What do you think of this project?
My Dear Blog friends and visitors,
Sometimes you come across someone so unusual, doesn’t complain, doesn’t expect others to do things for them and just gets things done themselves. These types of people really amaze me! This man, Mr. Leo Grillo is an exceptional human being and he really uplifts my spirits. I pray and wish him very long life and admire his compassion. Mr. Grillo is a real hero!
There are many people who like dogs or animals, but rarely will they get out of their comfort zones or commitments to do something more. Some I understand have genuine commitments they can’t escape. When we don’t want to do something, we can come up with all types of excuses that seem valid or we make them valid. When we want to do something, we just get it done without blame or name.
When you open an animal sanctuary, there are so many inner demons we need to battle and at the same time, learn up new skills. If the animals concerned are important enough for you, then you will overcome your demons and learn up skills. You see how important it is. You have to ask yourself. If we can’t open one, we can visit shelters to volunteer or donate regularly also. Write and create awareness or a multitude of things that can be done to help just from your laptop.
If you do consider opening a shelter or have one, you have to:
1. Get along with people as you need volunteers and employees. Speak in ways that encourage people, bring everyone together and inspire them to help. Very important.
2. Speak up in public and speak up convincingly. You have to speak and all your words and actions must be consistent.
3. Raise funds. Not many would like to donate to animals, but at the same time if your approach is well planned and creatively, there are a lot of generous and kind people who would donate. They are waiting for you to not give up and keep at it.
4. Management skills to over see the staff.
5. Handle stress and emergencies as animals can come in hurt, need long term treatment or get hurt when in the shelter.
6. You have to be patient with animals and people. Animals have a multitude of personalities and no two animals are alike. Some were abused and suffer all types of psychosis. Consistent patience is necessary to help them over their fears and abuse. Love works.
8. Paperwork, marketing, organizational skills. Keeping the books, accounts and correspondences. You have to learn up and be good on social media. That is a must these days.
9. Updates to sponsors, donors, potential donors, volunteers, and connecting sometimes with other shelters. Recognize donors/donations. Never keep quiet about it unless the sponsors request otherwise. Transparency shows integrity. Integrity invites donations on their own. Donations keep your shelter going.
10. Have to be prepared to have some basic medical knowledge about various problems with skin and health of animals so you can understand what the Vet is talking about.
11. Legalities, licenses, approvals. Paying bills on time. Being organized.
12. Cleaning, hygiene and food preparations. Even supplements for certain animals.
13. To give talks to create public awareness. This could inspire others to do more in their own towns and cities.
14. Many more animals will be left at your doorstep. Be prepared for expansion.
These are just thoughts that come to mind and I am sure there are many other factors. I am by no means an expert nor have I done a shelter yet, but would have loved to. The most important is not to blame others or expect others to help you. But you have to do it yourself from A to Z. You cannot be a quitter or else many animals will suffer. This is not about you anymore but about the animals you decided to care for. They need you. When you want to care for animals, you have to be nice to everyone around you because you need their support. Simple equation. You need to represent the animals well as they can’t speak. There is no quitting in this equation. The animals are not unfeeling inanimate objects but sentient feeling beings. They need consistency, care, love and support. Are you willing to overcome your demons for them? Are you willing to overcome your fears for them? Are you willing to overcome YOURSELF for them? If you are and work hard, support will eventually come. We have to believe in what we are doing and go all the way no matter the obstacles. We can’t quit because we are compassionate and the animals have bonded and trust us already. Many donors also have trusted you. Don’t break their trust.
This article I found is very touching and I find it beautiful. I am sharing with you all in the hopes of creating awareness on many levels. Please read it and share with everyone and as much as possible. Do it for the animals please.
Tsem Rinpoche
Actor creates largest US sanctuary for abandoned pets
Actor Leo Grillo founded DELTA (Dedication & Everlasting Love to Animals) Rescue in California, the largest no-kill sanctuary in the US for abandoned pets
Source: http://news.msn.com/pop-culture/actor-creates-largest-us-sanctuary-for-abandoned-pets
LOS ANGELES — Nearly 35 years ago, Leo Grillo thought he could get people to stop dumping dogs and cats in the forests and deserts of Southern California.
He discovered quickly that wasn’t going to happen. There seems to be no end to the number of animals he finds discarded on the side of the road.
