BREAKING: We Are Back at Ridglan to Rescue All the Dogs

Moments ago, activists began streaming into Ridglan Farms to rescue the 2000 dogs trapped there in cages. You can follow what’s happening on my Facebook, where we are streaming live, and other social media channels.

But a few words on why we are doing this.

This is not a political cause, really, though politics plays a role. It’s not really a moral campaign, either, though of course ethics plays a role.

It’s fundamentally a fight for our families. The dogs of this earth are not things, or even toys. They are our children when we are parents. They are our brothers and sisters when we are young. They are cousins and friends and—above all—they are family. And when you hurt our family, we will act to protect them.

I am back at Ridglan for Vivian, my first pup who shielded me from bullies at school.

For Natalie, who gave me purpose in my greatest moment of darkness.

For Lisa, who taught me lessons on love.

For Oliver, whose innocence and vulnerability moved a nation.

And, last of all, for James, the beagle I took out of Ridglan on March 15.

James didn’t know there was a big, beautiful world out there. He didn’t know what it meant to have parents, to run in a big yard, to feel love. And yet he must have known it was out there, somewhere. Love is the primordial bond, the thing that all mammals yearn for from the moment they are born.

Ridglan has broken that bond, shattered it cruelly into a thousand pieces. We aim to restore it.

I’m grateful to you for supporting us in that sacred mission.

I’ll see you on the other side of this rescue.