Pamela Saddler is passionate about saving animals.
“I honestly just feel like it’s kind of my purpose,” the founder of Broken Promises Rescue says. “I feel like that’s why I’m here. I’ve always grown up loving animals. I was always saving things, bringing them home.”
At any given time, Pamela is looking after between 15 and 25 cats and kittens in her home.
“It’s a bit crazy,” Pamela says with a laugh. “We constantly have kittens underfoot, kittens on the counter, trying to get in the fridge, but it’s amazing. It’s super fun but definitely a lot of work!”
Pamela’s been doing rescue work for 26 years now and started Broken Promises almost 12 years ago.
“It’s absolutely so rewarding,” she says. “Definitely rescue is not easy, there’s a lot of sadness, but thankfully, most of it is good and when I can look back at all of the animals I have helped, it definitely warms my heart and makes me feel like I did make a bit of a difference.”
Pamela’s made more than a bit of a difference. Devoting all her free time to animal rescue, she’s helped save around 6,000 animals.
“Pamela’s amazing!” says Broken Promises Rescue volunteer Niki Gollmer. “She’s accomplished so much, just thinking of all the animals she’s had in her care or to different foster homes.”
Broken Promises is volunteer-run and relies entirely on donations — something that’s been a big challenge during COVID.
“We’ve just been doing a lot of auctions, 50/50 draws and just things virtually so we can keep bringing in the money,” Pamela says. “We have a Facebook marketplace page so we’re selling gently used items so it’s working, we’re managing to keep a lot, but it’s definitely a lot harder.”
Vet costs alone are about $130,000 a year, but Pamela’s dedicated to saving as many animals as she can.
“I try to keep my house open to the ones that aren’t really adoptable, that nobody else wants, so if it’s adoptable and I can find a home for it, I have to let it go,” she says.
“It’s so rewarding!” adds Niki. “It just makes me feel so good to know we’ve helped so many.”
And Pamela plans to keep helping as long as she can.
“If I didn’t do this work, I think I wouldn’t have a purpose,” Pamela says. “It just gives me something to look forward to every day. I know about an animal needs help, there’s something in my heart that makes me know I have to try to help them as much as I can.”
Pamela has also been on Pet CHEK several times, bringing on pets up for adoption and raising awareness about animal issues.
Tess van Straaten
