremely passionate about animal welfare and it made me cheer for them. I also agree that maybe guys like this are a way to bring attention to the cause. One thought that I had this weekend after some of the sessions and talking with others was that although many of us despise Cesar Milan's methods – he knows how to market himself and present an image. Victoria Stilwell is another good example – that whole Emma Peel thing she's got going on. It's those presentations that grab people's attention, you know?
Mel – I was wondering if the puppy mill quote was true as well. I may look into it – if you find out, please let me know!