WHO ARE WE & OUR STORY

Hi I’m Bethany “Big Dollan” and I am the founder of Big Dollan’s Fur-Rescue. 

A lot of people ask where “Big Dollan” comes from and how it relates to this animal rescue. 

Well, I’m one of 5 amazing siblings, 2 brothers and 2 sisters. I am the eldest sister (aka Big Sister) and I’ve always called my 2 younger sisters “Doll / Dollan”. It’s such a catchy nickname that we all call each other Dollan and because I’m the eldest sister, it’s inevitable I’m Big Dollan.  

I’m a country girl at heart, growing up on the land with nature, animals, space and fresh air that helped me to foster a deep connection to our Mother Earth and Animals.

One of my deepest passions in life is animals and how they impact our lives in so many positive ways. My parents knew from a young age I had a special connection with animals, I was always off exploring, getting lost and running free with all the animals on our farm. I found them soothing, comforting, understanding to my sensitivities, soft, playful, cheeky, loving and I always felt safe in their presence. 

 I have always believed that we all come to Earth with gifts to share and create an impact. My gift is working with animals, in what capacity? Well, I’m sure time will tell.  

I am eager to embark on this new journey. I’m excited to share this with you all and to witness this unfold organically for me, you and our beautiful animals that will cross our pathways in divine timing.  

I created an Animal Welfare Not for Profit Organisation as I am very passionate about animals and their well-being.

 The story behind why I created an animal rescue is because one night when I was working, I saw a very small kitten running across a main road in the northern suburbs of Melbourne. She was feisty, scared and about 8 weeks old, and had clearly been dumped or a part of an unsocialised litter.

At that point in my life I wasn’t in a position to keep her, therefore looked for ways to re-home her without her ending up at a pound or shelter.  After 3 days of trying to re-home this little kitten, it was looking like I was going to have to hand her into the pound, but my heart felt so sad and she seemed very happy in my care. As fate had its own way, I decided to keep her. I named her Eleven, as she was found at 11:11 on 1.11.18.  

I adjusted my world to give Eleven the most nurturing, safe, comfortable, happy and free life. We established an incredible bond and strangely enough I was starting to feel nurtured, safe, comfortable, happy and free in my life. She was this incredible mirror for me, one of my greatest healers and biggest teachers - Eleven became my world. 

 2 days before Eleven’s 2^nd birthday, she ventured off on her usual afternoon walkabout but never returned home. My world stopped and then my whole world shattered into a million pieces. 

 I looked for Eleven nearly every night for 3 months, broken, alone and grieving. I was unable to explain the pain I was feeling to most people but it felt like I lost a part of my soul when Eleven was no longer around as I was grieving the loss of someone that was very special to me. I made myself a promise that if Eleven and I were not reunited by the 111th day of her missing, I would start to open my heart to another furbaby.  

That day came and Eleven was still missing, so I started searching for a new furbaby, but it was slow as a lot of emotions were surfacing. At the start, I remember looking at all the rescue pages and something just didn’t feel right however, I had this urge to maybe try fostering first. 

 I had sensed this would be good for me, so I contacted a local rescue group to volunteer as a foster carer. I eagerly signed up, couldn’t wait another second and shortly after I received my first group of foster kittens, a litter of 4, my heart exploded. 

 I was extremely unprepared for the journey I was embarking on when deciding to become a foster carer, however as I look back on these last 12 months, all I can say is, there is always a divine plan playing out. Loosing Eleven completely broke me, so much so it forced me to reawaken myself through such loss in honour of living a life filled with purpose, passion, enrichment, integrity and finding a way to open myself up again to share my love with another 3 furbabies, Bon Bon, Whitney and Marshall (my last 3 rescues).

So in honour of Eleven teaching me some of life’s most painful lessons, I proudly dedicate this Animal Rescue to her to which is the beginning of rescuing, rehabilitating and rehoming more vulnerable, neglected and sick Animals.