Rescue....

[Laura's Babies]

To me, a rescuer is anyone that gives a kiity (or other animal) a life it would not have otherwise had... a home, love, medical care, a dry,warm safe place to sleep, food... any or all of the above.

[Grace]

What Laura said.

We have 5 cats; 2 of them were chosen by us; the other three just happened to cross our paths.

[Lizzie]

For me, a rescuer is someone who takes in a cat (or other animal) for that animal's good and in spite of the rescuer's inconvience. So, someone who goes to a shelter to adopt because they want a cat or dog, while this is a great thing to do, is not a rescuer. Someone on the way to work who sees an animal that needs help, stops and does what is needed in spite of knowing they are going to be metaphorically shot when they get in late, they are a rescuer. It's accepting a cat that you don't really like, or that is going to cost you more than you can afford, or that has behavior that you really wish you didn't have to deal with. It's when the benefit to the animal outweighs the benefit to the rescuer. Although, those of us who rescue (and I'm very small time) know that the friendship, companionship, trust and fun that we get from our rescued animals makes us feel blessed in spite of all the problems we face.