“It sucks the life out of me. It’s very, very painful,” he said.
Grillo promised every unwanted animal that crossed his path that he would keep it safe and do all he could to keep it happy and healthy for life. He set up DELTA (Dedication & Everlasting Love to Animals) Rescue to keep that promise, and today, with 1,500 dogs, cats and horses, it is the largest no-kill, care-for-life sanctuary in the nation for abandoned pets.
The sanctuary sits on 115 hilltop acres in western Los Angeles County and has an annual budget of $8 million and about 50 employees. On the grounds are a state-of-the-art hospital, a full-time veterinarian and its own fire department.
The sanctuary, which was founded in 1979, was and still is one of the few care-for-life sanctuaries for domestic animals in the United States.
Or view the video on the server at:
https://video.tsemtulku.com/videos/DeltaSanctuary01.mp4
Grillo, an actor, was driving through the Angeles National Forest in 1979 when he found the first dog he would save—an abandoned, malnourished Doberman-Labrador he named Delta. The two were on a hike in the forest later that year when they found 35 abandoned dogs. Thousands would follow.
Dr. Gaylord Brown met Grillo in 1985 when the actor brought in a dog that had been hit by a car. Brown said he told Grillo how much it would cost to treat the dog.
“I was shocked by his readiness to say ‘Go ahead, go ahead.’ I remember telling my staff at the time, ‘I don’t know how much longer this guy will be around because he is spending all his rescue money on one animal,'” Brown said.
But Grillo told him to worry about the animals and he would worry about the money. Fundraising was never a problem, Grillo said. He became an expert at direct mail donations, not dreaming that mail could become so nearly extinct decades later.
“Look at the hole I’ve dug. We are in the last generation of direct mail respondents,” he said.
Grillo is learning all he can about electronic fundraising. As a start, he’s been named a top-ranked charity by the American Institute of Philanthropy CharityWatch.
DELTA Rescue was one of the first no-kill sanctuaries in the country, but some animals must be put to sleep.
“If they have intractable pain, don’t interact with their caregivers or stop eating, we will help them to the other side in a gentle manner. But we don’t put animals to sleep just because they are diagnosed with cancer or have difficulty rising,” Brown said.
DELTA doesn’t take animals from or place animals with the public. It is for discarded animals only and only those found by Grillo.
Anything the sanctuary needs, Grillo buys it or builds it.
The dogs needed housing, so Grillo came up with straw-baled dog houses. With 25 bales of rice straw (a product used in making particle board) and three sheets of plywood, DELTA Rescue can build a house for the life of the dog, he said. The houses have wood on the inside and stucco on the outside to make them last longer. A pool completes each dog’s quarters.
As the population of animals at the sanctuary got older, Grillo needed a full-time vet. He talked Brown into giving up his private practice to work at a DELTA hospital that he could help build. Twenty-five years later, the hospital is equipped for surgeries, X-rays and anesthesia, with an in-house laboratory. A camera that pans and zooms is being installed in the hospital now, Grillo said, to make it easier to consult with specialists in other parts of the country.
The majority of work at the hospital is with older patients who have cancer, heart ailments, kidney and liver problems and arthritis.
Because of its remote location, the sanctuary has its own fire protection.
“The sanctuary is my line in the sand. With the animals, it is fire,” Grillo said.
He bought three fire engines and has ordered a tanker that will spray fire retardant. “With one fill, one piece of equipment can spray the entire property down, including 50 pine trees, and nothing will burn,” he said.
No one is afraid to call Grillo obsessed. He does it himself. He even made a documentary called: “The Rescuer, A Story of Obsession.” In it, he searches for one dog and her family for two years.
Or view the video on the server at:
https://video.tsemtulku.com/videos/DeltaSanctuary02.mp4
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Thank you Leo Grillo and team for such amazing work!
Well done for saving and helping those who cant speak for themselves. I salute your bravery, kindness and compassion. I am sure it is not easy to manage such a HUGE sanctuary but you are doing amazing work. Especially the staff and volunteers that are helping out and doing this because they care.
Its good to have to this post and educate the many who are still dumping animals. Its really cruel to leave them and not care about their wellbeing after that. We really need more sanctuaries like this so they can be adopted and have a better home for those who really love animals. Please dont buy animals, adopt.
