“The animals that touch our lives are precious gifts. They have a depth of which many of us are not aware.”
Claudia Hehr

I would like to introduce you to some very special animals. As you read their stories and learn more about their lives, you will recognize the similarity in thoughts and feelings experienced by animals and humans.

Please feel free to share the stories about these incredible animals, or simply forward this page to someone you know.

If you, or someone you know has an incredible "animal" story to share, please contact me - It may become the new "featured" story on my Web site.

The Whale

The San Francisco Chronicle carried a story four years ago about the incredible rescue of a whale entangled in a mesh of traps and lines somewhere off the coast of California. The rescue itself, from both a "human" perspective as well as from that of the whale involved... shared a common concern and a common emotion - Survivability and fear. Below is an account not only of the "rescue" itself, but a perspective from the whale herself... as she struggled for her life amid the binds that where pulling her down.

When I first read the article from the San Francisco Chronicle, I knew I wanted to connect with this whale to find out her side of the story... and now I would like to share it with you.

Curiously, I asked the whale if she had a name, and she said that she does but that it is really more like a sound. So, for the purpose of this story, I'll call her Lady.

Lady's story

"I was exhausted and terrified. I had been trying to get the ropes off me for quite a while, but the more I tried, the tighter they got. I knew that I was in bad shape, so I had distanced myself from my family because I didn’t want to bring them into a dangerous situation. When the humans arrived, I had very mixed feelings. Mostly I was terrified that they would kill me, but I also saw a glimmer of hope that maybe, just maybe they might help me.”

Lady mentioned that she knows that some people are very dangerous but that others are nice. She said that even though whales would love to interact more with people, they realize that staying out of people's reach is usually better.

Lady continued, “So, with much anxiety, I tried to relax and have faith that these people would help me. When the men came close, I swallowed hard and, as you would call it, ‘prayed’ that these people were OK. The energy that came off these people was one of hope, but I was still worried and it was really hard to relax. The more the lines were loosened and taken off my body, the better I felt around these people, but I was still anxious about what they would do to me after they were finished. Finally, I was free, and I was so happy, first of all to be able to live, and secondly for the help of these men. I tried to convey how much I appreciated what they did for me and how thankful I was --- thankful that they did not kill me, thankful that they helped me, and thankful that I was able to continue to live in freedom with my family.”

(Front page story of the San Francisco Chronicle on Thursday, Dec 14, 2005).

Below is the account as it was written in the San Francisco Chronicle Dec. 14th, 2005

A female humpback whale had become entangled in a spider web of crab traps and lines. She was weighted down by hundreds of pounds of traps that caused her to struggle to stay afloat. She also had hundreds of yards of line rope wrapped around her body, her tail, her torso and a line in her mouth. A fisherman spotted her just east of the Farralone Islands (outside the Golden Gate) and radioed an environmental group for help.

Within a few hours, the rescue team arrived and determined that she was so badly off that they must act immediately. The only way to save her was to dive in and untangle her, a very dangerous proposition. Just one slap of the tail could kill a rescuer. They worked for hours with curved knives and eventually she was freed.

When she was free, the divers say she swam in what seemed like joyous circles. She then came back to each and every diver, one at a time, and nudged them, pushed them gently around, she was thanking them.. Some said it was the most incredibly beautiful experience of their lives. The guy who cut the rope out of her mouth says her eyes were following him the whole time, and he will never be the same.

Francisco Chronicle, 2005, www.crainium.net/jdjArchives/2006/05/

ARCHIVES - Read previously "featured" stories in our "archives" section.