Lying Down with Dogs is a 73,000-word memoir about the years I spent starting and running Other Mothers Animal Rescue. As in any worthwhile endeavor, life has a way of intervening, and I include some of those non-animal adventures in my tale as it is all a part of the larger Other Mothers saga. From rescuing kittens under a house to finding a farm sanctuary that would take in a pig, from birthing puppies to cats in the freezer, I tell the inside – often crazy – story of what all is involved in managing such an enterprise. Throw in a little mental illness and death, and what you have is a slice of life like no other.

Overall, I liken it to James Herriot meets Hunter S. Thompson.

The process of living life led me in some unforeseen directions.  A lifelong animal lover, it was no surprise that I started an animal rescue organization. If the definition of success is trying over and over again and not being deterred by the losses, then I am raging success. Starting Other Mothers Animal Rescue in July 2005 and still running it today, my story is one with many lessons to teach anyone with a dream and the tenacity to make that dream come true.

In addition to anecdotes about the animals, I touch on a failed marriage, a nervous breakdown, the death of both parents and, most recently, a deadly virus called COVID-19. My struggles will resonate with anyone who tries every day to live an authentic life and who won’t take no for an answer. Ultimately triumphant, or as triumphant as any life can be, my story weaves together many disparate threads into one cohesive tapestry.

Most of all, it is the story of my salvation. Suffering from clinical depression for most of my adult life, it took a real voyage of the heart to heal me. The dogs and cats that I rescued banded together to save me from myself and to show me that life, with all its troubles and setbacks, is worth living.

Finally, a word about the title: Lying Down with Dogs. While this phrase is normally used to connote harmful, disreputable, or ill-advised endeavors, I prefer to take the terminology literally, as I do most language. Despite the occasional flea, I find there is nothing finer than to lie down with dogs. Close proximity to dogs has never gotten me into trouble. I have done it for most of my life, and I recommend it highly.