Tatyana Beletskaya is a native Muscovite, an economist by training, manager of a large international company, and at the same time she is a co-founder of the Let's Live! Charity fund and a hospice for dogs. The only one in Russia.
- Tanya, how did it happen that your life turned out to be connected with dogs?
- I don’t like the word “connected”, it’s some kind of press, debt, you’re connected with something or someone and it’s as if there is no way out, I don’t have enough air in all duties, I’m a typical Sagittarius, for me the main thing - freedom. As for my life, there are dogs in it, moreover, from birth, and my favorite work, and friends, and travel, and a lot of everything that I love. And about dogs - it happens that a person is a congenital freak-dog, this is the diagnosis. I always wanted a dog, my parents could not stand my crazy pressure and I got a dog in my childhood. And then off and on. By the way, at the same time I love my work, all my ancestors worked in trade, except for my parents, and I, too, in sales. It all fits together perfectly. It’s just that in life there are two important equivalent matters, two ways of implementation. Both for the soul.
- Tell us about the hospice for dogs - from the moment the project idea was born until today.
- At first it was a rather ghostly dream. I wanted to do something specifically for the most vulnerable - for old dogs and for dogs with disabilities, that is, for those who have little chance of finding a family, and who certainly will not survive on the street. But I was one "so smart", and it was difficult to translate it all. And then I accidentally met Daria Pushkareva, my Dasha: I was a volunteer driver in one large animal protection fund, she was a volunteer photographer, and we spent fourteen hours wandering around shelters, rented dogs for an extension, talked and couldn't talk. And after that do not believe in fateful meetings - from that day we are not just best friends, but also started our charity fund for old dogs and dogs with disabilities, “Let's live!”.
It was funny that both understood the insanity of this idea, understood that there was no money, that we won’t find sponsors, that the project would be almost impossible to “publicize”, but could no longer stop. The project was conceived as a chamber dog, 40-50 dogs, but there are much more people who urgently need help, who die without our help right now. There are a huge number of them, in fact, so we understand that there are already about a hundred dogs, and there will be more, only the financial issue here acts as a limiter.
- The “Let's Live!” Foundation has existed for three years. What did you manage to do during this time?
“In addition to jokes, an incredible amount has been done in three years: land was bought, 6 buildings for dogs were built, but, most importantly, absolutely home and comfortable conditions were created for almost a hundred old and disabled people, everyone receives the necessary care and treatment. It all sounds so cheerful, but in fact there is a huge, very hard work of my best friends Daria and her husband Dmitry, because they live with dogs, and all the hardships and difficulties basically, alas, fall on them. I am more "on the hook", a driver and a loader.
Many who follow us on social networks (instagram @danka_pu, group on Facebook) change their minds about age-old dogs, dogs with spinal injuries, the so-called “spinalniks”, and adopt the experience of care and treatment. And the truth is not in a hurry to euthanize, give dogs the opportunity to live happily ever after, they write to us that the dogs "Let's live!" Inspire them, give them strength to overcome difficulties. It all sounds a little pathetic, but such letters are incredibly pleasing to us and, in turn, give us strength. They even send us drawings of our dogs, it’s so touching.
- Who is helping the hospice today? How and how can the fund be helped?
- Our Foundation and all dogs exist mainly at the expense of the founders, that is, ours. Of course, there are those who help regularly, others only from time to time, but this help, which is very valuable for us, is not comparable to the tenth of the monthly expenses for food and dog treatment. Therefore, we try to rely only on ourselves. We don’t like and do not really know how to ask, which is probably why they help us more willingly. We can always be helped with money, feed and medicine. We have specially made a list of urgent needs on our website dog-rehab.ru and are always very sincerely glad of any help and gifts.
It seems to me that there are more people helping, somehow more and more they began to fit into projects of assistance not only to animals, but also to children, old people in nursing homes, and began to go to hospices. It is important that people not only worry and shed tears when they see some calls to help, but also act.
You can go to the old people and just talk to them. Send them personalized postcards for the holidays, bring some simple gifts. They don’t need much, though they value attention, they don’t have enough communication to listen to, some of their stories about youth. This is not difficult absolutely! You just have to get up and do it.
- For such an activity not only money is needed, but also a certain amount of mental strength. Where and in what do you get them?
- We will assume that this is a cycle of life-giving energy in nature: you save someone, heal, care for, you really worry, then this someone - God willing - gets better, well, more precisely, comes back more or less normal, plays, rushing or rustling there quietly in an old-fashioned way, basking in the sun and happy. And at such moments, we are incredibly happy because we managed to do something quite concrete, to slightly break the balance of good and evil towards good. But this is not always the case, of course, it happens, they didn’t pull it out, it happens, they pulled it out, and after some time the illness or old age took their toll, and your little animal leaves for the rainbow. It happens, and this is the worst thing, the dogs leave in a row one by one. And then you really understand that you are on the verge of collapse, that everything is terrible, that everything is useless. And we begin to console each other, look for some kind of reassuring words, sometimes we just sit and roar all together, even that happens. But it is not without reason that we chose the name “We will live!”, We have no right to do this - to turn sour and fold our hands, we must sleep, we must treat, we must live. The main thing to remember is that all our dogs live with us, as it were right to say, extra-life, extra time that they would not have at all. It is important.
