4 . Lillian, 17, had just started working as a lifesaver at a beach in Australia on New Year’s Eve when beach-goers started to point and shout at the water. The workers quickly examined the situation and saw that a kangaroo had jumped out of the bushes (灌木丛) — straight into the sea.

The animal seemed confused by the fishermen standing on the rocks. So instead of turning back and heading back into the bushes, it jumped right into the water! The poor thing bobbed(摆动)around in the waves and went underwater several times before Lillian decided to take action.

As with any other animal rescue, it’s important to approach the situation with prudence. Wild animals that are stressed can become dangerous to their rescuers, and Lillian was aware of the risks as she took her rescue board and hit the water at a run. “It just didn’t want to come on to the beach because it was kind of scared,” she said. “I was trying to figure out how to get it on the board. But considering that it’s a wild animal, even though I was helping, I wouldn’t want to be hurt by it or make it more stressed out.”

As beach-goers recorded the rescue on their phones,Lillian paddled (用浆划船) behind the animal carefully and guided the kangaroo onto the beach. As soon as Lillian’s feet touched the sand, the beach erupted in cheers for her!“It was quite special. As people there were cheering and clapping, the kangaroo was just sitting there up in the bushes staring at me, as if it was conveying something with its shining eyes,” Lillian said. “I didn’t think that was going to ever be my first rescue, I may have more rescues in the future, but none would be as memorable as this one.”

5 . Paul Beer, head of rhino section at Port Lympne, said:“Obviously we’re all absolutely delighted to welcome another calf to our black rhino family. She’s healthy, strong and already eager to play and explore. Her mother, Solio, is a first-time mum and she is doing a fantastic job. It’s still a little too cold for them to go out into the open, but as soon as the weather warms up, I have no doubt that the little one will be out and about exploring and playing every day.”

7 . Kathleen Rooney knew that writing Cher Ami and Major Whittlesey, from the point of view of a pigeon, was a risk. Rooney, perhaps best known for her 2017 bestseller, Lillian Boxfish Takes a Walk, says her interest in a feathered narrator was excited by one of her students at DePaul University, where she is an English professor. “A student named Brian mentioned Cher Ami in a poem. It blew my mind that this pigeon was so heroic and is stuffed and on display in the Smithsonian National Museum of American History.”

Rooney learned that Cher Ami, a British homing pigeon, helped save a group of American troops during a horrific, multi-day World War I battle. The story of this amazing pigeon and the extraordinary man who commanded the battle, Major Charles Whittlesey, was altogether attractive.

In Cher Ami and Major Whittlesey, Charles reflects on his happier prewar days in New York City, where he ran a law firm with a college classmate. When it came time for battle, though, he and his fellows found themselves cut off from supply lines, surrounded by enemy German troops.

Carrier pigeons were the group’s only hope of contacting headquarters and getting the other Americans to stop dropping bombs on them. Cher Ami flew through gunfire to deliver Charles' message, which finally stopped the attack. She lost an eye and a leg, among other wounds, but was eventually able to hobble (蹒跚) on a tiny wooden prosthesis (义肢) that the Army made for her. She lived another year before dying of her injuries in 1919, but in the novel she continues speaking to readers behind glass in the Smithsonian where she’s been since her death.

There’s an interesting lesson to be learned from Charles’ decisions in the battle, too. “He was famous for something we’d describe as passive,” Rooney says. “Once they were in the pocket, he waited as long as he could. I’m an impatient, active person ... His act was stillness, waiting, keeping everybody’s spirits up. The way he did that was amazing.”

Rooney also hopes the book, with its portrayal of the charming and brave Cher Ami, will boost the appreciation of our furry and feathered friends.

8 . In February 2019, my beautiful cat Xena suddenly lost the use of her back legs, and I took her straight to our vet, Chris. Xena was booked for surgery two days later. The operation was successful, and I went to see her later that day. She seemed tired, but pleased to see me and in much better shape.

A few days later, I took her home, armed with medications plus instructions for her care. I had to keep her in a large cage and teach her how to walk again. And no one could tell whether Xena could walk again or not—it was largely up to her. I wasn’t expecting much, but I carried on doing as Chris had instructed.

Just a week later, Xena amazed me. Not having managed to support herself on her back legs at all, she suddenly stood up all by herself. Soon she began to walk a little with her back supported. Encouraged, I booked her for some hydrotherapy, which was helpful for dogs in this situation. Most cats would panic if put in water, but my brave little cat astonished everyone, tolerating neck-deep water while walking on a machine.

When I took Xena to Chris, he was delighted with her progress. Over the next few weeks, Xena moved from the cage to a room of her own, with all furniture removed so that she wouldn't run into anything or get tripped. Soon, she could manage a few steps out into our garden, though she still needed some help to walk properly without dragging her legs. Despite still being in pain, she really wanted to walk again. After three months since her surgery, she was able to run, jump and climb stairs... anything she wanted.

Xena is now completely back to normal, I’d thought she might be defeated permanently by all that had happened to her. But this courageous little cat simply brushed it all off and got on with living. Many people could learn from Xena.

9 . I’m Reed, 26 years old and from New York City, but I moved to Florida several months ago. I found out on the website that there was a huge rescue effort still going on down here and that volunteers were desperately needed. I was able to get a good friend to sponsor my trip here and had the opportunity to come up for a couple of weeks through the Christmas season,

When I first got here we were just moving into the new building. The first half of my stay I was mainly helping to set this place up, help build a lot of the dug runs and just help out with whatever else was needed. The second week I started to be able to get out more and started filling up feeding stations in St. Bernard Parish.

One day we were out trying to check out an extremely pregnant dog that was reported to be out in St. Bernard Parish, which would soon have parts of it destroyed so getting as many animals out of there as possible was definitely a priority (最重要的事). When we arrived at the location we did see a female dog that clearly had already given birth to her puppies. I tied to befriend her as much as possible, giving her treats and slowly trying to build her trust. She wasn’t going far, so that indicated her puppies were nearby.

Once we built somewhat of a rapport with her, we started to search for the puppies. Almost giving up, we arrived at a house that seemed like it could be a possibility. I got on my hands and knees trying to make out what was going on under the house, staying as quiet as possible. All of a sudden, I heard the weakest sound of a puppy’s crying. After homing in on it a little bit more, there was clearly a trash under the house. After getting a little more help, we were able to get the puppies from under the house with success and we found out they weren’t even a week old.

This experience was so unbelievable, one I know I’ll never forget.