Zhixiang, a 53-year-old Buddhist monk living in Shanghai, China, has been rescuing animals since 1994. One day, 27 years ago, he was driving down the highway when he saw a cat.
The cat struggled to crawl to the side of the road with only two paws. This image, which the monk still remembers, is what prompted him to rescue cats and dogs. Zhixiang now has about eight thousand dogs in her care, not including hundreds of cats, as well as chickens, geese, and even peacocks.
Until 2017, he did not accept any monetary donations from anyone. He only allowed people to donate food. But as the number of dogs grew, he realized he couldn’t handle it all on his own.
„I didn’t accept donations until January 15, 2017. Until then, I was saying. No, animals don’t need money. They need food. You can help by donating edibles. I used to keep animals at Baoan Temple, but it was too small.” Zhixiang.
Despite the difficulties the monk faces every day, he plans to continue his work with animals at least until his retirement at the age of 65. The man hopes to be able to find someone to replace him and continue to take care of the animals as well as himself.