- Tell us about the miracles that happened in your work with dogs.
- I simply adore miracles, and from this they constantly happen, the main thing is to notice them! There are simple miracles, young dogs are brought to us with a fracture of the spine, we put them on strollers, or as we call them “chariots,” and they start running, playing, living a full life, sometimes moving faster than healthy dogs. Or we take away an emaciated, bald dog, fatten, treat, restore hair - and it turns out such a handsome man or beauty that everyone around us begins to admire and envy! These are simple man-made miracles, miracles of patience and proper treatment.
-
- Beauty Whirlwind
-
- Whirlwind model
-
- Drago
But real miracles happen - we have an old woman, Vikhritsa, a Russian canine greyhound, a year was completely paralyzed after a stroke, she was fed from a syringe, she could only lie down, but she got up, is now worn, just not to jinx it. Or another miracle, for example, Drago, a dog who had his hind legs cut off by a train when he was picked up by a wild man, didn’t let people in, didn’t give injections and healed wounds, they all told us to put him to sleep in chorus. But Dasha patiently nursed him, he was well socialized, moved on his forepaws, he couldn’t rush around. These miracles happen less often, but they also happen. I can talk about miracles for a long time, because we have many miracles, like in a fairy tale!
- Were there cases or individual dogs that were especially remembered sunk into the soul?
- They all sink into the soul, otherwise it does not happen. But there are dogs for which we are something like servants with bowls and medicines, and there are those who become really your dogs, stick to you, every minute they try to show you that they love, that they are grateful. You worry terribly about leaving such dogs, and you cannot survive completely, you always remember.
“A lot has already been done, but is there anything you dream about?”
- There are dreams-utopias, but there are dreams-tasks. For example, my main dream is utopia, that people become kinder in principle, that there is no cruelty to animals, that there are no homeless animals, that no one ever tortures or kills anyone. I also really want people not to buy dogs and cats, but to be adopted from shelters, because they really are no worse, honestly, honestly! I also dream that in the world there shouldn’t be any useless living creatures, it doesn’t matter, old people, children, dogs, cats. So that everyone is loved and needed. Well these are utopian ideas, but sometimes I, especially when I’m driving somewhere for a long time, dream and imagine how great it is. For an adult aunt, this is strange, of course.
Dreams-tasks are very simple. They need to find strength and embody. I dream of finding some serious financial source for our foundation and implementing all my ideas: to set up my own hospital, rehabilitation equipment, and, most importantly, to be able to help as many dogs as possible.
History already exists, but there is no money, as usual. It would be great if I shot some cool animation studio, Pixar, for example, I really like their cartoons. But this is unrealistic, so we will collect money, look for young animators and shoot. I am sure that it will turn out interesting and worthy!
- Is it difficult for you to make time for a shelter?
- I want to correct: we are not a shelter - we are a big dog family! Difficult, very difficult, honestly. My work involves a lot of business trips, because I am a regional sales manager, and my job is to travel. I can only visit my family and beloved dogs on weekends, unfortunately.
“If not for the dogs, then who?”
“It's hard to imagine ... Not dogs, then human old men.” Yes, probably that is. With my “creative rest”, I would definitely find someone to help besides dogs.
- I can not help but ask. How do you feel about cats?
- Funny question! It is believed that if a person loves dogs, then he is not a catman at all! But I have everything cunningly - I was born in the year of the Cat, although many mistakenly believe that this is the year of the Rabbit. A cat is my totem beast, I have a large collection of cat figurines, I used to bring from every trip, and my friends constantly give it. Now I ask you not to give, because there is nowhere to put the whole house in cats. Well, I associate myself just with the cat, which walks by itself and walks wherever it wants.And I would have got a cat, but I have a German shepherd, which is not enthusiastic about such a decision, so that to save all the cats of the world, only figures are at home.
- With whom is it easier for you to find a common language - with animals or people?
- I can find a common language with anyone, it is a skill developed over the years of work in sales. Another question, with whom it is more pleasant for me to find a common language, there is no difference at all, is a dog, a person, a crocodile or a warthog pig. It just needs to be interesting and pleasant to me. Both in dogs and in people I appreciate the ability to have fun from the heart, not the absurd disposition and the inclination to adventure. With such I find a common language right away. I don’t like boring among dogs or people. No, not like that: nerds no-re-no-shoo at all!
- Well, in conclusion, I want to ask: what do you personally lack in life?
- I think that, like most, I chronically lack time, the triumph of world justice and ... love, oddly enough.
Loading...