Thank you Rinpoche for the sharing. The dogs and animals look happy in the shelter. May there are more animal shelters out there to take care of animals
This guy is amazing i hope all the animals are okay. I love animals and i think that this is so good and Rinpoche is right when you build a shelter you cannot be a quitter and must get rid of your demons. Thank you for sharing Rinpoche.
Dear Rinpoche, I wish I’m as successful as Leo Grillo. So that I can also do the same thing like Leo Grillo is doing. I love his spirit and his way of thinking. I would love to be a movie director and a veterinarian but I know it will be almost impossible. No.1 If I become a director then I can make movies that promotes vegetarianism and vegan-ism. No. If I become a vet, then I won’t have troubles when the animals are wounded. Thank You Rinpoche for sharing.
I like the first picture a lot, it speaks for itself, it’s very straight forward and clear. Animals need humans to voice up for them as well because we all know they can’t talk,that’s why they need our help.
Beautiful
Dear Rinpoche,
It is really amazing how far Grillo has went since he rescued Delta a malnourished Doberman-Labrador 35 years ago it’s truly mind blowing how much he has managed to do.
From having the largest no kill care for life animal shelter in US to making 115 acres of hill top land in to a very big animal sanctuary it is truly inspiring how so much things can be done by just not giving up and trowing tantrums.
Even though the sanctuary has an annual budget of $8 million it’s great to know that instead of that large sum of money being spent on materialistic items it is put in to help save and care for the lives of hundreds of dogs, cats and horses!
Thank you Rinpoche for sharing such a inspiring story!
Love
Jutika
Mr Grillo is truly incredible. He spent his time and money caring and building homes for the homeless and helpless dogs. He did it out of love and did not expect anything in return. He is a man that everyone should respect and be inspired by his kind and generous acts.
This is such good new to hear 🙂 and for people who read this post in the morning, it is sure to make your day amazing. What a good and happy start to a day. Thank you for sharing this post with us Rinpoche.
This is an incredible endeavor. It is a sign of oure compassion to the animals. Thank you, Rinpoche for sharing this wonderful article. I hope his project will be successful.
This guy is truly incredible…. to think that he built such beautiful homes for all these homeless dogs and even learnt up to manage the dogs… on top of that, he does all the rescues personally! I can understand why his 50 staff members are so committed and passionate about their work… Especially the fact about the animal world is that many times people are just unable to give the best care for these animals, but Grillo makes it possible. I must agree with Dr Brown… it must be a haven for vets to work in such a place like DELTA.
Thank you Rinpoche for this most inspiring post. What does it take to be able to start an animal sanctuary and maintain it? I think Grillo shows us what it takes.
First of all, is his commitment to the cause of rescuing these animals and keeping them safe, happy and healthy for life. It was a promise he made, from the start, to every animal he rescued. Care and love and compassion propelled him to spare no effort or time to save these animals.In one case, he searched for a dog and her family for two years before he found and rescued them.
His love, care and respect for other beings included those who worked with him in the sanctuary to look after the animals.Together with his care , he was also a source of inspiration to those who worked with him to look after the cats, dogs and horses in this sanctuary.One can see that every person in this sanctuary, who handled the animals, reflected the same love and compassion he had for these beings.
What Grillo has achieved here for love of these animals, can be achieved by others too. If everyone follows his example and not let “I will do it” wait upon “I can’t”, it is achievable.
Mr.Grillo really show true compassion towards animals. Without full determination and compassion and selfless, you can’t imagining how he can built up largest animals sanctuary in USA. It is truth we are subjective to do things, for things we like to do no matter how we can complete it but for things not interested or felt troublesome, we will create a lot of excuses not doing it. From Mr.Grillo , we should change this mindset.
Thanks for Rinpoche’s sharing.
This may sound negative. But in this world everything is about money. It is reallt sad that when one wants to do something good, money is an issue. This really hold things back.
Recently my boss has just bought a car. It is a sports car that is worth sgd 338k (2nd hand). He paid it over 4 years. I am really shocked by this and feel sorry for the way the money is spent – so many beneficial things can be done with this amount of money. So many people and animals can live better lives with these money. What a wrong usage. Obviously he does not feel this way.
I do not see anything good about this spending except ego boosting.
Mr Grillo is both intelligent and kind. A man whom I admire.
Thank you Rinpoche for sharing the blog with us is very inspiring. Animals is very innocent the are helpless so the only to help them is us whenever we can feed them or even bring them home take of them if we can I think is a very meaningful act because we learn how to give without any condition.
