The Mary T. and
Frank L. Hoffman
Family Foundation
and
All-Creatures.Org

Letters and Responses

I just read your story on the computer & my heart goes out to you.

See: Our Silence About Animal Abuse Promotes Abuse of Humans Discussion

I think it is important to let children have pets for many reasons.  It teaches responsibility for one. My entire life, I have been searching for "unconditional" love. not "love" that can be turned on & off like a light switch, depending on the mood at the time.

Fortunately for me, I found my knight in shining armor while in high school & we have been married for almost 23 years. I had made a series of bad choices before I met him & felt all men were just alike (only wanting 1 thing.) Thank God I let this one in.

I was denied the opportunity to have pets most of my childhood, though not to the extent you were. I had a few but they had to be outdoors. I also saw abusive behavior by my father towards animals & us kids. Of course this was called discipline in our generation.

The good news is, I finally found the love I so desperately needed in a rather strange creature... the prairie-dog. I have several now & everyone of them adore us. They live for our attention & they get plenty of it.

We had our first one put to sleep due to health problems 2 years ago & started relocating wild ones from construction sites & other places they are unwanted. This helped us grieve & gave "doomed" wildlife a chance for a better home. We will continue to do this as long as we are able, & able to find places to take them to. It is the most rewarding experience we have ever had. We cannot imagine life without these adorable creatures.

I encourage you to get involved in something you can be passionate about. Good luck.

Deana

Reply from Frank and Mary

Dear Deana:

Thank you very much for your letter and for telling us how your life parallels the story on our web site.

We're also very interested in your story about prairie dogs, and would love to publish a story about them with some photos. We're sure our readers would be very interested, too, as not many people get to know these wild creatures on an intimate basis.

In the Love of the Lord,

Frank and Mary