Sacred path: Buddhist animal sanctuary in Young

Photo by Wib Middleton

By Alan R. Hudson
Gazette/Connection Correspondent
It has been nearly five years since Tara’s Babies Animal Welfare began rescuing animals displaced by Hurricane Katrina. Tara’s Babies operates a no-kill animal rescue and sanctuary “off the grid” at the Ellinwood Ranch, near Young.

A few dogs from the dark days of Katrina still remain and many more have been added since. This is no normal animal rescue however: It is operated by three very dedicated and compassionate ordained Buddhists.

Kunzang Drolma, a Buddhist Nun and the director of Tara’s Babies, graciously invited the Connection to spend the afternoon at the facility. When we arrived, she was (as we had anticipated) wearing her Shamtab—the traditional Buddhist robe—as she fed her canine adoptees.

Tara’s Babies was started by Kunzang Palyul Choling, a center for Buddhist study and practice, based in Maryland. The Center is led by Jetsunma Ahkön Norbu Lhamo, who is the first Western woman to be recognized and enthroned by Tibetan lamas as a Tulku or “enlightened teacher.” Originally, the land was intended to be a Buddhist retreat.

We asked Drolma about the beginning of the sanctuary:

“We had 130 animals when we started—they were all Katrina dogs. And we all anticipated that once the dogs all got adopted or moved on from here, that would be the end of it. But to Jetsunma it wasn’t the end of it, because what we discovered was that there were just so many dogs suffering.

“Katrina was a catastrophe that threw it in everyone’s faces but ultimately, every day, hundreds of dogs and cats are being euthanized in shelters because there’s not enough space for them—just because they were abused, homeless, old or sick. And so that’s when we just moved straight into this process of being a no-kill rescue and sanctuary. We will never euthanize.”

What’s needed, explained Drolma, is a paradigm shift. One that is so profound that shelters will become a thing of the past. While euthanasia is something that Tara’s Babies does not agree with, the solution lies at a higher cultural level.

“It’s not to condemn the individuals working in those places (i.e. shelters that euthanize)—it’s a systemic problem that we have: that we have too many animals and there are too many breeders and there’s not enough spay and neuter which means that there are so many animals in need. So I don’t want to point my finger at any one individual—I think we have a cultural problem.”

The “Tara” in Tara’s Babies refers to Tara, the Buddha of Enlightened Activity. Drolma explained the story of this Buddhist Deity:

“The Buddha of compassion was looking upon the suffering in the world and was so overwhelmed by his inability to end it that he started to weep and one teardrop became Green Tara and one became White Tara. They are two female Buddhas of compassion. One represents the more active role—green Tara. And white Tara is the meditative, reflective aspect. Jetsunma has been recognized as having the qualities of Tara. All beings are babies of Tara—every dog, every cat.”

Drolma explained that “active compassion” is central to her spiritual practice. Her spiritual teacher and leader of her church, Jetsunma, believes in prayer as an “Act of being in the world.” Drolma explained, “Prayer is not just the words you speak in solitude or the wishes you make to benefit others—prayer is your interaction with those around you.”

The economic downturn has resulted in a different kind of flood: dogs and cats either abandoned or surrendered due to poor economic circumstances. Tara’s Babies and other groups are desperately trying to find homes for all the homeless animals. Drolma said,

“The economic crisis is the Katrina of today. I applied to increase the number of dogs and the county, very graciously, didn’t put a limit on us, as long as we take proper care of the dogs.

“Not a day goes by that I don’t get at least one e-mail from someone who just lost their home to foreclosure, or a friend did and they need to find a home for their dog or cat. These are often older dogs and they’re likely to be euthanized. There aren’t that many no-kill places and they’re all going to be full at this point. It’s out of control now—dogs in need.”

A few of the dogs at the facility are from hoarding situations. One such situation involved around 300 animals. An animal hoarder is someone who has an unusually large number of animals—so much so that he or she is unable to provide minimal care for them. Hoarders often live in a state of denial where they believe that all their animals are actually well cared for—despite obvious evidence to the contrary. Hoarded animals often live in highly unsanitary conditions and are starving or ill.

Drolma was characteristically understanding about people’s motives. She said, “I think for a lot of people it starts off with the good intention of saving animals, but they don’t know how to stop and so it ends up as an abusive situation. In every hoarding situation I’ve heard of, the dogs are actually very neglected, they’re often in their own feces, it’s dirty, they’re not fed—it’s definitely a psychological problem. It’s not like they are just regular folk who have too many dogs. It gets way out of control. '

Drolma introduced us to Calvin—a Border collie mix who may have otherwise been euthanized due to his unpredictable disposition. At Tara’s Babies, however, he will live out his days with plenty of human affection and the company of other dogs.

Tara’s Babies uses the Dog Whisperer method to train their dogs. Drolma explained this technique:

“The principle of the dog whispering method is that to work with dogs you need to speak their language and operate in the way dogs operate—not the way people operate. The first thing isn’t about training your dog to sit and stay and all those things: It’s to establish a relationship with your dog that you’re the calm and assertive pack leader and the dog is the calm and submissive pack follower.”

The shelter and sanctuary currently is home to about 60 dogs. Many are adoptable. Due to the remote location, finding homes is for Tara’s dogs more difficult than it would be for an in-town shelter. Occasionally, they will host an adoption day at the Payson Safeway. The next one is scheduled for Saturday, Sept. 11, from 10 a.m. - 3 p.m. Drolma said, “Unlike the Humane Society, people can’t just drive here when they want a dog.” For information on adopting a dog or to make a contribution visit their website at http://www.tarasbabies.org.

We asked Drolma the most important thing that Buddhism can teach. She said, “Compassion,” and quoted His Holiness—The Dalai Lama, “My religion is kindness.”