Wow, Leo Grillo is truly a Hero as Rinpoche declares. Not afraid to care and become responsible for others’ lives. I think the scariest part of giving care is the long term responsibility we will take on for another being.
In our society of the 21st century, sense of responsibility is viewed as burden and the thought of carrying a burden for longer than our shortening attention span is perceived to be undesirable and a quest for the foolish.
Although this selfish way of thinking is easier in the short run, this habit creates a whole new version of burden for us: inner burdens like fear of loneliness, low self-esteem from lack of accomplishments and realization of our own insignificance.
On the contrary, heroes like Leo Grillo may have a tougher time at the beginning. However, his life will be filled with respect from others for his selflessness, he will live in peace from a life well lived, his actions will leave an impact and inspire others long after he is gone.
Thank you Rinpoche for sharing this story.
The love for animals (dogs and cat) of Mr. Grillo was beyond my imagination. Leo truly loves them with his heart till the extend of spending money saving the life of just one dog. Watching the video of him going round rescuing abandoned animals made me realized that not only he don’t treat them as animals, he love them as if they (animals) are his children. Abandoned lonely children left uncared off and straving to death on the streets. He sense their lonliness, hopelessness and devastating situation which requires immediate attention without much delays.
Rinpoche, Leo is somebody who is truly an example of a selfless being putting others first especially in this case his object of rescue are beings who can’t speak, ‘fight’ for it’s Rights nor even seek medical help when ill.
Appreciate for bringing up this real-life example and shared with us. Tashi Delek
When we rescue animals, instead of thinking that we are helping them, how about change our mindset and think that we are helping each other. We giving them protection, they in turn give us the chance to practice giving and compassion. We recently rescued and adopted some cats. They have brought fresh perspectives on how i view my relationships with others and the surrounding. Please do consider taking the first step to rescue/adopt strays…..you may discover a hidden treasure!
Thank you very much for sharing this incredible story, Rinpoche.
Thank You Rinpoche for sharing.
Actually I like this idea coz it’s giving care & love to those less fortunate – for life! It’s even more crucial for animals to be cared coz they are handicapped (compared to us) in this dimension; finding food and safety is not easy for them.
Thank you Rinpoche for sharing this, it’s truly inspiring!
The love and cares towards animals can take Mr. Grillo so far. I admire his courage and consistency as these are the keys quality for me to achieve.
My partner and me always want to have a place like this to take care especially abandoned and injured dogs, we understand it’s not easy like what Rinpoche has stated out and it could be more problem when the mind is not stable. A care taker of an animal shelter keep asking us why you want to have it? Everybody who have it is suffering and barely survive in Malaysia, and she also brief us what kind of challenges it will be. We don’t know how much we can achieve but we are taking one step at a time.
I really pray for Mr.Grillo to live long, as an inspiration to the world of how far you can go when you truly care about animals.
Thank you Rinpoche!
Who says spirituality must only benefit human being? Kudos to him. By the way, correct me if I am wrong. I think, Rinpoche must have been in similar position when Guru first started to teach in Malaysia. From benefiting a single human being untill now… having Kechara and so forth. Sweating and squishing all the energies just to benefit mankind!
Roses are red, violets are blue, This was such a nice read to kickstart a day so blue.
It’s been raining here in Klang and the weather is rather gloomy. That was sure an inspirational read to start the day. Thank you so much for posting it.
I’m so touched and blown away by Grillo’s love, compassion and commitment to the animals. He is truly someone who makes the world a better place! It’s these animals good fortune to meet up with him. Thank you Rinpoche for publishing this.
Sometimes you ask yourself if that one homeless animal you adopt will make a difference. Sometimes you ask yourself if that one stray you feed will make a difference.
Well, ask yourself this: If you were that stray animal, will it a make a difference to you?
Just do it!
Yes, good point!
This is so beautiful, you can tell, how much he thinks of the animals, trying to provide everything he can – from home, to space, and medicine. you can also see how happy and appreciative)they are. It really shows how much he cares. . even though, as he says, some are too independent,
and so he has to leave them for a while. Thankyou so much for sharing Rinpoche, it is beautiful. .
What a incredible endeavor!! Pure fire in this man, thanks to Rinpoche for sharing this with us.;o